Review - Blood and Chocolate by Annette Curtis Klause (4/5 stars)

Reading level: Young Adult
Genre: Paranormal
Size: 264 pages
Publisher: Delacorte Books for Young Readers
Release Date: August 14, 2007
ISBN-13: 978-0385734219
Stand Alone or Series: Stand Alone
Source: Bought
Rating: 4/5 stars


I have heard excellent things about this book and have been meaning to read it for quite some time.  I really enjoyed The Silver Kiss by Klause.  Finally I got around to reading it and it was a very good book.

Vivian is loup-garou, a werewolf of sorts.  She lives with her mother and the rest of a pack who are struggling to survive.  Vivian's father was the pack leader and when he was killed in an accident they were left leaderless.  It also appears that someone is killing humans, and the wounds look suspiciously wolf-like.  With all the tension over these issues the pack is a mess.  Vivian just wants to fit in somewhere and finds solace in a boy at school named Adrian.  But can he ever accept the real Vivian?  In the end Vivian may have to choose, does she want to embrace her human side?  Or stay true to her loup-garou roots?  Which will she decide ultimately tastes better blood or chocolate?

This was a very well done book.  As far as books done about werewolves it was one of the better young adult books out there.  The description throughout is beautiful; although Vivian isn't the most likable heroine you end up really feeling her pain by the end of the book.  Klause did an excellent job in having events unfold in a way that they really would. 

I loved how Klause brings a lot of mythology around the moon into this story and how when Vivian runs as wolf you can really feel the beauty of the night that she feels.

The above being said I did have one big problem with this book.  That problem is that almost all of the characters are complete jerks at one point or another.  I actually started reading this book last year and had to set it aside because I just disliked all of the characters so much.  I am glad I finally stuck with it though and read this book; in the end I did learn to sympathize with these characters, but I still didn't like them much.

Overall this was a very good young adult werewolf book.  There are scenes of beauty and descriptions of the night that are very lyrical.  While I didn't find the characters to be likable, there was a brutal honesty to them that was refreshing.  If you enjoyed Nightshade you would probably enjoy this book; if you loved this book I would recommend reading Nightshade.

This book goes towards the following reading challenges:
- Horror and Urban Fantasy Challenge
- 100+ Reading Challenge
- YA Reading Challenge List

 

The Silver Kiss by Annette Curtis Klause (4/5 stars)

I got this book because it was written by the author who wrote "Blood and Chocolate" (which I haven't read yet). I was interested to read a vampire novel by her. It was an excellent book but it was not what I was expecting.

In this book Zoe is in a tough situation. Her mother is dying of cancer, her father is pulling away from her as he spends more and more time at the hospital with her mother. The doctor has told them that Zoe shouldn't spend much time at the hospital because it might stress her mother and that Zoe should try to keep her life as normal as she can. How can you keep your life normal when you are left at home by yourself, constantly waiting for the phone to ring to tell you that your mother is finally gone? If this isn't bad enough some bizarre murders are taking place in the area and then Zoe finds out that her best friend is having to move out of town. Zoe begins to hang out at the park at night just to be out somewhere; there she meets Simon. Simon seems to know about death and he might even know something about the murders happening.

This is not really your typical vampire book. It is beautifully written. A lot of time is taken on the contemplation of the character's feelings, and the description of the surroundings is beautiful. This is a book about death. It is about facing death and dealing with death and trying to move past death. As such, it is pretty much a downer of a book and a bittersweet story. In general this book makes you want to cry for death, for beauty lost, for everything we have to deal with as humans. Somehow with all of this darkness; this book comes off as a sweet little story about the lessons life teaches. You can't help but sympathize and love every single character in this book; and given that it is such a short story it takes some wonderful writing to accomplish that.

It is a very short book and a very quick read. I thought it was an excellent read; just know that this is not an uplifting book. The descriptions of the characters' feelings as they deal with death are heartfelt and accurate. This book could be a help to someone dealing with loosing a loved one.

Overall, very good story. I am definitely looking forward to reading "Blood and Chocolate".