Reviewed by Amanda on
This book felt like a build up or set up to the rest of the series. The Dark Ones are vampires looking for their Beloved, the one who can save them from their suffering. Joy, our seemingly perpetual horny leading lady, was pegged as a Beloved, but finds herself in a bind trying to figure out exactly who the Dark One is (and the mystery of who is behind the murders that have been following the Goth fair). Joy and her friend, Roxy, travel to the Czech Republic because Roxy is obsessed with books about the Dark Ones, and just knows they’re real. This aspect of the book – that it was centered around a fictional vampire series – was a fun parody because I could imagine people actually doing something similar.
The relationship between Joy and Roxy is riotously funny, because they are constantly ribbing on and teasing each other. Though it took a few chapters before the friendship was fleshed out; the book seems to jump right in, and although Joy tells us that she and Roxy are best friends, they seem to argue more than not. Of course, I could have just not been in the right frame of mind to pick up on this when I read it. Anything is possible. Toward the end of the book, I found myself giggling out loud at the things they would say and do, and wishing for the same kind of friend.
Although we were introduced to the concept of Dark Ones in this book, I felt like there was still some information lacking about them that we’ll likely discover in future books. This didn’t detract from the story. Rather, the mystery surrounding a possible serial killer kept us entertained enough; the serial killer and Dark Ones are two different story lines held together by the vampire thread.
Read my review in its entirety here: http://onabookbender.com/2011/05/30/review-a-girls-guide-to-vampires-by-katie-macalister/
Reading updates
- Started reading
- 22 May, 2011: Finished reading
- 22 May, 2011: Reviewed