mehsi's review
5.0
Reread 2020: Meet Josie Griffin, when she in a rage quite mode destroys her boyfriend's fancy smancy car window and she gets sentenced to community service + anger management. And then she discovers that there is a whole world of paranormal beings.
This was one of my favourite reads in 2013 and it was high on my list to be re-read. Now with Corona and having to ration books this one got even higher on the list and now I had to read it. It was just as much fun as the first read was and I am so happy with that. I waited long enough that I don't remember all of the things. Yes, that is a problem and that is why I don't often re-read. I remember A LOT of details even years afterwards.
Meet Josie Griffin, a super sweet, a bit naive girl who is really pissed at her boyfriend, or should I say ex. I could so understand her anger and I would definitely have done the same as her, though maybe I would also have done a repaint of his car with a nice pink colour. :P Sorry, but I hate cheating and I hate cheating when you do it with friends. And then there is the whole no one telling Josie about it... Yep, I was agreeing with Josie. I did feel sorry she got that much of a punishment for it, but if she hadn't she wouldn't have had such a fun adventure and met such wonderful characters and discovered a whole new world that she never knew.
I loved how dedicated she was to help out the girls at HAG and that she did it no matter how much trouble she would get in. I am not sure if the Josie from before would have done it, but this one does. And I love it.
However, I would have liked to see her confess a bit earlier and also not tell the whole world about the paras through her blog. No matter what, no matter if people thought she was just faking, there are always people who know who she means and know the truth.
I wasn't always a fan of all the characters. Johann just has to lay off with the whole disco 1990 Berlin vampire stuff, hello dude, we are another age get with the times. Plus, he was just very creepy. I get that he is a vampire and that stalking young maidens is part of the job description.. but still. No.
Tarren was definitely my least favourite girl and character in the book. Her mixing up words was one thing that annoyed me especially as it seems really random when it happened, but she was also a bitch at times. She had such a mean streak.
But I liked Avis and had a laugh when Josie finds out what he is (which I already had guessed because come on).
I also liked Helios and how despite being who he is he wasn't cocky. He was actually really sweet and I had a big laugh that when emotions went up electricity would react or the weather even.
I wasn't a fan of how the paranormal kids were called, paras. It just sounded very weird to me, and I am not sure what alternative I would have picked.
I would have liked the parents to be a bit kinder to their kid. I get that she did something terrible, but you guys are making a way bigger deal about it than I would have. They are treating her like she killed someone and as if she is on drugs. Hello, whut?
I loved the HAG plotline and I loved seeing it develop more and more as the story continued. I had a couple of suspicions on what was happening and I loved detecting and discovering with the group to see what was going on. The ending to it was fantastically written and I had so much fun reading how it all came together and how it ended.
All in all this book was a wonderful mix of paranormal stuff, romance, action, and tons of humour. I would highly recommend it.
Read: 2013: This book was hilarious!! I loved the story, though I wished our main lead would have confessed sooner to the I am not a monster part. :)
Review first posted at https://twirlingbookprincess.com/
This was one of my favourite reads in 2013 and it was high on my list to be re-read. Now with Corona and having to ration books this one got even higher on the list and now I had to read it. It was just as much fun as the first read was and I am so happy with that. I waited long enough that I don't remember all of the things. Yes, that is a problem and that is why I don't often re-read. I remember A LOT of details even years afterwards.
Meet Josie Griffin, a super sweet, a bit naive girl who is really pissed at her boyfriend, or should I say ex. I could so understand her anger and I would definitely have done the same as her, though maybe I would also have done a repaint of his car with a nice pink colour. :P Sorry, but I hate cheating and I hate cheating when you do it with friends. And then there is the whole no one telling Josie about it... Yep, I was agreeing with Josie. I did feel sorry she got that much of a punishment for it, but if she hadn't she wouldn't have had such a fun adventure and met such wonderful characters and discovered a whole new world that she never knew.
I loved how dedicated she was to help out the girls at HAG and that she did it no matter how much trouble she would get in. I am not sure if the Josie from before would have done it, but this one does. And I love it.
However, I would have liked to see her confess a bit earlier and also not tell the whole world about the paras through her blog. No matter what, no matter if people thought she was just faking, there are always people who know who she means and know the truth.
I wasn't always a fan of all the characters. Johann just has to lay off with the whole disco 1990 Berlin vampire stuff, hello dude, we are another age get with the times. Plus, he was just very creepy. I get that he is a vampire and that stalking young maidens is part of the job description.. but still. No.
Tarren was definitely my least favourite girl and character in the book. Her mixing up words was one thing that annoyed me especially as it seems really random when it happened, but she was also a bitch at times. She had such a mean streak.
But I liked Avis and had a laugh when Josie finds out what he is (which I already had guessed because come on).
I also liked Helios and how despite being who he is he wasn't cocky. He was actually really sweet and I had a big laugh that when emotions went up electricity would react or the weather even.
I wasn't a fan of how the paranormal kids were called, paras. It just sounded very weird to me, and I am not sure what alternative I would have picked.
I would have liked the parents to be a bit kinder to their kid. I get that she did something terrible, but you guys are making a way bigger deal about it than I would have. They are treating her like she killed someone and as if she is on drugs. Hello, whut?
I loved the HAG plotline and I loved seeing it develop more and more as the story continued. I had a couple of suspicions on what was happening and I loved detecting and discovering with the group to see what was going on. The ending to it was fantastically written and I had so much fun reading how it all came together and how it ended.
All in all this book was a wonderful mix of paranormal stuff, romance, action, and tons of humour. I would highly recommend it.
Read: 2013: This book was hilarious!! I loved the story, though I wished our main lead would have confessed sooner to the I am not a monster part. :)
Review first posted at https://twirlingbookprincess.com/
jamiesbookclub's review
funny
lighthearted
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.0
The book is not the best but as a Hoosier I was tickled pink by every reference to my hometown #keepindyweird
blaarrosir's review
2.0
This book was definitely interesting. It was a fun enough read but not enough to want to read it again. The main character, Josie, was bland and the other characters almost tried to be completely stereotypical of their "species". It was very hard to relate to any of the characters and therefore hard to like any of them. The storyline itself was original though I found it to be completely ridiculous. I wouldn't recommend the book to anyone.
indigoivee's review
funny
lighthearted
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
2.5
Favourite quote: " “Yeah, but we’re made to feel guilty because of who we are and how we experience the world. As if there is only one way to be.” "
kat_kin's review
4.0
Full review here: http://anamateurslibrary.blogspot.co.uk/2015/02/josie-griffin-is-not-vampire-by-heather.html
This book was exactly what I needed. A light read that was funny and feel good. I love the characters and the entire concept. Full review coming soon.
This book was exactly what I needed. A light read that was funny and feel good. I love the characters and the entire concept. Full review coming soon.
monetp's review
The weird mix of vampires, fairies, and other creatures was amusing and Josie's voice was realistic and relatable.
kateshaw's review
1.0
The book actually started off interesting, even fun. Unfortunately, after a chapter or two it nosedived. The plot is not very complicated, but it takes forever to resolve because the main character can't put the clues together. She can't, in fact, do anything at all. She's there to observe and get in trouble so her friends can rescue her.
If the book were funny, I'd forgive all that. But there isn't much humor unless you like spoonerisms and badly written slapstick. The writing is clumsy, the characterizations erratic. Josie starts off trying to convince her new friends to help her find a missing girl, then a few pages later has to be convinced by her friends to help. It doesn't make any sense. The plot is predictable too. I nearly put the book down out of boredom several times. Eventually I just skimmed the last few chapters.
The world-building is almost nonexistent. There are vampires and werewolves and fairies and Greek gods etc. all around, constrained by rules handed down by a shadowy organization. The organization is used as a scare tactic but doesn't impact anything the characters do, and the characters' abilities are mostly ignored after being mentioned once or twice.
If the book were funny, I'd forgive all that. But there isn't much humor unless you like spoonerisms and badly written slapstick. The writing is clumsy, the characterizations erratic. Josie starts off trying to convince her new friends to help her find a missing girl, then a few pages later has to be convinced by her friends to help. It doesn't make any sense. The plot is predictable too. I nearly put the book down out of boredom several times. Eventually I just skimmed the last few chapters.
The world-building is almost nonexistent. There are vampires and werewolves and fairies and Greek gods etc. all around, constrained by rules handed down by a shadowy organization. The organization is used as a scare tactic but doesn't impact anything the characters do, and the characters' abilities are mostly ignored after being mentioned once or twice.
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