A review by pagingmrsvarnum
Serwa Boateng's Guide to Vampire Hunting by Roseanne A. Brown

adventurous mysterious medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? No

3.75

I can always count on Rick Riordan Presents books to deliver an action-packed Middle Grade story with lovable characters and folklore from all over the world. Serwa Boateng is no exception! Drawing heavily on Ghanaian culture, this book explores vampires and vampire hunting in a new way that young readers will really like (as well as adult librarians who still really love Buffy the Vampire Slayer) - if they are willing to get through the whole book. 

 

This book flips the trope of an adolescent learning he or she is magical and joining a secret supernatural world - instead, Serwa has grown up the daughter of two powerful vampire slayers and really hasn’t had any contact with the outside world at all. Suddenly her parents are called out on a super secret mission, and she’s left staying with her aunt and cousin trying to fit into a regular middle school world - until, of course, she finds out that a vampire is on the loose. She rallies an unexpected (except, for the reader, it’s totally expected) group of misfits to work together to keep the school and town safe. 

 

The story is fresh, the characters are lovable, and the folklore is crazy interesting - but this book could have greatly benefited from some serious editing. There’s just a lot that could have been cut out, and the result is a book that you have to really be committed to in order to finish. I was listening to the book at 2x speed, and I was ready for things to wrap up already! The other thing I didn’t like about it is a personal issue - I am just so tired of cliffhanger endings because they feel like a cheap way to make the reader spend money/time on a book that maybe they don’t even want to read. Like, I really didn’t plan on listening to the sequel, but now I feel like if I don’t, I’m not getting the full story. That’s just a personal thing that has developed over the past year or so - but cliffhangers are just a part of a series and have been around forever, so I know it’s best for me to steer clear when possible! 

 

This book is one of the Mark Twain nominees for the upcoming school year, and it’s a great read for Percy Jackson/Harry Potter fans! While yes, there are vampires in the story, and there are some pretty action-packed fight scenes, the book is neither scary nor gory, and it’s absolutely appropriate for young readers.