Fangtastic!

Fangtastic!
by Sienna Mercer
Recommended Ages: 11+

Ivy and Olivia aren't just classmates at Franklin Grove Middle School; they're also identical twins. The trouble is, they have to keep this amazing discovery to themselves. Their adoptive parents don't know. Also, one of them happens to be a vampire, and the "bunny" (non-vampire) sister isn't supposed to know this. Vampires, who make up a significant portion of the town's population, are very strict about secrecy. Which is why a prank by a gang of middle school vamps called the Beasts could lead to serious stuff. Like a crusading reporter rolling into town, determined to get to the bottom of why a pimply kid jumped out of a coffin in the middle of a funeral.

I know, it's so annoying when that happens!

It's going to take the combined efforts of both girls – Olivia, a cheerful cheerleader who likes wearing pink and sparkles, and Ivy, a Goth who writes for the school newspaper and rarely cracks a smile – to steer Serena Star off the track of vampires and whatever else wants to stay hidden in Franklin Grove. Each person they let in on their secret (and I just mean that they're twins) could potentially blow the lid off the existence of vampires. But they can't stop Serena alone.

This is a fun, wish-fulfillment-fantasy romp through middle school relationship issues, with some kiddie romance, the power of sisterhood and friendship, and the whole range of character types you can find in a school community from bossy cheerleaders to buttoned-up cub reporters, from bookworms to bullies and beyond. The Goth/vamp subculture at Ivy and Olivia's school has its own slang that's also fun to explore, with "that sucks" meaning something is good, for just one example. It's smoothly and cleverly written, with plenty of laughs and probably some jokes that'll slip by you if you're not on your toes. And after all, Serena Star's comeuppance is glorious to behold.

This is the second "My Sister the Vampire" book by Canadian author Sienna Mercer, coming between Switched and Re-Vamped!. The series has 18 titles, several of them with exclamation points in them, such as Vampalicious!, Stake Out!, Flipping Out! and Spooktacular!, as well as a companion quartet of middle-grades chapter books called "My Brother the Werewolf" including Cry Wolf, Puppy Love!, Howl-oween! and Tail Spin.