by Heather Brewer
Genre:
Paranormal/Vampires
Reading Grade: Middle
Grade
Publishing Type:
traditional
Publication Date: March
13, 2008
Source: local library
(paperback)
Age Rating: 12+
Amazon |
Vlad has to keep
his vampire urges under control while dealing with the pressures of
middle school.
Thirteen-year-old Vladimir
Tod really hates junior high. Bullies harass him, the principal is
dogging him, and the girl he likes prefers his best friend. Oh, and
Vlad has a secret: His mother was human, but his father was a
vampire. With no idea of the extent of his powers, Vlad struggles
daily with his blood cravings and his enlarged fangs. When a
substitute teacher begins to question him a little too closely, Vlad
worries that his cover is about to be blown. But then he faces a much
bigger problem: He's being hunted by a vampire killer.
My Review
For some reason, I had
high expectations about this book and I assumed I'd love it. But,
that really wasn't the case after reading it. (I need to stop having
high expectations!) It is a well-written story, and I think perfectly
targeted for its intended Middle Grade audience. It's plenty safe
reading material for children, but, isn't particularly original.
I figured I'd love a
story about an adolescent teen vampire who has to learn to hide his
true identity from most everyone in his small hometown, but I suppose
I just didn't find Vladimir as endearing as I had hoped I would. Not
that there's anything bothersome about him, but there isn't much
making him stand out above the crowd of male teen vamps that has him
shouting, “Hey! Check ME out! I'm totally different from those
other emo boys.”
For the record, Vladimir
isn't “emo.” Just a very normal thirteen-year-old boy, excluding
the fangs, of course. He has to deal with bullies in school and has
some triumphant moments over them, using his unique vampire
abilities. He has a crush on a certain girl at school, but suffers
from the typical shyness and insecurities found in most human teen
boys. But, he has to hide the capsules of blood in his lunch that his
aunt packs for him everyday.
This is a good story—just
nothing new. Vampires live amongst the unknowing humans in their
world, the humans only knowing of them via cultural superstition. The
vamps have their own secret organization which is something akin to a
cult, and they seek to punish members of their own organization who
break the rules by execution. It's intriguing stuff and a young
audience unfamiliar with this trope may suck it up like a vampire
dying from his thirst for blood. If that's you or some youngster you
know, then you should give this series a try. It's fun for kids.
My score: 3 out of 5
stars.
