Jessica's Guide to Dating on the Dark Side

Jessica’s Guide to Dating on the Dark Side

Author: Beth Fantaskey
Official Summary:

The undead can really screw up your senior year . . .

Marrying a vampire definitely doesn’t fit into Jessica Packwood’s senior year “get-a-life” plan. But then a bizarre (and incredibly hot) new exchange student named Lucius Vladescu shows up, claiming that Jessica is a Romanian vampire princess by birth—and he’s her long-lost fiancé. Armed with newfound confidence and a copy of Growing Up Undead: A Teen Vampire’s Guide to Dating, Health, and Emotions, Jessica makes a dramatic transition from average American teenager to glam European vampire princess. But when a devious cheerleader sets her sights on Lucius, Jess finds herself fighting to win back her wayward prince, stop a global vampire war—and save Lucius’s soul from eternal destruction

What the Pros say:
Publisher’s Weekly: “The romance sizzles, the plot develops ingeniously and suspensefully, and the satire sings."

What I Say:
This one will be perfect for Twilight fans looking for their next fix of vampire lovin’, but there’s something here for those of us who aren’t diehard Twihards. Sure, Lucius is gorgeous, mysterious, and aloof, but Jessica’s transition from detestation to lust is both believable and understandable, and the healthy helping of disbelief on Jessica’s part makes the romance much more enjoyable.

Jess is a cool, down to earth girl from the beginning—she helps her parents out by mucking stalls in the barn and has no qualms about stabbing a creepy guy in the foot with a pitchfork when he’s bugging her, but throughout the novel she becomes more certain of herself as she grows into her unique beauty. Lucius, in contrast, is demanding, bossy, and opinionated, hardened by a lifetime of grooming to take on his role as a King in the world of vampires, but he is softened and brought into touch with his human side through his relationship with Jessica.

All in all, this one’s a fun, tongue in cheek blood-sucking story that brings some real romance along with the satire. If vampires are your thing, this one’s a sure bet, and even if they’re not, it’s worth a look.

Intrigued?
Hit up Beth Fantaskey's official website to get the basics, then head over to Persnickety Snark to hear about where the idea for the book came from and...winged monkeys?

More?

Read Beth's Author Tale over at the Story Siren or check out The Five Randoms for some more Q&A with Beth.