These Vampires Don’t Sparkle | Mid-Columbia Libraries

From blood and ash

Armentrout, Jennifer L., author.

From the Publisher

"Chosen from birth to usher in a new era, Poppy's life has never been her own. The life of the Maiden is solitary. Never to be touched. Never to be looked upon. Never to be spoken to. Never to experience pleasure. Waiting for the day of her Ascension, she would rather be with the guards, fighting back the evil that took her family, than preparing to be found worthy by the gods. But the choice has never been hers. The entire kingdom's future rests on Poppy's shoulders, something she's not even...

My Thoughts

Hot off of BookTok, this book is first in a series and debuts two types of vampires, as well as werewolves and some other supernatural delights. The two types of vampires are also at war with one another, one is more traditional and stuck in the dark while the other is golden eyed and loves the sunlight. There is war and love, and most things in between in this tale, and nothing is as it first appears.

Glass houses

Caine, Rachel.

From the Publisher

College freshman Claire Danvers has had enough of her nightmarish dorm situation. When Claire heads off-campus, the imposing old house where she finds a room may not be much better. Her new roommates don't show many signs of life, but they'll have Claire's back when the town's deepest secrets come crawling out, hungry for fresh blood. Original.

My Thoughts

Vampires, ghosts, what else is missing from this college town? This is a fairly standard outcast girl goes to the new school, finds friends when she’s true to herself, ends up on the wrong side of some big bad vampires. Classic. What I like about these vampires is they don’t get all pretty when they’re turned. They look the same as when they were human, a nice twist.

Vampire Academy

Mead, Richelle.

From the Publisher

Two years after a horrible incident made them run away, vampire princess Lissa and her guardian-in-training Rose are found and returned to St. Vladimir's Academy, where one focuses on mastering magic, the other on physical training, while both try to avoid the perils of gossip, cliques, gruesome pranks, and sinister plots.

My Thoughts

Another school setting, this series features two and a half vampire species. Strigoi are the bad vampires, cut off from their souls, and Moroi are the vampires they used to be, still in touch with the magic of the earth. Dhampirs are half human and half vampire, and they protect the Moroi. These stories have politics of a hidden vampire world, different mythos drawn from vampire tales around the world, and of course a forbidden romance or two.

Moon called

Briggs, Patricia.

From the Publisher

Mercy Thompson's life is not exactly normal. Her next-door neighbor is a werewolf. Her former boss is a gremlin. And she's fixing a VW bus for a vampire. But then, Mercy isn't exactly normal herself.

My Thoughts

While werewolves and werecoyotes might be the main creatures in this series, you can’t disregard the vampires. This series takes place in Tri-Cities and the surrounding area which makes it particularly exciting to read. It was very cool to be reading and hear familiar land marks and towns mentioned, especially when I was by those places myself.

Carmilla

Le Fanu, Joseph Sheridan, 1814-1873, author.

From the Publisher

"Isolated in a remote mansion in a central European forest, Laura longs for companionship -- until a carriage accident brings another young woman into her life: the secretive and sometimes erratic Carmilla. As Carmilla's actions become more puzzling and volatile, Laura develops bizarre symptoms, and as her health goes into decline, Laura and her father discover something monstrous. Joseph Sheridan Le Fanu's compelling tale of a young woman's seduction by a female vampire was a source of...

My Thoughts

This predates Dracula and is as classic a gothic vampire tale as they come. This stands out from others by featuring a female vampire, as well as a sapphic romance. It spins expected roles of men and women on their head, at least a bit, and manages to be something new despite it’s old age.

Certain dark things : a novel

Moreno-Garcia, Silvia, author.

From the Publisher

"Certain Dark Things combines elements of Latin American mythology with a literary voice that leads readers on an exhilarating and fast-paced journey. Welcome to Mexico City, an oasis in a sea of vampires. Here in the city, heavily policed to keep the creatures of the night at bay, Domingo is another trash-picking street kid, just hoping to make enough to survive. Then he meets Atl, the descendant of Aztec blood drinkers. Domingo is smitten. He clings to her like a barnacle until Atl relents...

My Thoughts

Ancient vampires hiding in Mexico City. Vampire crime, drawing from the Aztecs, give me all of it. There are many familiar themes that are made entirely fresh in the different setting and with the distinct story telling from Silvia Moreno-Garcia.

Bloodless

Preston, Douglas J., author.

From the Publisher

"Agent Pendergast faces his most unexpected challenge yet when bloodless bodies begin to appear in Savannah, GA"-- Provided by publisher.

My Thoughts

Now this is not my favorite vampire on the list, but it was too unique to not include. This book manages to tie together the mystery of DB Cooper, vampires, Elizabeth Bathory and alternate dimensions.

Court of the vampire queen

Robert, Katee, author.

From the Publisher

"All Mina ever wanted was to escape her father's control. Half human, half vampire, she lived eternally torn between two worlds, never fully experiencing the pleasures of either--until her father chose her as the pawn in his latest political move, [giving] her to the darkly powerful and dangerously seductive Malachi Zion. Malachi is not a vampire to be trifled with. He rules with an iron fist and has a reputation for the darkest of sins. But the longer Mina spends with him, the more she...

My Thoughts

Katee Robert has a hold on me. This is a mess of vampires, with powers. Vampires that can control blood, or fire. Vampires that can shape shift. Half vampires that are all kind of a magical mystery. A why choose romance, there's no need for our heroine to pick just one vampire. And to fight their battles, they will need to all work together.

A shadow in the ember

Armentrout, Jennifer L., author.

From the Publisher

Born shrouded in the veil of the Primals, a Maiden as the Fates promised, Seraphena Mierel's future has never been hers. Chosen before birth to uphold the desperate deal her ancestor struck to save his people, Sera must leave behind her life and offer herself to the Primal of Death as his Consort. However, Sera's real destiny is the most closely guarded secret in all of Lasania, she's not the well protected Maiden, but an assassin with one mission, one target. Make the Primal of Death fall in...

My Thoughts

This book is the first book in the prequel series “Blood and Ash” and is very similar except characters have different names and there are dragons instead of werewolves. Other than that, there are many parallels. Despite coming out more recently, I would suggest reading this before “From Blood and Ash.”

King of battle and blood

St. Clair, Scarlett, author.

From the Publisher

"In order to end a years-long war between vampires and mortals, Isolde must wed vampire king Adrian Aleksandr Vasiliev. But surviving the vampire court doesn't prove to be nearly as difficult as resisting the intense attraction between her and Adrian"-- Provided by publisher.

My Thoughts

Scarlett St. Clair and I have a tumultuous relationship. Her writing style does not always vibe with me, but man, her plots and stories? Some of the best. This story features a princess who would do anything to protect her people, including marrying the wicked vampire king that has been conquering neighboring kingdoms. But what happens when he isn't so wicked? Everything Princess Isolde has ever known has suddenly been turned upside down and sometimes that means picking a new side.