As a millennial, I had a younger sister who introduced me to Twilight. I had, of course, read anything by Anne Rice I could get my hands on that existed in my small conservative town and was excited to share a love of vampires with my baby sis. It was terrible of course but one of my favourite memories with her is being at a midnight release party for Breaking Dawn and to this day, I celebrate Hoa Hoa Hoa season starting and watch all the movies over again in a cocoon of content nostalgia.
Thank you to St Martin’s Press | Wednesday Books for feeding my desire to read about cute queer vampires in exchange for my honest review.
The Good Vampire’s Guide to Blood and Boyfriends is part journal, part research notes, filled with text messages and social media posts. Brennan is a cerebral thinker, getting lost in the stacks of the library. However, it’s not for class that he’s so involved in his work. It’s trying to find out how he was turned into a vampire and what his existence is going to look like after her wipes out the entire squirrel population on campus trying to keep himself fed. What makes matters worse is Cole, the “cute librarian guy” who always is there for students to make them feel supported with a mug of tea and a blanket, who just so happens to find out Brennan’s secret.
This book is adorable. The queer romance, the Frat bro roommate who is actually really supportive and open minded even if he cooks with too much garlic made me so happy. There are some darker tones in this book (trigger warnings include: suicidal ideation, attempt offscreen, homophobic parents, death, blood, animal death) The way that the mental health aspects is really well done and handled in a sweet and hopeful way.
If you or someone you know is struggling with thoughts of self harm, please reach out for help – the world is better with you in it. If you need support in Canada please dial 9-8-8 for the national suicide prevention hotline. You Matter.
If you need a fun little romantic story to celebrate the end of summer then I highly suggest picking up The Good Vampire’s Guide to Blood and Boyfriends immediately and cozy up with a good blanket, a hot cup of coffee and if you’re lucky enough, a hot librarian.
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