The Livingstone's are vegetarians. They're vampires, and they live in Manhattan. You just know it's not going to be a walk in the park--Central Park, that is.
Adele Griffin's Vampire Island takes us into the world of Lexie, Maddy and Hudson, a world where vampires and humans live together, but not all vampires are fruit-bat hybrids. I really enjoyed following Lexie through her boy problems, Maddy spying on the neighbors, and Hudson setting out to save the world.
Hudson has a small language problem. He uses old world words (like "yewn," "O' Happy Day" and "whilst") in a new world. He wants to help save the planet from global warming, so he makes people write on both sides of the paper, use the least amount of electricity possible, and sometimes has his sister Maddy scare kids into not using as much throw-away paper or plastic at lunch. By night he loves to fly through Central Park, talking to bat friends. By day he talks to the animals his parent's pet sit.
Lexie can do things only bats can do, echo-sounding, super-fast reflexes (I liked the coin catching trick), double-jointed knees. These attract the attention of the hottest guy in school, Dylan Easterby. Dylan happens to be the same age as Lexie (her human age anyway). Lexie runs into trouble because Mina, the most popular girl in school, also happens to want Dylan.
Of all the vampire children, Maddy has the most trouble adapting to the vegan diet, but she's willing to try some interesting new foods. She drinks hot pomegranate juice every morning, pretending it's blood. She eats mosquitoes and ticks to get the blood they have taken from others. She also has a keen sense for uncovering and hunting down pureblood vampires. When two move in across the street from the Livingstone's, she is not about to let them hurt her family. She's an awful cook, but that doesn't stop her from making cookies with garlic and holy water. She can also be bossy. She gets Hudson, her younger brother, to dress up as a girl elf scout, and has him sell the special cookies to the vampires. She's also disappointed that her brother looks better in her elf scout uniform then she does.
Adele Griffin's Vampire Island is a wonderful, funny, suspenseful story. I read it cover to cover in one sitting, and I would recommend it for anyone who likes adventure, magic, creatures of the night, and garlic cookies.