This is a listing of significant characters in Charlaine Harris's The Southern Vampire Mysteries / Sookie Stackhouse novels only. HBO created a television series called True Blood based on the novels.
Main characters
Sookie Stackhouse
Sookie is the main character of The Southern Vampire Mysteries, and resides in the fictional town of Bon Temps in rural northern Louisiana. In the first novel, Dead Until Dark, she describes herself as being 25 years old, with blonde hair and blue eyes. She also states that her "legs are strong and [her] bosom is substantial... [with] a waspy waistline”. She is written to wear a ladies size 8-10. Sookie, although not highly educated, is well read and has an extensive vocabulary. This is primarily attributed to her affinity for her “word-of-the-day” calendar. Although Sookie appears to be human, she possesses telepathic abilities, which manifested at a very young age. Later she learns she is a fairy-human hybrid. She is able to read most human minds, and after meeting the vampire Bill Compton, learns that she can not “hear” Bill's thoughts. She discovers that while it is possible to read the minds of other supernatural creatures, they do not “broadcast” as clearly as true humans. Sookie lives in her ancestral home, which she inherits from her grandmother, Adele Stackhouse, who is murdered in the first book. She has one sibling, her older brother Jason Stackhouse. In the sixth book, Definitely Dead, Sookie discovers she is part Faerie. Sookie has several Fae relatives, including twin cousins Claude Crane and Claudine Crane, and Great Grandfather Niall Brigant. Sookie works as a barmaid at Merlotte's; a local bar and grill owned by Sam Merlotte. In later novels, Sookie also earns money (mainly by utilizing her telepathic powers) by working for the Vampire Sheriff Eric Northman, and the Vampire Queen of Louisiana, Sophie-Anne Leclerq.
Eric Northman
Vampire Sheriff of Area Five (one of the vampire districts of Louisiana). The former Viking is over 1,000 years old, and portrayed as a very powerful vampire. As the Sheriff of Area Five, the largest area of the state, he is a powerful player in vampire politics and all vampires living in his area must submit to his authority. He is smart, ruthless, and has a good sense of humor. He loses his memory in Dead to the World due to Hallow Stonebrook who is later killed by Pam. He becomes romantically involved with Sookie in Dead to the World. Later on in All Together Dead he, along with Pam and a few other notable vampires, travel to the Vampire Summit with Sophie Anne Leclerq.
Bill Compton
A vampire and Confederate veteran of the Civil War, Bill lived in Bon Temps at the time he was made vampire. His wife was named Caroline and they had five children. He was turned into a vampire against his will by Lorena. Bill is the investigator for Area 5, under Eric's supervision. He becomes Sookie's first romantic interest. Later on becoming romantically involved with Selah Pumphrey in the book Definitely Dead, he started dating her to make Sookie jealous. He has a great memory and created a vampire database for the Queen of Louisiana, Sophie Anne Leclerq.
Sam Merlotte
Sam is a shapeshifter. Unlike weres, who can change into a specific type of animal, Sam can change into any animal he comes in contact with or views a photo of, though he prefers the form of a collie dog because people perceive it as 'friendly'. He is also the owner of Merlotte's, a small bar in Bon Temps, LA. Sam has expressed interest in dating Sookie and has kissed her on more than one occasion. The two went on one date in Dead Until Dark. Sam is always concerned for Sookie's safety. Sam Trammell portrays Sam Merlotte in HBO's television series True Blood. In Dead in the Family, he dates a Were, Jannalynn who later ends up accidentally killing him in a battle. Sam is then brought back to life by Sookie through the "Cluviel Dor", an item given by Sookie's fairy grandfather Fintan as a love token to Adele, Sookie's grandmother.
Vampire characters
Alexei Romanov Introduced in Dead in the Family, the character is the vampire incarnation of the historical prince Alexei Nikolaevich, the last Tsarevich of Russia. He was made vampire by Appius Livius Ocella, thus making him Eric Northman's vampire “brother”. He was spoiled while alive due to his hemophilia and his royal position, and was psychologically scarred by the massacre of his entire family in front of him.
After Ocella made him a vampire, he was obligated to become Ocella's lover. This combination of stresses made Alexei mentally unstable and uncontrollable even decades after becoming a vampire.
Before his death, he bonds with Jason because he says Jason reminds him of one of his attendants when he was alive, a man who was kind to him.
Andre Paul Andre is Queen Sophie-Anne's second in command and her vampire “offspring”. Sookie considers him very frightening; he will do anything to ensure Sophie-Anne's power. At one point, he makes an attempt to force Sookie to drink his blood in order to have more control over her as he sees what an important employee she could be to Sophie-Anne. Eric steps in to prevent Sookie drinking Andre's blood and Sookie drinks Eric's blood instead. Andre is staked by Quinn in order to free Sookie of his malign control.
Appius Livius Ocella Introduced in Dead in the Family, he is Eric Northman's maker. He was a human, a Roman soldier, around the time of Jesus's birth. He first encountered Eric when he lured the human by feigning injury at the side of the road. Attracted by Eric's handsomeness, he turns him and then forces him to be his lover for many years. In the early 20th century, to express his dislike of the Bolsheviks, he converts the last heir of the Russian royal family, but Alexei proves to be a difficult vampire “child”. Appius Livius is killed when Colman, a fairy, accidentally puts a sword through the wounded and immobile Appius Livius while trying to kill Sookie.
Sookie notes that Appius' name is pronounced like the classical Latin, “Appius Liwius Okella”.
Bubba Introduced in Dead Until Dark, Bubba is Elvis Presley in vampire form. A morgue attendant who was a vampire and a big fan discovered that the King still had a tiny spark of life left. The misguided vampire decides to bring the king over, but the resulting creature, answering only to “Bubba”, is brain damaged by or before the process. The other vampires treat him as a treasure and give him small jobs to keep him busy and out of the public eye however, occasionally he is seen by humans, resulting in the countless Elvis sightings that litter the tabloids. Bubba prefers cat blood, and does not drink human blood at all. He's always cheerful, goodwill radiating from his fearsome smile. (But never call him Elvis, it agitates him.) He will sing only when he feels like it, and the vamps regard this as a very special event. In the third novel, Club Dead, Sookie says that “though every now and then, he exhibited a streak of shrewdness”; he follows directions quite literally.
Charles Twining
Charles Twining is an Englishman with an eye patch who was a pirate in his human life. Appearing in the book Dead as a Doornail, he's an employee of Fangtasia, he was sent as a bartender to Merlotte's by Eric as a debt to Sookie. It's later revealed that he's working for Long Shadow's maker, Hot Rain, and was sent to kill Sookie. He set Sookie's house on fire and is later killed by Sookie and assorted bar patrons in Merlotte's.
Chow Chow is a member of Louisiana's Area Five vampire district. He is an Asian vampire with a small build and long black hair. He is no more than five foot seven and every inch of his visible skin (except for his face) is covered with intricate yakuza tattoos. He acts as a bartender in Fangtasia some nights, and sits around other nights to let patrons approach him. He is first introduced in the second book, Living Dead in Dallas, as a replacement of Fangtasia’s former bartender, Longshadow. Chow is killed in the fourth book, Dead to the World, when fighting against the coven of witches.
Clancy Clancy is a member of Louisiana's Area Five vampire district and the bar manager of Fangtasia. He is described as having red hair and a flirtatious manner with an edge, and becomes bitter and snappish after being abducted and almost completely drained of blood by witches in the fourth novel, Dead to the World. Clancy dies in the ninth novel, Dead and Gone, while protecting Sookie from enemies of her fae great-grandfather, Niall.
Dahlia Dahlia Lynley-Chivers is the main character in the computer game Dying for Daylight (aka True Blood 2) and in a constellation of non-Sookie-related—though set in the same fictional universe— short stories. Dahlia is an ancient vampire, whom Sookie Stackhouse only meets briefly in All Together Dead in the role of a respected judge in the court trial during the Vampire Summit. Dahlia is Greek, and she possesses the rare ability to fly. She is friends with Thalia, who also appears in one of Dahlia-centred stories, Bacon.
Felipe de Castro The Vampire King of Nevada. The Nevada vampires take over Sophie-Anne's Louisiana and Arkansas territories in the eighth book, From Dead to Worse. Sookie saves his life after he is attacked by Sophie-Anne's child and bodyguard Sigebert.
Franklin Mott Vampire and Tara's companion/Sugar Daddy. In the books, he is described as having iron gray hair and a mustache. Sookie thinks he must have been in his fifties or early sixties when he was turned into a vampire. She describes him as being “vigorous and very masculine” and having an Italian accent. In book 5, Dead as a Doornail, he dumps Tara and puts her up as a debt payment to cruel vampire Mickey. He has not appeared in the series since Dead as a Doornail, and something Eric said suggests that Salome killed Franklin for bringing attention to those Vampires trying to 'mainstream'.
Freyda Vampire Queen of Oklahoma, Freyda is one of the few females who rules in her own right in the vampire community. She is beautiful, powerful, and intelligent, having risen to her lofty position despite being only about 150 years old, as she explains in Deadlocked. The final command of Eric's maker, Appius Livius Ocella, was that Eric marry Freyda. Together, the two powerful and ambitious vampires could be expected to make a dynamic team that can consolidate their power throughout the United States. Freyda visits Sookie, ostensibly to speak to her about Sookie giving up Eric. Sookie begins to sense danger from Freyda and as a result disinvites her to her house. At the end of Deadlocked, it appears Freyda has won and that Eric will give up Sookie to marry her and move to Oklahoma.
Jade Flower Introduced in Definitely Dead, she is ostensibly the bodyguard of Peter Threadgill. She is described as a diminutive Asian woman with a bad haircut, a penchant for wearing red, and fighting with the whacking big sword she wears strapped to her back. She is responsible for the murders of Gladiola and Jake Purifoy. During the battle which took place at Queen Sophie Anne's entertainment estate, Jade is maimed by a vengeful Desmond Cataliades, but ultimately killed by Bill Compton in defense of Sookie.
Judith Vardamon Introduced in Dead in the Family, she is Bill's vampire “sibling”. She looks a lot like Bill's human wife, Caroline, and Lorena, noticing Bill's fascination with the human Judith, turns her into a vampire with the thought that she will help to keep Bill by Lorena's side. She is later contacted by Sookie Stackhouse and heals Bill of his silver poisoning. She is attracted to Bill but terrified of Lorena. Sookie helps to reunite them, and with Lorena's death their path to romance is clear. But after a short and happy reunion, they fall out again and she and Bill part ways.
Lorena Ball