Review by Kirkus Book Review
A human-loving vampire wrestles with friendship, identity, and bodily changes when he loses his baby fangs. For most vampires, fangs define who they are, but Ivan secretly hopes he'll keep his harmless baby fangs forever, so he can stay with his human friends at Day School, the only place where he feels like he belongs. Around other vampires, Ivan never knows what to say or how to act. But on the first day of eighth grade, Ivan's worst nightmare becomes a reality. As his adult fangs start growing in, Ivan struggles to hide them from his family, who don't fully accept his attachment to humans, and his human friends, who must never learn he's a vampire. Every day, he fights against his new sensitivity to blood, but he keeps fainting in class, and for reasons he doesn't understand, he's drawn to the heartbeat of new kid Damien, his lab partner in biology class. Snyder effectively uses color to create contrast between the human and vampire worlds, casting humans in sunny yellows (with skin tones in a spectrum of grays) and vampires in moody blues, which emphasize Ivan's feelings. Although Ivan's love for humans is taboo, his attraction to another boy creates no conflict. The worldbuilding (particularly the divide between vampires and humans) lacks depth and consistency, but this background weakness doesn't overshadow the sweet and relevant coming-of-age story. A sincere and insightful story of personal growth and acceptance.(Graphic paranormal. 9-12) Copyright (c) Kirkus Reviews, used with permission.
Copyright (c) Kirkus Reviews, used with permission.
