Halloween is just around the corner, so why not get into the spirit by picking up a few eerie reads? You can go with conventional horror, fast-paced thrillers, or, according to Teen Board member Alyssa L., the vampire niche. A huge fan of vampire series, Alyssa breaks down her favorite three, below. Be sure to check them out (but maybe with the lights on).
In the spirit of Halloween, I thought it’d be fun to list my favorite vampire series to introduce some fantastic reads that may not be very well known. This is purely based on my opinion and how much I enjoyed reading each series.
Just for a little bit of background information: I’ve been interested in vampires, and the different ways they’ve been perceived by different cultures, ever since the age of nine. My first vampire novel had been TWILIGHT by Stephenie Meyer and the amount of vampire books that I’ve read has just piled on ever since.
3. Vampire Academy by Richelle Mead
Vampire Academy is a series written by Richelle Mead that began in 2007 and is now complete after six books. The series focuses on a world where vampires and humans coexist, but there’s a slight twist; there are two different types of vampires, those who kill for pleasure, the Strigoi, and those who try living in peace, the Moroi. In between the two different groups are a unique group of humans called dhampirs who that also have vampire blood mixed in. They’re the ones who train their whole life to kill Strigoi and protect the Morois and humans. The series follows the life of a dhampir with a Moroi best friend along with their love lines and conflicts. Although the plot may seem a bit strange, it actually worked out pretty well and made the novel seem more like realistic fiction The main characters seem like typical teens and it was fun following them along throughout all six books. Even though the series has ended, Mead is already working on its prequel and overall, it’s definitely a series that’s worth your time.
2. Twilight by: Stephenie Meyer
A four-book series first written in 2005, Twilightis a much more well-known vampire series and, may I dare say, the most famous one. I know many people are unhappy with the series, but I still wanted to include it since it’s one of my personal favorites. For those who don’t know, Twilight follows a human teenager, Bella, who finds herself in the middle of a love triangle with a vampire and a werewolf, two foresworn enemies. It’s a plotline that I hadn’t read before and that’s why it has a spot on this list.
1.Chicagoland Vampires by: Chloe Neil
Chicagoland Vampiresis probably the most underrated series on this list. It currently has 12 novels (and is still continuing!) and the first book was published in 2009. In Chicagoland Vampires, readers follow a newly turned vampire who is forced to join one of the four vampire clans in Chicago while dealing with hatred from the humans and evil spirits that are trying to destroy the city of Chicago. We get to see the books’ world through the eyes of a vampire who may have more things in common with humans than expected.
After reading through this list, I hope many of you will be inspired to pick up these excellent Halloween reads!
Alyssa L. is a Teen Board member.
