Review Detail

Debut author Beth Fantaskey
explodes onto the heavily populated YA vampire lit world with her amazing book,
JESSICAS GUIDE TO DATING ON THE DARK SIDE, which is sure to convert Twilight
fans into having a new favorite vampire and vampire-novel heroine. Or if it
doesnt do that, then at least it will leave you smiling, biting your nails,
and reading far into the night.

In rural Pennsylvania, math nerd
Jessica Packwood is about to enter her senior year of high school, determined
to have a good time, potentially date Jake Zinn, a nice and handsome boy in her
grade, and win some more math competitions. But her carefully imagined plan
goes down the drain with the arrival of Lucius Vladescu, a hot but arrogant
student from Romania who is under the unfortunate delusion that he is a vampire
prince destined to marry Jessica, who is apparently a vampire princess from a
rival vampire family. Their marriage would end a centuries-long war between the
two families and ensure peace for all their vampire relatives.

Jessica, who loves scientific
facts, is understandably confused, scared of her reluctant attraction to Lucius
and unable to believe the parlor tricks that he performs: a flash of fangs
here, a miraculous recovery from a serious injury there. But just as she begins
to finally believein Lucius, in herselfLucius suddenly begins to court Faith
Crosse, the evil-souled reigning cheerleader-slash-prom-queen of Woodrow Wilson
High, and Jessica finds herself struggling to win him back, and not just for
the sake of her own heart. For if she doesnt, both vampire families, not to
mention Lucius, could end up being destroyed.

Wow! It is almost unfortunate that
this book has such an unwieldy and frothy, though eye-catching, title, because
I did not realize the extent of what I was in for when I started reading.
Jessica and Lucius are two of the best main characters that I have read about
in a long time: they are fully three-dimensional and undergo incredible growth
through the 350-some pages. Lucius intensity and arrogance makes me
simultaneously laugh and be attracted to him at the same time, and some of my
favorite chapters were those that consisted of Lucius letters to his uncle
back in Romania. The relationship that develops between Jessica and Lucius
seems totally natural, the growing love not forced. The plot goes beyond a typical
Twilight spinoff (which all current YA vampire novels are inevitably being
compared to), and reaches its awe-inspiring conclusion wonderfully.

Action, love, mortal danger,
family, humorJESSICAS GUIDE TO DATING ON THE DARK SIDE has everything. I am
wholeheartedly a fan, and you will be too.