The Silver Kiss by Annette Curtis Klause

• Reading level: Young Adult
  
• Mass Market Paperback: 224 pages
• Publisher: Laurel Leaf; Reissue edition (August 1, 1992)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0440213460
• ISBN-13: 978-0440213468
• List Price: $5.99
• I finished this book on Feb. 3

I read this book in one day after finishing Twilight. I think I wanted more vampire goodness. This did not exactly do it for me, to be honest. Klause has another book out, which I liked called Blood and Chocolate (about werewolves and now a movie, also). So, I thought, I liked her other book, and I love vampires, so this is a sure thing. But...not so much.
The story is about a teen girl whose best friend is moving away (bummer) and whose mother is dying of cancer (super bummer). One night she sees a strange boy in the park. He scares her and though they lock eyes they do not speak. Then she meets him again on the street, and they talk. She seems to think he's nice, but nothing more. Then she sees him in an alley eating a bird (yikes) and runs away (good move). However, directly after this incident she proceeds to let him into her house where she is home alone and hang out with him. What? By this time I am annoyed. There is nothing smooth about this progression, their relationship is odd to me, off kilter somehow. He trusts her with his vampy secret and she lets him drink her blood and now I'm mad. It's a good scene, but meshed into the story in a weird way.
The characters are odd, and their dialog is not natural, nor compelling. I liked the idea of the story, but nothing really did it for me. The main villain, a child vamp, was not scary enough for me. Believe me, a child can be a scary foe (Stephen King did it, twice, not to mention Anne Rice's Claudia) but this evil child was not chilling. I also felt that the climax was rushed. The whole vanquishing of the bad guy part was not even exciting to me.
Also, there is a pretty preachy moral to this story. Something along the lines of accepting death, blah blah, living life to the fullest, blah blah.
Overall, I'm not mad I read it, but I wanted for it to be better. I had high hopes, and they were sadly unfulfilled. I can't hate on Mrs. Klause too much though, because she is a librarian, and I love the library ladies. (I wonder if she ever booktalks her own books? I totally would.) Anywho, I definitely suggest reading her werewolf book instead of her vampire book.