Bulletin of the Center for Children's Books

Although Sophie would much rather start off her junior year writing a scathing expose on the student body’s literacy rate, her journalism teacher has instead assigned her the perpetually trivial, perpetually lame new-student profiles. This year, however, the new kids prove to be a bit more interesting than your standard transplants, considering Vlad’s impressive skills of persuasion and Violet’s Victorian prudishness. [End Page 292] Then there is James, Sophie’s former best friend and childhood tormentor, who has returned to town after a five-year absence only to moodily hang out in his abandoned former home and make vague accusations against Vlad and his crew. Not surprisingly, Vlad and the other new kids are vampires—a fact that Sophie actually takes quite well, managing to maintain her sense of humor (“Jesus, Sophie, the guy’s name is Vlad,” she mentally berates herself) even as Vlad threatens to make her into a snack. Utterly irreverent, at times bitingly so (pun fully intended), Sophie’s narration makes this a much-needed playful addition to a rather broody genre. Sure, some avid fans of vampire lore may find her wisecracks offputting, but most will be happy to join in on the snark, particularly when it is unapologetically aimed at the recent global phenomenon of screaming fangirls and twinkling hotties (“No one ever expects a vampire baby”). There is, however, plenty of humor beyond vampire potshots here, particularly in Sophie’s banter with James (also a vampire), which is charged with both acidic wit and romantic tension. Readers who enjoy the sass from the journalistic likes of Maggie Quinn (Clement-Moore’s Prom Dates From Hell, BCCB 7/07) will find themselves happily satisfied by this witty supernatural outing. [End Page 293]