Sookie Stackhouse, a waitress with telepathic abilities, falls under the spell of a 173-year-old vampire; Sookie's brother finds himself in hot water.

In a society where humans and vampires co-exist, set in the small town of Bon Temps, Louisiana, Sookie Stackhouse is a young woman who may have found a perfect boyfriend. Sookie is clairvoyant and constantly hears people's thoughts so it makes dating a bit difficult.

Mack and Denise Rattray get their revenge on Sookie but Bill steps in to save her. Subsequently, Sookie's senses begin to undergo a transformation. She later learns that the Rattrays are dead and the police immediately suspect Bill. She also begins to wonder just how far vampires will go when a leading opponent of the Vampire Rights Act is killed in an accident. Bill agrees to visit Sookie and her grandmother and Tara and Jason invite themselves for the evening. Jason Stackhouse gets to see the video of his evening with Maudette Pickens. The police release him but his experience doesn't dissuade him from sleeping with every woman who will have him.

Bill Compton's allure is diminished somewhat when Sookie visits him in his home and finds that several other rather nasty vampires has also dropped in for a visit. Bill protects her from his one-time friends but she sees a nasty side of vampire life.

With the town's second murder in a week, Jason is again the number one suspect, but Tara provides him with an alibi. Knowing that both Maudette and Dawn had frequented the Fangtasia vampire club, Sookie asks Bill to take her there as she tries to find evidence that will clear her brother.

After their encounter with the racist policeman, Sookie tells Bill that she won't be seeing him anymore. The next day, Bill keeps his promise to Sookie's grandmother, Adele 'Gran' Stackhouse, to speak at the monthly meeting of the Descendents of the Glorious Dead.

Sookie must deal with her emotions when her grandmother is the mysterious serial killer's latest victim. She can't block out the thoughts of others and she knows many of the townspeople think the main reason her grandmother is now dead is her association with a vampire.

After spending the night with Bill, Sookie is convinced that she has found the man of her dreams as the person who took her virginity. But Sookie's fellow workers and the customers at the bar don't quite agree as rumors spread of her relationship with a vampire.

Sookie prepares for the worst. Tara struggles with her mother's miraculous recovery. Amy ropes Jason into a dark game. Eric summons Sookie for a task she is uniquely qualified for.

After Sookie identifies the vampire bartender Longshadow responsible for stealing from Fangtasia, Bill steps in to protect her. In doing so however, he breaks a vampire taboo and must now face the consequences from Eric and his clan for killing one of their own. Knowing he will be away, he asks Sam Merlotte to keep an eye on Sookie. Meanwhile, Jason and Amy take their vampire captive, Eddie, to Jason's house and confine him to the basement. They draw his blood and Jason undergoes an odd transformation. With Amy now working at Merlotte's, Jason spends his spare time just talking to Eddie and they develop a rapport. Elsewhere, Tara visits her mother's exorcist, but decides she can't afford the $800 cost for her own exorcism. Sam agrees to lend Tara the money needed, while he also deals with Detective Andy Bellefleur who becomes suspicious about his past. With Bill away, Sookie chooses to spend the night at Bill's house but wakes up the next morning with a naked man on her bed...

When Sookie finds Sam asleep without clothes at her bed, he reveals his own secret to her that he happens to be a shape shifter, plus his pet dog seen around the bar is really him in disguise. Meanwhile, Tara decides to undergo the exorcism, but later discovers something about the exorcist Miss Jeanette.

Jason and Amy have to clean up after Eddie's demise but it pushes Jason to the edge and he isn't sure if he wants to continue his relationship with her. Meanwhile, Sookie caught a glimpse of something during her encounter with the serial killer.

Sookie comes face-to-face with the killer as Jason's fate is up in the air. The town of Bon Temps learns a horrifying secret about a resident.