As seen in HBO's "True Blood", vampires have never been more edgy, gory or sexy. Since its arrival on screen in 2008, Alan Ball's adaptation of "The Southern Vampire Mysteries" by Charlaine Harris has exploited the creative freedoms of the HBO brand and captured a cult audience with its passionate, blood-drenched visuals and stories. From viral webisodes depicting vampires announcing themselves on TV to the steamy title sequence and the show's uninhibited use of language, sex and gore, "Tr...

This book is the first to explore handicrafting practiced by media fans, their online fan communities and the multiple meanings they create. Based on in-depth ethnographic research into fans on the online social network for knitters, crocheters and crafters, Ravelry, Brigid Cherry explores textile craft by fans as both an artistic practice and transformative fan work. Including case studies of projects inspired by Doctor Who, True Blood, Firefly, Harry Potter...

Doctor Who – new dawn explores the latest cultural moment in this long-running BBC TV series: the casting of a female lead. Analysing showrunner Chris Chibnall and Jodie Whittaker’s era means considering contemporary Doctor Who as an inclusive, regendered brand. Featuring original interview material with cast members, this edited collection also includes an in-depth discussion with Segun Akinola, composer of the iconic theme tune’s current version.The book critica...

Horror cinema is a hugely successful, but at the same time culturally illicit genre that spans the history of cinema. It continues to flourish with recent cycles of supernatural horror and torture porn that span the full range of horror styles and aesthetics. It is enjoyed by audiences everywhere, but also seen as a malign influence by others.In this Routledge Film Guidebook, audience researcher and film scholar Brigid Cherry provides a comprehensive overview of the horror film and...

The Untold History of Television provides an exciting glimpse behind the scenes of the groundbreaking series that have defined the landscape of popular culture.Based on Charlaine Harris’s Southern Vampire series, True Blood brings to life a rich fantasy world in which vampires, telepathic barmaids, and old-world Southern charm all manage to co-exist. Dark, edgy and sensual, the series takes the vampire trend to a new level of sex and violence. In this text, Kathleen Olmste...

Sookie Stackhouse enjoys her job as a cocktail waitress in Merlotte's, a small-town bar in small-town Bon Temps, deep in Louisiana. She's funny and pretty and, thanks to her grandmother, she's very well-mannered - but since not many people truly appreciate her ability to read their minds, the guys haven't exactly been beating down her door ...And then along came Bill, tall, dark and handsome - and Sookie couldn't 'hear' a word he was thinking. He was exactly the type of guy she'd b...

The third Sookie Stackhouse Omnibus: a book with bite!Blonde, bubbly Sookie Stackhouse loves her job as a cocktail waitress in Merlotte's, in her home town of Bon Temps. Sookie's cute, but it takes her a long time to make friends; perhaps that's not so surprising when you consider how few people appreciate her telepathic ability.Whichever species you are, life is never boring in Bon Temps, Louisiana!

There's a reckoning on the way ...... and Sookie has a knack for being in trouble's way; not least when she witnesses the firebombing of Merlotte's, the bar where she works. Since Sam Merlotte is known to be two-natured, suspicion immediately falls on the anti-shifters in the area. Sookie suspects otherwise, but before she can investigate something else - something even more dangerous - comes up.Sookie's lover Eric Northman and his 'child' Pam are plotting something in secr...

NOW THE ACCLAIMED HBO SERIES GAME OF THRONES—THE MASTERPIECE THAT BECAME A CULTURAL PHENOMENONHere is the first book in the landmark series that has redefined imaginative fiction and become a modern masterpiece.A GAME OF THRONESIn a land where summers can last decades and winters a lifetime, trouble is brewing. The cold is returning, and in the frozen wastes to the North of Winterfell, sinister and supernatural forces are m...

More than just a box office flop that resurrected itself in the midnight movie circuit, Blade Runner (1982) achieved extraordinary cult status through video, laserdisc, and a five-disc DVD collector's set. Blade Runner has become a network of variant texts and fan speculations-a franchise created around just one film. Some have dubbed the movie "classroom cult" for its participation in academic debates, while others have termed it "meta-cult," in line with the work of Umb...

Almost everything you need to know in one essential guideSeeing a film is only half the fun. The real joy comes from arguing about it afterwards in the pub or on the journey home. But have you ever felt you needed to know a little more?This book offers a concise introduction to the appreciation and study of film. This second edition begins with an examination of early film theory before analysing how films are put together - framing, performance, setting, costume and editin...

For more than thirty years, David Cronenberg has made independent films such as Scanners and A History of Violence which aim to disturb, surprise, and challenge audiences. He has also repeatedly drawn on literary fiction for inspiration, adapting themes from authors like William Burroughs, J. G. Ballard, and Patrick McGrath for the big screen; David Cronenberg: Author or Filmmaker? is the first book to explore how underground and mainstream fiction have influence...