Bite Me: A Love Story | Christopher Moore | B+

Contrary to what popular opinion would have you believe, not all vampire novels are created equal. Aside from one of its characters coincidentally being named Bella, Bite Me: A Love Story, written by best-selling author Christopher Moore, shares little else in common with the vampire literature currently dominating America's bookshelves.

Bite Me, released on March 23, is the final installment in Moore's Bloodsucking Fiends trilogy. The story follows the adventures of two vampires, Tommy and Jody, and their human friends as they attempt to stop a vampire cat named Chet from wreaking serious damage on San Francisco. Along the way, some old enemies return to make saving the city more difficult. Add to that mix the colorful character of Abby Normal, a hilariously wacky teenager, a "Vampire Wannabe" and the novel's occasional first-person narrator, and Bite Me lacks a single dull moment up to the very end.

While the book is a comedy, it features elements of seriousness and depth in the characters' interactions that prevent it from fully entering the realm of camp. It is filled with laugh-out-loud moments, facilitated by Moore's use of dialogue, analogy and slang terminology. His stylistic emphasis on speech and descriptions of movement keep the action fast-paced. The characters are well-developed, but all are overtly fashioned around stereotypes. To highlight a few, there's a beautiful red-headed vampire, a rebellious teen that speaks as if she is text-messaging aloud, and a biochemistry genius who develops couture that can kill vampires. Even so, the stereotypes work successfully because of the book's satirical undercurrent.

Bite Me may be part of a trilogy, but it can also be enjoyed on its own. Thanks, Christopher Moore — it was high time someone wrote a vampire novel that could laugh at itself and leave us laughing too.