Bite Me! Review (and Giveaway!)

Bite Me! by Melissa Francis

Publisher: HarperTeen

Release date: August 1, 2009

Source: Bought

AJ Ashe isn't your typical seventeen-year-old vampire—as if there is such a thing! She's stuck in the middle of a huge fight between her two BFFs. Her ex-boyfriend—whom she's still totally in love with, by the way—is now her stepbrother. A former classmate—who, um, she may or may not have turned into a vampire—is stalking her. And now, apparently, the fate of humankind lies in her little undead hands. What ever happened to the good old days, when all a vampire girl had to worry about was the occasional zit and hiding her taste for blood?

Review:

Melissa Francis is a terrific writer and I am SO excited to find out what's next for her. Bite Me was a completely original and enjoyable novel and I finished it in a couple of days.

AJ is a head strong, independent main character who is surprisingly relatable. While she is a vampire, AJ is also dealing with regular things and living a normal life for a seventeen year old girl. I loved how down to earth AJ was and how she made readers want to be friends with her. Unfortunately things start to get a little complicated when her single mother decides to get remarried. Now her boyfriend is going to be her stepbrother and their house is soon bustling with a variety of people. Like the Brady Bunch, the Ashe girls are soon joined by the Fraser boys and their nanny-like Aunt D. There is a lot of excitement in the first week of the marriage and move, and this is where the plot really starts to twist and turn.

The plot was very original because not only did AJ have to promise to break things off with Ryan, she had to hide the fact that she, her mother, and sisters are vampires. The vampire angle is unlike any I have ever read about. Steeped in history and intrigue, AJ's vampire background is interesting and different.

There are a variety of plot twists and turns in the novel and AJ is becoming overwhelmed with all she has to deal with. Family problems, friend problems, and vampire problems. She doesn't know who she can trust and some of the characters are revealed to be very different than I originally thought. Meanwhile, AJ is also trying to figure out more about her vampire background. I loved reading about the history surrounding her kind and how it tied into AJ and her family today.

Suspense, romance, intrigue, and history all combine to make this a fantastic debut novel. The characters are well developed and the dialogue is fun and interesting. Throughout the novel you will be wondering what will happen next; all leading up to a surprising ending! I'm so glad I have the sequel, Love Sucks! so I can start it next!

Overall: 4 out of 5 stars

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Giveaway!

One lucky commenter will win a signed copy of Bite Me! by Melissa Francis. Only comments related to the review will be counted.

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