Review: The Chronicles of Vladimir Tod (1,2 & 3)

Titles: Eighth Grade Bites, Ninth Grade Slays & Tenth Grade Bleeds
Author: Heather Brewer
Dates Released: August 16th 2007, April 17th 2008, June 5th 2009 (respectively)
Pages: 192, 288, 304 (respectively) (paperback)
Rating: 4 out of 5 (averaged)

Description for Eighth Grade Bites:
Junior high really sucks for thirteen-year-old Vladimir Tod. Bullies harass him, the principal is dogging him, and the girl he likes prefers his best friend. Oh, and Vlad has a secret: his mother was human, but his father was a vampire. With no idea of the extent of his powers, Vlad struggles daily with his blood cravings and his enlarged fangs. When a substitute teacher begins to question him a little too closely, Vlad worries that his cover is about to be blown. But then he faces a much bigger problem: he's being hunted by a vampire killer.


Description for Ninth Grade Slays *Might contain spoilers!  Highlight to read*:
High school totally bites when you're half human, half vampire.

Freshman year sucks for Vlad Tod. Bullies still harass him. The photographer from the school newspaper is tailing him. And failing his studies could be deadly. A trip to Siberia gives “study abroad” a whole new meaning as Vlad connects with other vampires and advances his mind-control abilities, but will he return home with the skills to recognize a vampire slayer when he sees one? In this thrilling sequel to Eighth Grade Bites, Vlad must confront the secrets of the past and battle forces that once again threaten his life.


Description for Tenth Grade Bleeds *Might contain spoilers!  Highlight to read*:
It’s another sucky year at Bathory High for Vladimir Tod. The evil vampire D’Ablo is hunting for the ritual that could steal Vlad’s powers. His best friend Henry doesn’t want to be his drudge anymore. And as if all that weren’t enough, it’s getting harder for Vlad to resist feeding on the people around him. When months go by with no word from Uncle Otis and D’Ablo shows up demanding Vlad’s father’s journal, Vlad realizes that having a normal high school year is the least of his concerns. Vlad needs to act fast, and even his status as the Pravus won’t save him this time . . .


Review:
I'm currently working through the 4th book (as you can see under the Currently Reading ^^ ), so I decided that I'm going to give my opinion on the first 3 books of this series :)
 
So, I am enjoying this series so far :D  I think it's pretty awesome to see through the eyes of a teenage vampire boy going through high school trying to hide his identity as well as find out what his true identity is (besides just being a regular ol' vampire, he's got to be something more to be an interesting character, right?) and fighting his enemies that he's gained throughout the first few books.  Heater Brewer has also kind of used the stereotypical traits of vampires, like being sensitive to sunlight or being "allergic" to garlic.  It's a pretty funny series :D
 
I rated this series so far, a 4 out of 5, because sometimes I just kind of loose interest for a little while until things pick up.  Then things sort of die down for a bit, again.  The plot's kind of like a roller coaster.  One chapter things pick up, then it goes down.  The writing is also okay.  But I like how Brewer kind of writes like it's from the point of view of a teenager.  People might say that her writing's not the best, but it totally fits the book since it is from the point of view of a teenage boy. 

I've gotta admit, I thought that the first book was okay.  It wasn't the best.  I thought it was too short and a little bit slow.  But, the series continued to get better with each book.  The characters are also really interesting and each have their own, different personalities.  Like Vlad and his drudge and best friend, Henry, are the complete opposites, but somehow they manage to make their friendship survive. 

It's a pretty good series if you want something fun and short to read :)  Start out with the first book first though, just in case you end up not really liking it.

Cover Review:
I think that the covers are really cool, especially the vampire smiley faces :D  My favorite one has got to be the one for Tenth Grade Bleeds since it's purple... and my favorite color is purple :P GO PURPLE!  I like how they also show Vlad as this mysterious goth boy :[ (<---- heyy! it's a vampire smiley face! or something like it...)

*Descriptions from Goodreads.com
**Review copies purchased.

Cleo :)

Heather Brewer's website
The Chronicles of Vladimir Tod website