You know a book is going to be funny when the tagline is, “You know something is seriously wrong when you wake up in a coffin….” I was cracking up over that line for a good hour or so. The rest of the book is even better. I started this book kind of late at night, thinking to get a head start on it. Bad idea. (I mean, good idea. What better time to read a story about the undead than the time they’re awake and out for blood?)
Jane is a surprisingly compelling heroine. I was expecting a fangirling, silly vampire-obsessed girl, but she’s pretty intelligent. Yes, she dissolves into a sobbing mess when she’s reunited with her family. Given that she woke up in a coffin and was soon deserted by her sire, I think she has the right to regress into a little kid. She also doesn’t blindly trust dashing saviors. She tells them to meet her parents. I love that smartypants. While she may be having some fun with her new vampiric abilities, she also knows how to trust in the wisdom of her elders, but she also doesn’t blindly follow them. She knows better than to turn her parents into vampires (I mean, who really wants to have your parents nagging at you for centures, kind and caring as they may be?) She also doesn’t fall head-over-heels in love with the ripped vampire hunter. (In fact, there isn’t really as much going there romance-wise as you’d think from the synopsis.) There’s potential for a romantic development, but they recognize each other as enemies and are just beginning to trust in each other towards the end of the book.
I’d also like to give special note of the attentive, supportive family that Jane has. They take their daughter’s transformation pretty well given the circumstances. Afterwards, they devote much time to researching vampires and figuring out how to care for Jane’s new needs. Rarely is the family given so much focus in YA books nowadays. It’s typically all about hiding things to protect them. Here, Jane needs her family–for their emotional support, to protect her, and as mentors. She trusts them enough to know that they’ll take care of her and, though she wouldn’t want them to do so, she also knows that they’d be willing to sacrifice themselves for her if necessary. Jane has such a wonderful support system within her family, and it was wonderful to see.
There are so many things in here that cracked me up. I haven’t been in as much danger of ROFLOLing since The Boy Recession. My absolute favorite? The vampire goldfish. Seriously. Funny. And adorable. Helen Keeble has a gift for delivering seriously true, but seriously funny lines that poke fun at vampires. (And some pretty funny incidents come about through the goldfish.) While I may love me a good vamp book, I do see their inherent flaws as well, and I’m not afraid of laughing at some of these. I am someone who likes to poke fun at things I love, all in good humor, so I appreciate a book that can pull off some good satire.
This is a book that I can safely recommend to middle school students. There is a lot of humor, which will hold the attention of younger readers, and there isn’t anything I wouldn’t want them seeing. Jane is a smart girl despite being slightly vampire-obsessed. (Note: she does believe in soulmates; she just has a hard time figuring out how to recognize one.) However, she makes the right decisions and doesn’t blindly trust anyone, even her own parents, who for all their good intentions do suggest some silly ideas, except under powerful vampiric suggestion. And even then, she’ll fight to maintain her free spirit, so it all balances out.
I recommend this to those who love a good satire and humor. I do not recommend this is you are super in love with vampires and would be offended by jokes made at their expense!
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Author: Crystal
A story girl at heart, Crystal is a bibliophile who can easily spend the day immersed in a good read. She writes under the name Kristy Wang. You can follow her writing adventures on X and Instagram @_kristywang.
Caroline says
Oooh, this book sounds awesome! It's definitely going on my to-read list. I love books like this!
Crystal says
Awesome! I hope that you love this book as much as I did!!
Eli Yanti says
I love book with humor :), i can smile and laugh, so book with humor is a good book especially when you get stress lol
Crystal says
Humor is wonderful for stress relief 🙂
Erika says
Sounds very humorous! Thanks for your thoughts! I will have to add this to my to-read list!
Crystal says
Hope you enjoy this one
Giselle says
Heh wasn'T this a totally fun read? I really enjoyed it too it was hilarious and Jane also surprised me by how compelling she was, especially considering her age. Great review, Kris!
Crystal says
It was! I didn't expect Jane to be so compelling either. She surprised me with her maturity, and I love her all the more for it. Thanks! 🙂
Christina Fiorelli says
This sounds like such a hilarious read! Love how her whole family is quirky:)
Great review:)
Crystal says
It is. I loved Jane's family 🙂
Vivien says
I enjoy a good humor book every now and then. I just have the problem of it being either hit or miss. But, I'm still really curious about this one. Loving the cover.
Crystal says
Same here. Humor either works or it doesn't. I can easily see readers reacting either way to this book; fortunately, it worked out for me. I hope you enjoy it!
Candace says
I thought this one was great too! Her parent's were just awesome! Well, and her brother too. And that goldfish. So. Funny! The whole thing was hilarious but yet had some more serious tone that I liked too. Awesome review!
Crystal says
Jane's brother is awesome. And it was wonderful how the story managed to be hilarious yet have serious undertones to it as well. The plot blended in wonderfully with the humor 🙂
Natalie Aguirre says
Sounds like a fun book. I just got an ARC of this. I'll have to check it out.
Crystal says
It is! I hope that you enjoy this one. Let me know what you think about it! 🙂
Danny says
Oh that sounds like fun I'm always up for a funny read with Vampires! I just recently read Team Human and loved it!
Crystal says
It's a really fun book. I loved Team Human, and I love this one. I hope you enjoy Fang Girl as much as I did!
Monique Morgan says
Great review, sounds like a really cool book!:)
Crystal says
Thanks, Monique. It's an awesome book. I can totally see myself rereading it for all the LOLz 🙂