Reviews

The Vanquishers by Kalynn Bayron

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book_cwtch's review against another edition

The perfect MG spooky read. When a new kid moves to the area Boogs parents start acting stranger than normal. Then the kid goes missing and they become even stranger as the new kid shows up differently than before. When Boog and her friends go on a hunt to find their missing link they don’t get quite what they are expecting.

neavevmcc_'s review against another edition

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adventurous slow-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? No

4.0

lita_tori's review against another edition

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adventurous funny mysterious medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? No

3.5

What a fun, action filled middle grade book!

While the plot was predictable and the story simple for me as an adult reader, for a child, this would be a fantastic read!

I loved the diversity and inclusion within the characters. There was no unnecessary spotlight on it, no bullying amongst its pages. It is such a healthy way to show children that diversity is normal!

There's supportive parents, great communication, love, teasing, and healthy relationships.

A great start to a new middle grade series for young fans of Stranger Things meets The Breakfast Club vibes.

robinlikesreading's review against another edition

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adventurous funny hopeful lighthearted mysterious fast-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? No

5.0

It's Halloween month so I really wanted to read something with vampires or something and then I realized I still have not read The Vanquishers by Kalynn Bayron so now I finally did. I don't read a lot of middle grade books but I was pleasently surprised by this one.

It's been 20 years since 'The Reaping' which was an event where the last vampires were wiped out by The Vanquishers. This event is still being celebrated and The Vanquishers are being idolized.
Malika and her friends are so sure vampires don't exist anymore and they don't understand why their parents still vampire proof everything until their new friend Aaron goes missing....

This was such a fun read. The cast was great. I loved Boog and her friends Jules and Cedrick. I love their new friendship with Aaron. I loved all of the parents as well. There's also some great queer representation which we are used to from Kalynn but I still love to see it. Jules uses they/them pronouns and Cedrick has two dads.

The story is predictable which you would expect from a middle grade book. That doesn't make the story less good. I still wanted to know what happened to Aaron despite figuring out what has happened pretty early on.

I love how Kalynn Bayron has so many different kind of stories. None of her books feel the same. From a fairytale retelling (Cinderalla Is Dead and she a Snow White retelling coming out next year as well which I'm so excited about!) to some greek mythology (This Poison Heart and its sequel) to some horror (My Dear Henry: A Jekyll & Hyde Remix) and she even released a slasher book earlier this year (You're Not Supposed to Die Tonight) and then now this really good middle grade vampire book. She has something for everyone and I'm sure she's one of my all time favorite authors.

Luckily the sequel released yesterday so I know what I'm gonna read next.

thecaffeinatedreader's review against another edition

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adventurous dark hopeful fast-paced

beebeetle's review against another edition

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adventurous lighthearted mysterious tense 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? It's complicated

4.0

A really fun story. A bit slow to start, but once it kicked in it was great! Lots of references to real world shows (can’t have vampires without mentioning Twilight) while still being unique. Sad it ended just as the story was ramping up, but will definitely read the second book.