YA Book Bloggers Battle: Round 1!

We're part of the first round of judges for the YA Book Bloggers Battle, and are delighted to present for judging:


Jessica's Guide To Dating on The Dark Side, by Beth Fantaskey
YA, 2009


VERSUS



Silver Phoenix, by Cindy Pon
YA, 2009

I'm so glad that we did this competition, as it forced me to read books that I normally wouldn't pick up. In fact, my library has had these two on the shelves for months and I would pass them by with a shrug of my shoulders. I'm not a big fan of vampires for starters. I can get past the whole werewolf thing, angels, you name it. But vampires? Blood-sucking? Teeth in the neck, destroyed by sun thing? It's not often I find one of those main characters a good find. When I do it's usually written by Annette Curtis Klause or Amelia Atwater-Rhodes. I'm also not a huge fan of the mystical Chinese world that the cinema can provide, and thought it wouldn't be any better in a book.
In both cases I was wrong, making this a harder decision than I anticipated:


Jessica's Guide to Dating on the Dark Side:
This book was without a doubt the biggest surprise I've read in a long time. I laughed over and over and over again for the first half of the book. At one point I even turned to my husband and through tears of laughter suggested we buy the book for my mother! I'm not sure Beth Fantaskey (Fantaskey?!) meant it to be quite as funny as I took it, but I can guarantee some laughs no matter how hard-core vamp-lover you are(n't).

The Characters: B+
Jessica is a normal teenage girl who discovers that she is of royal vampire blood when her long-lost fiance Lucius shows up looking like...well, the undead. What could have been a roll-your-eyes plot was hilarious as Lucius pokes fun at the guy Jessica dates. Or as he uses his overly protective machismo to put high-school boys in their place. I liked that every one acted his or her age, and that despite the fantastical ideas, everyone seemed realistic.
The Plot: B-
As you can tell, I thoroughly enjoyed the first half. The second half seemed such a flip, though, as Lucius does things you don't expect and confuses everything you've come to understand about him and Jessica. The ending drove me nuts, and not in a good way. I just had a hard time with a few of the ideas about vampires, and not just because I'm not a 'vampire person'.
The Writing: B-
Overall, not too shabby by a long shot.
The Cover: B
Cute, but a little silly, especially after reading about all of her amazing dresses.


Silver Phoenix:
This is very much a mythical book that incorporates the history and religion of China with the fantastic. Part love story, part adventure, I enjoyed the characters, the abilities she gained, and the mention of lots of yummy Chinese food. I seriously wanted pot-stickers when I was done reading!

The Characters: B
Ai Ling is a passionate girl who escapes a horrible marriage to go find her father who has been missing for months. On the way she meets Chen Yong who has a past of his own that he's trying desperately to figure out. Ai Ling is a fiesty girl who doesn't just stand by and watch things happen. She truly participates and is very much not the kind of girl that just stands and screams when a monster appears. (Don't you hate those?) Chen Yong is a perfect hero, and his own side-story is interesting to watch as it unravels.
The Plot: C+
It was very much what you expect in the way of a Chinese fantasy story - the monsters are hard to picture, and everything seems...well, doomed for most of the book. The ending was nothing but what I'd expected, but still bothered me a lot. I truly enjoy fantasy, but sometimes things could get a bit heavy for me, and the ending nearly drove me to tears. I enjoyed the lessons in culture as the intricacies of betrothals, homes, relationships, etc. were explained.
The Writing: B
The writing was definitely decent - I would say most of my raised eyebrows were aimed at the plot. I particularly liked her style at the beginning before Ai Ling's journey.
The Cover: B-
It's pretty - I love the way her hair is done.

As you can see, it's kind of a toss-up, although in the end I felt overall that the better book was:

Jessica's Guide To Dating On The Dark Side, by Beth Fantaskey

Anyone read them both and have a say?