Slayed by Amanda Marrone

Published: October 2010

Publisher: Simon Pulse

# pages: 240

Copy provided by: Library

Summary: Goodreads

The Van Helsing family has been hunting vampires for over one hundred years, but sixteen-year-old Daphne wishes her parents would take up an occupation that doesn’t involve decapitating vamps for cash. All Daphne wants is to settle down in one place, attend an actual school, and finally find a BFF to go to the mall with. Instead, Daphne has resigned herself to a life of fast food, cheap motels and buying garlic in bulk. But when the Van Helsings are called to a coastal town in Maine, Daphne’s world is turned upside down. Not only do the Van Helsings find themselves hunting a terrifying new kind of vampire (one without fangs but with a taste for kindergarten cuisine), Daphne meets her first potential BF! The hitch? Her new crush is none other than Tyler Harker, AKA, the son of the rival slayer family. What's a teen vampire slayer to do?

'Slayed' is the newest title by Amanda Marrone and it pokes delicious fun at vampire slayers. Our main protagonist is Daphne Van Helsing - a name most readers will recognise as being synonymous with vampire killers - and no, they don't all look like Hugh Jackman! Daphne's love interest is Tyler Harper, who is the crushworthy son of her parents old and estranged friend. Anyone read Bram Stoker's 'Dracula' - remember the character Mina Harper? Yep, it's the same Harker family. I loved this nod to literature (and graphic novels).

The story itself read like an episode of 'Buffy the Vampire Slayer' and as an avid fan and dvd owner, I really enjoyed this. The action was bloody and tongue-in-cheek, and the vampires were a wonderful mish-mash of popular stereotypes - or not!

'She bites on the pen cap. "So you're telling me I'm not going to get any hot wolf action from the alpah male who battled his pack to win me as his mate?" I laugh. "Sorry." '

Kiki, Daphne's new BFF is hilarious as the spoilt little rich b.... with attitude, and my initial impression of her was all wrong. Yet another of those stereotypes blown to smithereens. There's violence, lots of it, underage drinking and casual sex, so this isn't a book for the younger teens, but it was lots of fun and a fairly quick read. I have to mention that I wasn't too keen on the cover of this one - you know what cover snobs Christinabean and I are - but there is an interesting scene in the book which completely explains the cover, and after that I didn't mind it so much. I know, it makes no sense. Enjoy.

Hate List by Jennifer Brown

Published: Sept 2009

Publisher: Little Brown and Company

Pages: 405

Copy Provided by: Library

Summary: Goodreads

Summary:

Five months ago, Valerie Leftman's boyfriend, Nick, opened fire on their school cafeteria. Shot trying to stop him, Valerie inadvertently saved the life of a classmate, but was implicated in the shootings because of the list she helped create. A list of people and things she and Nick hated. The list he used to pick his targets.

Now, after a summer of seclusion, Val is forced to confront her guilt as she returns to school to complete her senior year. Haunted by the memory of the boyfriend she still loves and navigating rocky relationships with her family, former friends and the girl whose life she saved, Val must come to grips with the tragedy that took place and her role in it, in order to make amends and move on with her life.

Review:
Violence in the community. It is all around us and we often point fingers and judge but when you start to peel back the layers and learn about the people involved, it isn't always so black and white. This was such a powerful book. I had seen it on the shelves and walked by over and over again. I hate to say it but I really chose not to read it because I didn't like the cover. One day, I decided to branch out and try. I'm so glad I did.

Hate List was such a compelling book. Val and Nick created this list to share between themselves as an outlet for their feelings of being ostracized and criticized for being different. Nick just chose to take it one step further. Val's return back to society is a long climb and she encounters a mix of both positive and negative experiences and has to learn to re-integrate herself back into society and deal with the intense feelings of guilt that she carries. It doesn't help that she still loves Nick, someone who has now been characterized as a heartless murderer. She is seen as both a villian and a hero in the shooting and I loved watching her grow. Yes, it is another story about coming into your own and growing up.

If you enjoyed Nineteen Minutes by Jodi Piccoult, you might like this as well. This book made me cry....but in a good way. Let's see if it does the same for you.