Fun story, fluffy read. I tore though it in one sitting and enjoy how the series all connects. Some of the descriptions are great, there are clunky parts and the resolution isn't strong, but still ok. ( )

It's no wonder these were re-released with updated covers - they seem to be very modern, for being written so long ago. Some moments were very cheesy but as always, for me, the main vampire character charmed me into liking the book. I probably won't read the entire series, but I would read another one starring Ash or James. :) ( )

What can I say? Sometimes a girl needs a little bit of cheesy vampire romance! It’s been probably close to 20 years (what?!) since I originally discovered L.J. Smith’s Night World novels and fell in love with the magical world she had created for the creatures of the night alongside us mere humans, and the story surprisingly still holds a certain panache. Sure, the writing skews young (even younger I would say than what we market to the young adult audience now), but her characters are fun, the emotional quality holds true, and the mythos of her world building is solid enough amongst the urban mythology canon. Secret Vampire kicks off the Night World series by introducing us via the story of a young girl with cancer who is saved by her best friend who just so happens to be a (you guessed it) vampire. The title kind of gives away most of the plot once you realize what Smith is setting up, but the story is engaging enough that we want to see how Poppy makes her choice to enter the Night World and what kinds of complications will hold her back. The narrative may be centred on a “helpless young woman” with the same potential tropes as the OG vampire story, Dracula, but Poppy is actually far from being a damsel who needs to be rescued, and she makes her choice to live with only a modicum of hesitation - turning the story into a neat rebuttal of much of the vampire lore of old, which focuses on the horror of the living undead and their monstrous way of life. The story leaves us watching Poppy and James drive into the sunset to begin a new life, but we’re clearly just getting an entré into the characters who populate the intriguing Night World. ( )

A teenaged girl is very suddenly made aware that she has a rare and threatening disease and has about 3 weeks to live. Fortunately for her, her best friend is secretly a vampire and offers to turn her. Poppy initially accepts, but then begins to think more critically about the idea, mostly due to the reaction of her skeptical brother who has never particularly liked that friend. The characters are also in danger from the Night World, an organized group of vampires, werewolves and witches who mostly keep their dealings secret and their membership in check. It's a huge no-no to tell humans about the Night World.

This is a good introductory book into the Night World series, briefly explaining the Night World and introducing some characters who will become more important later. It's a quick read; in fact so quick the reader might marvel at the pace with which these characters make such life-altering decisions. But then...they're teenagers, so I guess that's not so surprising. ( )

I already own the paperback series, but these hardback editions are beautiful! I absolutely love the way the text ink matches the color of the cover.

I read these books when I was high school - all the way back in the late 90's. I loved them! I loved the characters and the stories and the way they always made my teenaged little heart throb with emotion. They're wonderful!
As an adult, I still find them thrilling, but some of that might be a bit of nostalgia.

This book is really called Secret Vampire. I don't know why the changed the title for these hardback editions. Anyway. The story follows Poppy, a quirky young girl who discovers (on the first day of summer vacation) that she has an incurable disease that's spreading rapidly. Her best friend and secret crush, James, takes this news rather hard. He's been secretly in love with Poppy and that's bad for him because he's secretly a vampire. His world has very strict rules on forming attachments to morals. One night he tells her his secret and offers her a way to survive her disease. ( )