Something Shiny

I may have to go back and read Christopher Moore’s You Suck (the second of three San Francisco vampire love stores with roughly the same cast of characters), because I don’t recall Abby Normal having such a large role in that book. This book, Bite Me, does a good job of recapping the previous two books so even if you haven’t read the previous two, you won’t be completely lost. Though, be warned, assuming you’ve experienced the first two simply by reading the catch-up chapter would be cheating yourself. Much like a Kevin Smith movie (only slightly classier), the draw isn’t the plot, it’s the dialog and the commentary.

Back to Bite Me… Abby Normal is a post-goth teen helping out her “dark lords,” who are really two recently turned vampires who are still trying to get a handle on things. Well, ok, actually, she had them encased in bronze because they were on the verge of a breakup and she couldn’t stand the thought of their eternal love being not so eternal. Jody escapes, and lets Tommy out (the two “dark lords” mentioned earlier), and mayhem ensues.

Most of Mr. Moore’s San Francisco regular characters return along with a fog of “vampire kitties.” Abby’s teen txt-speak tends to make the reading a little slower than a Christopher Moore book is typically (though, not as slowing as Pocket from his last book The Fool). That said, the book still moves quickly and is an amusing light read.

Read on for what others have to say:

Booklist

“Moore’s most hysterical ‘love story’ to date.”

Product Description

The city of San Francisco is being stalked by a huge shaved vampyre cat named Chet, and only I, Abby Normal, emergency backup mistress of the Greater Bay Area night, and my manga-haired love monkey, Foo Dog, stand between the ravenous monster and a bloody massacre of the general public.

Whoa. And this is a love story? Yup. ‘Cept there’s no whining. See, while some lovers were born to run, Jody and Tommy were born to bite. Well, reborn, that is, now that they’re vampires. Good thing theirs is an undying love, since their Goth Girl Friday, Abby Normal, imprisoned them in a bronze statue.

Abby wants to be a bloodsucking fiend, too, but right now she’s really busy with other stuff, like breaking in a pair of red vinyl thigh-high Skankenstein® platform boots and wrangling her Ph.D.-candidate boyfriend, Steve (the love monkey). And then there’s that vampire cat Chet, who’s getting bigger and smarter—and thirstier—by the minute. Abby thought she and Steve could handle the kitty cat on their own, mais non . . .

Before you can say “OMG! WTF?” Tommy and Jody are sprung from captivity, and join forces with Abby, Steve, the frozen-turkey-bowling Safeway crew, the Emperor of San Francisco and his trusty dogs Lazarus and Bummer, Abby’s gay Goth friend Jared, and SF’s finest Cavuto and Rivera to hunt big cat and save the city. And that’s when the fun really begins.

About the Author

Christopher Moore is the author of eleven previous novels: Fool, You Suck, A Dirty Job, The Stupidest Angel, Fluke, Lamb, The Lust Lizard of Melancholy Cove, Island of the Sequined Love Nun, Bloodsucking Fiends, Coyote Blue, and Practical Demonkeeping.

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