Thursday, November 09, 2006

Sweetblood

In yesterday's post I reviewed BURNED by Ellen Hopkins a verse novel about a teen girl whose life was spiraling out of control. Today's review of SWEETBLOOD by Pete Hautman continues that theme of 'troubled' teens, but has a much happier ending.

Hautman, Pete. 2003. Sweetblood.

Lucy Szabo is a troubled teen. No doubt about it. Dressing most often in black--including lipstick and nail polish--she might be considered your typical angry and rebelling teen. What makes Sweetblood unique is its twist on vampire fiction. Lucy is not a vampire--there are no vampires in Sweetblood--but her theory that she is Undead because of her type one diabetes is quite interesting. Obsessed with vampires, Lucy is convinced that her exposure to an ill bat as a small child (she picked him up and took him home) led to her onset of diabetes a few months later. Now as a teen, blood is both her friend and her enemy. Anger is a factor in some of her choices, and her addiction to vampire-dedicated chat rooms may lead her into a dangerous situation or two...

Lucy's life is spiraling out of control, but unlike Pattyn in yesterday's novel BURNED, she has the support of friends and family to balance her out so she doesn't feel her life is hopeless.

http://www.petehautman.com/

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