Pretty Dead
By Debra Bogart,
Common Sense Media Reviewer
Common Sense Media Reviewers
Pretty graphic and explicit for a teen vampire read.
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What's the Story?
Charlotte is a century-old vampire stuck in a 17-year-old body. At 13 she had a forbidden tryst with her twin brother. When he dies two years later she is devastated and easily seduced by a vampire. Her lover claims to be a fallen angel, aka a demon. After spending decades with him witnessing first hand atrocities such as Auchwitz and Hiroshima (just for fun), she leaves him to live in California. There she befriends 17-year-old Emily and tries to steal her boyfriend Jared by any horrible means necessary.
Is It Any Good?
PRETTY DEAD has been praised for its prose, mythology, and erotic power -- but graphic, psychopathic violence and graphic, adult sex in a teen book? Fans of Block’s sexy urban fairy tales will not expect this complex and decadent novel and it may mislead them with its traditional vampire storyline and sympathy for the difficulties teen girls face.
Talk to Your Kids About ...
Families can talk about the vampire craze. What do you think makes them so popular?
Families can also talk about why this popular teen author has gone this direction. Who do you think the book is right for?
Book Details
- Author: Francesca Lia Block
- Genre: Fantasy
- Book type: Fiction
- Publisher: HarperTeen
- Publication date: September 22, 2009
- Publisher's recommended age(s): 14 - 17
- Number of pages: 208
- Last updated: March 4, 2020
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