Publication Date: September 2011Publisher: Margaret K. McElderry Books
Release Format: Hardcover , 400pp
ISBN: 1442423730
Buy the Book: Amazon
Genre: YA Paranormal
Synopsis:
Pearl is a sixteen-year-old vampire . . . fond of blood, allergic to sunlight, and mostly evil . . . until the night a sparkly unicorn stabs her through the heart with his horn. Oops.
Her family thinks she was attacked by a vampire hunter (because, obviously, unicorns don’t exist), and they’re shocked she survived. They’re even more shocked when Pearl discovers she can now withstand the sun. But they quickly find a way to make use of her new talent. The Vampire King of New England has chosen Pearl’s family to host his feast. If Pearl enrolls in high school, she can make lots of human friends and lure them to the King’s feast—as the entrées.
The only problem? Pearl’s starting to feel the twinges of a conscience. How can she serve up her new friends—especially the cute guy who makes her fangs ache—to be slaughtered? Then again, she’s definitely dead if she lets down her family. What’s a sunlight-loving vamp to do?
What I Liked:
Drink Slay Love by Sarah Beth Durst is very different than any other vampire book that I have ever read. Durst gives the reader a taste for the unusual right from the beginning by using a unicorn to change Pearls life with a horn through the heart. Normally a stake through the heart is just the thing to kill a vampire, but not in this whimsical story. Instead of death, Pearl is faced with other changes that are unknown to vampires. Pearl lives in the light of day, attends school, grows a conscience, and sees humans as more than a snack. The changes are gradual and that keeps Pearl working to keep her loyalty to her vampire family intact as she discovers other interests to pursue that are in contrast to her family’s ways. Pearl has a great spunky attitude and her sarcastic humor and long list of unusual events makes this a light fun read.
What I Didn’t Like:
There were parts of the book that went too slow for my taste. There was nearly two chapters of Pearls transition into school life that were fairly uneventful.
Would I Recommend Drink Slay Love?
Yes! This one is definitely purchase worthy for those YA paranormal fans and worth a try for readers who have been reluctant to try a more serious paranormal book since it is so much lighter and different than most. I would call Drink Slay Love whimsical paranormal.
I love vampires! I read one bad review of this and was turned off but since then have seen a ton of great ones! Definitely going back on the to-read list.