EVERNIGHT

Star-crossed lovers, vampires and a passive heroine populate this first in a projected four-book series. When Bianca’s parents accept teaching jobs at gloomy, gothic Evernight, she considers running away, but instead meets handsome fellow student Lucas. Their absorbing love grows rapidly despite his shady behavior. But both are hiding important truths: She’s a vampire and he’s a vampire hunter. The problem is Bianca’s first-person narration. Why does she hide her vampirism from the reader for half the book? The mysterious foreshadowing and hints about “Evernight type” students seem disingenuous at best once readers realize Bianca knew everything all along. Thin characterization, a need to state the obvious and constant iteration of Lucas’s name quickly grow old. Some fun details (a modern technology class where vampires learn to use iPods), the inexorable clash between the vampires and their Black Cross hunters and the open question of what will happen next make this enjoyable enough, particularly for fans of that other vampire series who need something to read while they wait for Breaking Dawn (Meyer, 2008). (Fantasy. 12 & up)