Kissing Coffins by Ellen Schreiber – 165 pages
The sequel to “Vampire Kisses” picks up two days after the
first book ends, with Raven missing her vampire boyfriend Alexander, wondering why he suddenly left town. Her search for clues to his disappearance
leads her from her home in Dullsville to nearby Hipsterville, and a goth club
where she meets another vampire, Jagger.
Jagger has a score to settle with Alexander, and wants to make Raven a
part of his dangerous design. Alexander
had taken off to keep Raven safe, but when Jagger threatens to make Raven bound
to him as a fellow creature of the night, it leads to a showdown at the local
drive-in during a showing of the cult classic “Kissing Coffins”. Alexander and Raven are reunited in time for
the school’s Snow Ball, but a last-minute turn of events creates a cliffhanger
for the story to continue in a next installment.
This book had a more serious tone than “Vampire Kisses,” and
lacks some of the comic banter that made the first one enjoyable. Trevor, Raven’s foil from the first book,
plays only a minor part, as do several other characters. The author mentions name brands of items over
and over in a seeming attempt to make Raven appear gothic chic, but the tic feels
like product placement (as if that were possible in a book). Framing the story with the device of a
made-up classic b-movie was a creative touch.
Still, I had less fun reading what felt like a weaker installment to
Raven’s story. The introduction of a new
character by the end, Jagger’s sister Luna, was interesting enough to prompt me
to pick up the next book and see if it will be a better read.
