Blue Bloods

Title: Blue Bloods
Author: Melissa De La Cruz
Publication Info: March 2007
ISBN: 0786838922
Pages: 302
Price: $15.99
Other books in the series: Masquerade, Revelations, The Van Alen Legacy, Keys to the Repository, Misguided Angel, Bloody Valentine, Lost in Time, Gates of Paradise
Genre: fantasy, romance
Reading Level: 6th grade
Interest Level: 8th grade and up
Plot Summary: The Blue Bloods are elite group of aristocrates in New York City that have one thing in common, they are vampires. The Blue Bloods live a human life time then cycle out to be reborn into human society. The vampires do not regain their full memories of their passed lives till the their teens. Schulyer Van Alen lives her grandmother in a rundown mansion and attends a prestiges private school but soon Schulyer is acting different and she isn't sure why. Then a girl from her high school is found dead with all her blood drained. Something isn't right in the world of the Blue Bloods and what does Schulyer have to do with it? What does the changes in Schulyer have to do with the strange murder of her classmate?
Critical Review: Blue Bloods is a very unique take on Vampires. The don't hunt down humans but rather they live among humans and are responsible for many of the great achievements of humans. Melissa De La Cruz creates an enticing world that is full of action, suspense and romance. The first book hooks you into the series and as a reader you can't help but get lost in the world Melissa has created. There is a lot of references to historical events and biblical stories that Melissa intertwines with vampire lore.
Reader's Annotation: New York City is infested with vampires and humans are completely unaware. They have lived this way for centuries but something is going wrong in the world of vampires and humans. Schuyler Van Alen is suddenly craving raw food and having strange flashback and when a girl from her high school ends up dead with all her blood drained Schuyler begins to wonder what is going on.
Book Talk Ideas: The book talks about how many famous actors, models and singers are in fact vampires. It would be interesting to bring in that aspect into the book talk by having the teens imagine if all the their favorite actors and singers were in fact vampires living among us.
Issues: The story features very rich vampire teens who engage in sexual activities, drinking and risk taking behaviors.
Main Themes: secret societies, vampires
Bibliotherapeutic Usefulness: For the most part the story is a fun read but it does show teens taking on obstacles, even if those teens are vampires.
Read alikes: Bloodlines by Richelle Mead and City of Bones by Cassandra Clare
Author Website: http://www.melissa-delacruz.com/
Professional Reviews: Kirkus Reviews
Publisher's Weekly
Why Include this book? Vampires are still very popular and the series has been a huge success for Melissa De La Cruz.