THE TEAR COLLECTOR
by Patrick Jones
Most supernatural romances match an everyday young woman with a dangerous and Byronic magical boy. In this twist on the vampire tale, our heroine is the vampire, and it’s a completely normal boy-next-door type who’s the object of her love. Popular Cassandra is the youngest in a long line of grief vampires, dependent on human tears to live. Her first responsibility is to collect tears for her family, and as an obedient daughter, granddaughter and great-granddaughter, she is always available to her friends with a shoulder to cry on. Whether it’s weeping from high-school drama or from broken hearts, Cassandra is always there to console—and to make sure there's always a reason to cry. When Cassandra falls in love, she tries to break free of her family obligations, but they might be too strong. Though the story construction can be awkward—a schoolful of stereotyped teens mumbles constantly, while Cassandra’s antagonist is too evil for belief—this reworking of supernatural romance will surely please fans of the genre. (Fantasy. 12-14)