Blue Bloods by Melissa de la Cruz

Written by the author of the Au Pair series, Blue Bloods is a bit of a departure for de la Cruz. Think Gossip Girls with some horror and history thrown in. Sounds odd, I know, but de la Cruz somehow makes it work.

This is the story of vampires in New York City who are the crème de la crème of society, the elite, the rich and famous. The story specifically follows a group of teenagers who have just discovered they are vampires, but they are being hunted by an evil force who is trying to kill them all. In an interesting historical twist, all these vampires are actually the reincarnated spirits of the Mayflower settlers.

I know this sounds a bit complicated, but the author does a good job of clearly explaining the history and the “rules” of the vampires. This is a fun, fluff sort of read – it doesn’t require the same emotional investment as Twilight or other vampire stories. While I actually prefer a “deeper” story, Blue Bloods was still sufficiently entertaining. De la Cruz made up a lot of rules for her characters and the society she created – it’ll be interesting to see if she can continue to follow her own guidelines as the series progresses (which is one of the cardinal rules of fantasy writing: an author must always adhere to the laws of the world they’ve created!). And there will most definitely be a sequel, as the ending is left wide open.

I recommend this for teens 14+ who have worked their way through the Gossip Girls series and are looking for something new.

***3 stars out of 5

CURRENTLY READING: I Was a Non-Blonde Cheerleader by Kieran Scott