Scan barcode
skyturtles's review against another edition
5.0
I kept being pleasantly surprised at the innovation of these stories and the fuel for my imagination. I definitely had my favorites and least favorites. And as someone who has read a lot of Buffy spinoffs, that particular story was great. All protagonists were new adults / teen-aged, so this is catalogued as YA, but I think anyone who remembers what it's like to be that young with the world as your oyster would enjoy this.
seraphiina's review against another edition
3.0
I was really excited to read this book, as I've been into vampire stories since I was 11 years old and was honestly looking for something a bit different with more POC characters and queer storylines. However, the stories itself were a mixed bag between "this is amazing, this should be its own novel!" and stories that seemed more like a mockery of gen Z. However, I'd say most of them were interesting enough and I do still recommend reading them if you're into YA and vampires.
As it is a anthology, I will rate the stories individually (between 1-5)
"Seven nights for dying" by Tessa Gratton: 2
"The boys from Blood River" by Rebecca Roanhorse: 3,5
"Senior Year Sucks" by Julie Murphy: 2
"The Boy and the Bell" by Heidi Heilig: 5
"A Guidebook for the Newly Sired Desi Vampire" by Samira Ahmed: 4
"In Kind" by Kayla Whaley: 3,5
"Vampires Never Say Die" by Zoraida Córdova and Natalie C. Parker: 1
"Bestiary" by Laura Ruby: 2
"Mirrors, Windows & Selfies" by Mark Orshio: 4
"The House of Black Sapphires" by Donielle Clayton: 4
"First Kill" by Victoria “V. E.” Schwab: 3
My average rating amounts to 3 stars for this book
As it is a anthology, I will rate the stories individually (between 1-5)
"Seven nights for dying" by Tessa Gratton: 2
"The boys from Blood River" by Rebecca Roanhorse: 3,5
"Senior Year Sucks" by Julie Murphy: 2
"The Boy and the Bell" by Heidi Heilig: 5
"A Guidebook for the Newly Sired Desi Vampire" by Samira Ahmed: 4
"In Kind" by Kayla Whaley: 3,5
"Vampires Never Say Die" by Zoraida Córdova and Natalie C. Parker: 1
"Bestiary" by Laura Ruby: 2
"Mirrors, Windows & Selfies" by Mark Orshio: 4
"The House of Black Sapphires" by Donielle Clayton: 4
"First Kill" by Victoria “V. E.” Schwab: 3
My average rating amounts to 3 stars for this book
racketkelly's review
adventurous
challenging
dark
emotional
funny
informative
mysterious
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.75
annettebooksofhopeanddreams's review
4.0
My first fantasy love were vampires. I can't even remember the first vampire story I heard. I only remember the scene of a vampire leaving the library and the librarian being left behind with two little holes in her neck. It was a children's book. A fascination was born and it was, not so surprisingly, Twilight bringing back my love for reading after high school had killed it. So, I needed to have this collection on my shelves!
As always with story collections, some stories resonated more with me than others, but I have to say that there was not one story in this collection I didn't like. Mostly because all the stories were just very well written and did a great job building characters and creating an atmosphere, even when there were only very limited pages to tell said story. I also loved how all those stories were different, played with different lores and different ideas.
Of course there was one story that really really really touched me. And that was the story about the girl killed by her own father. As someone living with disabilities herself I was so moved by this story and how it talked about disability and life. I had tears in my eyes and almost had to put the book down to catch my breath. I'm also not surprised that another story, the one by, Victoria Schwab gets a screen adaptation. I mean, if this isn't the best begin of a YA vampire story ever, I don't know what will be.
The editors of the book also chose to add a page with commentary after each story. Normally I would skip over such stuff, since I like to make up my own mind and think about stories in my own way, but in this case I really thought the commentary added something. Most of all because they were insightful when it comes to traditional vampire lore and what made a story different, but also because it always came with a really nice question to think about.
As always with story collections, some stories resonated more with me than others, but I have to say that there was not one story in this collection I didn't like. Mostly because all the stories were just very well written and did a great job building characters and creating an atmosphere, even when there were only very limited pages to tell said story. I also loved how all those stories were different, played with different lores and different ideas.
Of course there was one story that really really really touched me. And that was the story about the girl killed by her own father. As someone living with disabilities herself I was so moved by this story and how it talked about disability and life. I had tears in my eyes and almost had to put the book down to catch my breath. I'm also not surprised that another story, the one by, Victoria Schwab gets a screen adaptation. I mean, if this isn't the best begin of a YA vampire story ever, I don't know what will be.
The editors of the book also chose to add a page with commentary after each story. Normally I would skip over such stuff, since I like to make up my own mind and think about stories in my own way, but in this case I really thought the commentary added something. Most of all because they were insightful when it comes to traditional vampire lore and what made a story different, but also because it always came with a really nice question to think about.
missnatalieann's review
4.0
This was fun, it had some really good stories in it from worlds that I would love to read more from. I will definitely be looking into the authors featured in this.
bookgirl1861's review
adventurous
dark
mysterious
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.0