Pretty Dead

Pretty Dead

Block, F. (2009). Pretty dead. New York: Harper Collins.

Charlotte is a vampire living a lonely, idealistic human life, only she knows things are changing and she finds herself welcoming that.  When Charlotte’s best friend, Emily who had been raped and was depressed, supposedly commits suicide, Charlotte grieves the loss with Emily’s boyfriend, Jared, and finds herself falling in love with him.  Charlotte eventually finds out that the evil, possessive William, her maker, forced her to turn Emily into a vampire and has to defend Jared against them.  While reading Pretty Dead I couldn’t help but notice the simple vocabulary and short, easy to read sentences which, while they bored me, would make this novel a great choice for a struggling female reader and because of much of the subject matter, preferably one in high school.  Some aspects of the book that make it either “good” or “not so good” according to the qualities listed are things like specific references to designer names like Yves Saint Laurent and the closet full of “red-soled shoes” which eventually go out of style and are not really relevant to most of the intended audience anyway, but at the same time the use of figurative language helps beef up the simplicity of the novel.  While I realize many of the fashion references are intended to establish Charlotte’s “age”, many readers won’t be able to identify with them.  I must say, though, that I love the cover!