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kristid's review against another edition
4.0
This novel wasn’t exactly what I was expecting! With a line like... “The undead can really screw up your senior year...” I was thinking more a more fluffy, funny, entertaining, just generally a cute novel. I was wrong.
Honestly... when I started this novel and read about the first ten pages... I was skeptical. I started having a little bit of deja vu... which really isn’t that big of a surprise considering the volume of vampire novels I read. And it is not necessarily a bad thing, but the feeling of deja vu was quickly replaced with awe. Kudos to Fantaskey for reinventing the genre with this one. I think I should start rating my books according to how frequently I put them down. During my duration of reading Jessica’s Guide, I only put it down when I absolutely had to. Which I think only happened once or twice, I was that into the story. I started it and finished it in the same day. This is definitely one of those novels I will be revisiting.
The main conflict, referring to the transition to vampire princess, is minimal compared to the real conflicting themes, of identity, independence, and self discovery. Jessica’s character is adopted but, she never fully accepts that part of her life, but you see that change throughout the novel, it is a very powerful thing.
I was very skeptical of the supposed ‘love’ aspect of this novel. Jessica’s account is very realistic and it wasn’t hard for the author to portray that when the novel is told mainly through her observations. She doesn’t immediately fall into his arms, her feelings gradually change. Lucius was the one I was worried about. He is motivated by duty and not love. As a reader I needed to see this radical transformation, I needed to see him switch that mode of duty to genuine feelings. And Fantaskey masterfully displays Lucian through his first-person letters to his uncle. You witness the change in his letters, and that’s what made the love story for me. I believed it. Had the author not included that insight to Lucian, the story would have been inadequate.
The writing was also exceptional. The minor characters really made the story that much more enthralling. It was just perfect. Perfectly entertaining, perfectly masterful. An impressive addition to the genre.
While the ending of the novel is satisfying ( I believe it is a stand alone novel, but I hope I’m wrong), I would love to see a continuation of this story.
Honestly... when I started this novel and read about the first ten pages... I was skeptical. I started having a little bit of deja vu... which really isn’t that big of a surprise considering the volume of vampire novels I read. And it is not necessarily a bad thing, but the feeling of deja vu was quickly replaced with awe. Kudos to Fantaskey for reinventing the genre with this one. I think I should start rating my books according to how frequently I put them down. During my duration of reading Jessica’s Guide, I only put it down when I absolutely had to. Which I think only happened once or twice, I was that into the story. I started it and finished it in the same day. This is definitely one of those novels I will be revisiting.
The main conflict, referring to the transition to vampire princess, is minimal compared to the real conflicting themes, of identity, independence, and self discovery. Jessica’s character is adopted but, she never fully accepts that part of her life, but you see that change throughout the novel, it is a very powerful thing.
I was very skeptical of the supposed ‘love’ aspect of this novel. Jessica’s account is very realistic and it wasn’t hard for the author to portray that when the novel is told mainly through her observations. She doesn’t immediately fall into his arms, her feelings gradually change. Lucius was the one I was worried about. He is motivated by duty and not love. As a reader I needed to see this radical transformation, I needed to see him switch that mode of duty to genuine feelings. And Fantaskey masterfully displays Lucian through his first-person letters to his uncle. You witness the change in his letters, and that’s what made the love story for me. I believed it. Had the author not included that insight to Lucian, the story would have been inadequate.
The writing was also exceptional. The minor characters really made the story that much more enthralling. It was just perfect. Perfectly entertaining, perfectly masterful. An impressive addition to the genre.
While the ending of the novel is satisfying ( I believe it is a stand alone novel, but I hope I’m wrong), I would love to see a continuation of this story.
coliecat73's review against another edition
3.0
Okay. This rating was more thoughtful than others. I gave it 3.5 stars and usually I would mark it up for that...but I couldn't...don't ask me why. I wanted to like this book. I really, really wanted to like this book. I've wanted to read this thing for years and never got around to finding it. Maybe that should be a warning. YOU DIDN'T PICK IT UP, IT WON'T BE AS GOOD AS YOU EXPECT BECAUSE YOU NEVER CARED TO FIND IT FOR YEARS. Oops. Oh well. It wasn't a bad book by any means, but I wanted it to be better than it was. I don't think I really liked Lucius, though sometimes I kept misreading his name as Luscious...hmm ...I do like guys with black hair... but he was a little weird. Especially later on when I was begging Jessica to sock him in the face, run away and live with Mindy, or do something else drastic just to get away from him. Ugh. Jessica was a bit too much in denial in the beginning, I thought, because she didn't respond to it, really. She didn't run away, she didn't face it, she just kinda went, "This guy is scary, this guy is hot. Holy sock-monkey, I think I'm in love!" Um......since when??? And...I liked Nice Jake in the beginning...but then he became a flat character...and that was boring...but the book was okay. And I still love the cover. :)
thequeenreads's review against another edition
3.0
It was good and frustrating at the same time. I wasn't fan of the plot but I was fan of the writing. I can sense that I won't be reading any more of these. Hahaha
kaitrosereads's review against another edition
4.0
Jessica Packwood is not your normal vampire. In fact, she didn't even know she was one until this strange guy wearing a velvet coat showed up claiming that she was his vampire princess. Now even her parents are saying that she is a vampire. Well, her adoptive parents. Jessica was adopted by the Packwoods shortly after she was born and her parents were killed. It turned out they were killed by a mob trying to rid the town of vampires.
Now Jessica not only has to deal with school and the many bullies that torment her there, she has to keep Lucius from killing those bullies. He is determined to protect her from everything and in the process he plans to get her to agree to honor the pact of their two families.
When Lucius and Jessica finally start to get to know each other, Lucius realizes that Jessica is not fit to be queen. She will be eaten alive by all the other bloodthirsty vampires and Lucius is beginning to suspect that he can't allow her to do that. As Jessica begins to get attached to Lucius others begin to get in the way. Will Lucius and Jessica be able to work around others standing in the way of their true feelings for each other?
I seem to be on a bit of a paranormal kick lately and this was another one that didn't disappoint. Going into the book I was a little worried that it was going to be another cheesy vampire love story with no plot but I was pleasantly surprised. Not only was there a good plot, there were some amazing characters.
Lucius and Jessica were so well developed. I felt like I could really understand what Jessica and Lucius were going through. The letters that Lucius wrote to his uncle showed a lot of what he was feeling. They really helped the story develop into a two-sided story and not just all of Jessica's feelings.
I was a little disappointed that the background characters were not very well developed but it wasn't like they really needed to be. I just wanted a little bit more about them and their relationships with Jessica and Lucius. The only other thing that I really wanted to know more about was Lucius' family. The letters that Lucius sent to his uncle, Vasile, show a little depth into their relationship but I really wanted to know more about their struggle.
Overall I was very pleased with this book. I found it a very easy, cute book that told a very different vampire story than usual.
Now Jessica not only has to deal with school and the many bullies that torment her there, she has to keep Lucius from killing those bullies. He is determined to protect her from everything and in the process he plans to get her to agree to honor the pact of their two families.
When Lucius and Jessica finally start to get to know each other, Lucius realizes that Jessica is not fit to be queen. She will be eaten alive by all the other bloodthirsty vampires and Lucius is beginning to suspect that he can't allow her to do that. As Jessica begins to get attached to Lucius others begin to get in the way. Will Lucius and Jessica be able to work around others standing in the way of their true feelings for each other?
I seem to be on a bit of a paranormal kick lately and this was another one that didn't disappoint. Going into the book I was a little worried that it was going to be another cheesy vampire love story with no plot but I was pleasantly surprised. Not only was there a good plot, there were some amazing characters.
Lucius and Jessica were so well developed. I felt like I could really understand what Jessica and Lucius were going through. The letters that Lucius wrote to his uncle showed a lot of what he was feeling. They really helped the story develop into a two-sided story and not just all of Jessica's feelings.
I was a little disappointed that the background characters were not very well developed but it wasn't like they really needed to be. I just wanted a little bit more about them and their relationships with Jessica and Lucius. The only other thing that I really wanted to know more about was Lucius' family. The letters that Lucius sent to his uncle, Vasile, show a little depth into their relationship but I really wanted to know more about their struggle.
Overall I was very pleased with this book. I found it a very easy, cute book that told a very different vampire story than usual.
gaderianne's review against another edition
5.0
I was surprised by how much I liked this read. It was a fun quick read that was witty and funny. (The letters the young vampire Lucius writes home to his uncle were particularly amusing to me.) I'm not going to go as far to say it was quality literature - but it's one of the better vampire reads I've read in quite a long time!!!
The main female character - Jess (or Anastasia as she was taken from her vampire family and raised in the U.S. when her parents were slaughtered in a purge in Romania) has spunk, character, and stands up for herself. Lucius - the vampire who is contracted to marry her is suave and infuriating and a character you love to love even though you know you should really hate him.
What's even better - this book wraps up at the end and doesn't leave you hanging.
The main female character - Jess (or Anastasia as she was taken from her vampire family and raised in the U.S. when her parents were slaughtered in a purge in Romania) has spunk, character, and stands up for herself. Lucius - the vampire who is contracted to marry her is suave and infuriating and a character you love to love even though you know you should really hate him.
What's even better - this book wraps up at the end and doesn't leave you hanging.
penandpencil's review against another edition
2.0
2.5-Terrible cover and title, but had some funny moments, the satire was well done. There were several things that seemed completely ridiculous, like Jessica's feelings for Lucius changing so quickly and Jake's role. Well written though and the plot moves quickly.
rfanning97's review against another edition
4.0
This book was very well written but lacked a steady flow and plot line. It had a great ending and an ok middle but you really had to stick with it at the beginning just to get through. Even though it wasn't an enjoyable plot line the writing was magnificent and I had a herd tine putting it down because I didn't want to leave this little town the author had described so well. I thought the book was overall... good. I am positive that the author(who has another book coming out soon) will eventually write a great story that will be 100% enjoyable but I guess we will just have to wait and see.
snarkywench's review against another edition
4.0
Before I start, I want to clarify one insy weensy matter - this book is nothing like Twilight! Would people stop saying that as I am beginning to get tired with people's lack of imagination and investment in Twilight theory (YA vampire = Edward = Twilight = Adele arggggghing). Thank goodness it's not like Meyer's work because I actually like and relate to the protagonist in this tale. Jessica's got moxie and buckets of it. She's smart, she's capable and she's unknowingly betrothed to Lucius due to her being a vampire princess!
Lucius is an intense, righteous and darkly handsome Romanian (more Mr Darcy than Edward)who has come to America to convince Jessica that they should marry and reunite their warring vampiric families. I just loved every bit of repartee between these two. Lucius would get all hoity-toity and Jessica would smack him back down to size. The development of their relationship moved naturally as did the pace of the story. Each possess distinct voices which make for hilarious interchanges. Fantaskey also uses letters as way to view Lucius' perspective on certain events, saag and "squatty boy" (hehe). I really knew these characters well by the time I was a few chapters in and found myself very invested in the outcome. Hence, very little movement between pages 1 and 354, my body is atrophying but I really don't care.
Jessica's always known that she was adopted. She lives with her yoga practising, vegan eating adoptive parents in the country and refuses to believe her origins when presented them by Lucius. I loved the new take on vampirism, particular the guide book that Lucius presents to his betrothed. This book was a great sense of humour as are the continual misunderstandings between our terrible twosome. I loved tracing their changing feelings throughout the course of the story. Jessica denying her past and repelling Lucius, slowly comes to see Lucius for his strengths while Lucius begins to see Jessica less as a duty and more as a person of worth. The necessity of the alternating perspectives make this intense, hilarious and moving as we are able to identify both individual's motivations.
I loved these characters, I hope we see more of them. More than anything I love that Lucius, at no point, was compared to cold marble. If I were to nitpick anything, it would be that the cover model should be more curvy with curly, dark hair (emphasis on the curvy).
Beth Fantaskey (she of the fabulous surname), I loved your debut effort. What's next? Zombies, unicorns, football players?
Lucius is an intense, righteous and darkly handsome Romanian (more Mr Darcy than Edward)who has come to America to convince Jessica that they should marry and reunite their warring vampiric families. I just loved every bit of repartee between these two. Lucius would get all hoity-toity and Jessica would smack him back down to size. The development of their relationship moved naturally as did the pace of the story. Each possess distinct voices which make for hilarious interchanges. Fantaskey also uses letters as way to view Lucius' perspective on certain events, saag and "squatty boy" (hehe). I really knew these characters well by the time I was a few chapters in and found myself very invested in the outcome. Hence, very little movement between pages 1 and 354, my body is atrophying but I really don't care.
Jessica's always known that she was adopted. She lives with her yoga practising, vegan eating adoptive parents in the country and refuses to believe her origins when presented them by Lucius. I loved the new take on vampirism, particular the guide book that Lucius presents to his betrothed. This book was a great sense of humour as are the continual misunderstandings between our terrible twosome. I loved tracing their changing feelings throughout the course of the story. Jessica denying her past and repelling Lucius, slowly comes to see Lucius for his strengths while Lucius begins to see Jessica less as a duty and more as a person of worth. The necessity of the alternating perspectives make this intense, hilarious and moving as we are able to identify both individual's motivations.
I loved these characters, I hope we see more of them. More than anything I love that Lucius, at no point, was compared to cold marble. If I were to nitpick anything, it would be that the cover model should be more curvy with curly, dark hair (emphasis on the curvy).
Beth Fantaskey (she of the fabulous surname), I loved your debut effort. What's next? Zombies, unicorns, football players?
theoutdoorlibrarian's review against another edition
3.0
Talk about a cute cheesy vampire romance! Love it! So good.
lostinafairytale's review against another edition
4.0
Okay, so this story was cute and all, but it just went on, and ON AND ON. I was like enough already, let's get to the point!