Strangers to lovers...Paranormal Romance...Plus Size Heroine...road to body acceptance and positivity...vampires

And everything inbetween. Gloria Duke's debut novel is a must read this Fall! I devoured this in one sitting and had a hard time putting it down. Would without a doubt read another by her.

3.75 ✨ it had some slow parts during the build up, but I loved the plot ideas and MCs

Thank you to Sourcebooks Casablanca and NetGalley for an ARC in exchange for an honest review!

this book is everything. It’s a vampire romcom but y’all it’s like lowkey poking fun at vampire pop culture. Like her reactions to realizing what’s happening to her had me snorting I was laughing so hard. Literally beginning of chapter two theres the line “a ghoul can dream, can’t she?” 🤣 Her and her bestie are sitting here referencing Twilight and Buffy to figure out what she can and can’t do and it’s literally perfect.
Lily is a 25 year old plus sized ginger living her best life in New York City as a writer for a lifestyle/news company when she happens to run into several hundreds of years old hottie mcvampire and historical romance novelist Tristan on a night out. Her turning is completely accidental and her journey of acclimation (helped along by both Tristan and bestie Cat) forces her to come to terms with both her immortality and her toxic body image issues foisted on her by her mother. I LOVED this read and really enjoyed the fact that for once a vampire/paranormal romance doesn’t have the heroine as a teenager/freshly non minor.

I loved the idea of this book. A plus sized vampire sounded like it would be a fun story. But the book gets swallowed up by her obsession with her weight and appearance. She has a sweet best friend that helps along the way but the romance is sort of lukewarm and the pace slows towards the middle of the book. By the end, Lily seems to have gotten over her issues but it doesn’t feel like a natural progression and but a convenient conclusion. I had high hopes for this one but it didn’t deliver the way I hoped it would.

Thanks to NetGalley and the Publisher for the ARC

“Twenty-five year old Lily Baines is used to waking up hungover, overweight, and underemployed. Waking up with fangs? Not so much. But when it turns out a little light necking has more serious consequences than she ever imagined, Lily’s determined to get to the bottom of it.”

This review is going to sound like I hate this book.

I don’t hate this book – I’d actually look forward to another book involving Evan and Kat.

It had a lot of things I liked. Plus-sized heroine, banter, strong girl friends, SEXY VAMPIRES. Trouble is, the negative eclipsed the positive.

Lily could have been a strong, eff-the-world, badassed b!tch turned kickass vamp. Instead, we’re treated to NINE HOURS of internal self-flagellations. Hear me when I say that fat people absolutely have struggles with their inner critic. That doesn’t mean I want to listen to it for HOURS.

Too much of the book was Lily thinking, “He says he likes me, but I’m fat, so he must lying.”

[I wish we could have talked more about how “Vampire bodies are perfect”, and the reason her body stayed the same was because HER BODY WAS ALREADY FRICKEN PERFECT. Also, can you imagine ‘being turned’ whilst on your period, and having to deal with menstruation for eternity? Where a wooden stake when you need it?]

Then you’ve got Tristan (typical I-Won’t-Actually-Listen-to-you-because-I-Know-What’s-best-for-you asshat), who refuses to discuss anything, then suddenly decides to ‘respect boundaries’, without what? Consulting her current opinions, wants, and desires.

FOR THE LOVE OF MANCHEGO can people (and the undead) just open their stupid mouths and talk to each other?

6.5/10

Thanks to NetGalley, Dreamscape Media, and Sourcebooks Casablanca for this ARC.

Thank you to the publisher and NetGalley for providing this eARC.

When Life Gives You Vampires follows 25-year-old Lily who wakes up one day having been accidentally changed into a vampire -- a permanently young, permanently plus size vampire. In adjusting to her new status as a vampire, Lily must also grapple with the reality of living in a world -- and in a body -- rampant with fatphobia.

As a 25-year-old overweight woman who, like pretty much every woman out there, had to go through her own journey of self-acceptance, I found Lily to be astonishingly unrelatable. Her characterization often skewed on the side of a caricature of a millennial woman, particularly an elder millennial. While us 25-year-olds certainly can and often do fall into the millennial category, we're still young enough to recognize when slang has exited the vernacular, and that using typical "millennial slang" is a surefire way to publicly age ourselves. I mean yeah, I did grow up in the age of FYI and the height of meme culture, but in our rapidly developing global society, very little of the online communication conventions of my adolescence have remained in my new adult vocabulary. And it's the same way for many, if not most, of my peers. Add to that Lily's Journey of Body Acceptance, which centered just as much on Lily realizing that her struggles and feelings weren't uncommon (in a way that can be perceived as more invalidating than validating) as it did on Lily coming to love her body as it is, and I just generally couldn't see myself in this character. Which is a shame, because that's a large portion of what made me pick it up in the first place. Even so, I do think there are girls for whom Lily's body positivity journey may be a little more realistic, and for those readers I would say to take my perspective with a grain of salt. No one's journey to self-acceptance is identical, and though there were aspects of Lily's journey that felt disingenuous, or too surface level, or subtly harmful to me, that might not be the case for everyone.

Otherwise, this was a generally run-of-the-mill paranormal romance. I do think that readers who wished they had a Dumplin' when they were in high school, or girls who have always been Team Edward, will find a lot to like here. I certainly found it to be a relatively quick and easy read, and even when it missed the mark for me, the book still made a valiant effort to tackle important and under-discussed topics, which I definitely appreciate.

This was a very quick and fun read! In this we follow Lily who has been turned into a vampire without her consent. This is not allowed in the vampire community and leaves Tristan who turned her worried about her life. Lily is really grumpy about being a vampire and that kind of took away from the plot for me. Overall a fun read and I look forward to reading another Gloria Duke book in the future!

Thank you to netgalley and the publishers for providing me with an arc for an honest review.

I was super excited to read this book, as I really enjoy seeing plus size rep in the fmc and who DOESNT love vampires - however this fell flat for me unfortunately!

I wasn’t a fan of how choppy the story was, and also the language used (kept using obvi instead of obviously and this is one of my pet peeves with reading)

The way the fmc was treated by her peers also made me feel a bit weird? I understand the message was probably you need to think how others may feel, but to me it felt odd..

Lily is used to waking up each morning and deciding how little she can eat throughout the day to finally lose a few pounds. Except one morning she wakes up hungover with a craving for blood. When she discovers she's been turned into a vampire, Lily goes on a journey of self-discovery and acceptance of the body she's hated her entire life.

I was drawn to this book because as a plus sized woman who loves vampires, it seemed like the perfect pick for me. I wanted to see myself in the pages and enjoy a lighthearted story. Unfortunately, that's not what I got.

I want to start off my negative thoughts about this book by stating that, in no way, do I intend to come across as cruel or mean - but this book shouldn't have been published. As a fat woman who loves vampires, I was incredibly excited to read a "body positive" story that focused on a fat woman becoming a member of the undead and living her best life. I expected fun, flirty things to happen, a handsome vampire stranger to sweep her off her feet, and a lighthearted story about accepting yourself. Instead, what I got was a fatphobic nightmare.

Getting my surface level commentary out of the way first, I'll say that the writing in this novel isn't poor, but it needed help. The references and jokes throughout were fun the first few times, but quickly became repetitive and eye-roll inducing. I found the way Lily narrated her actions to be incredibly juvenile and unrealistic. It didn't come across as fun and lighthearted, instead I just found myself annoyed. I am only a few months older than this main character and I can't relate to her at all - we have almost the exact same background and body type. That seems like a glaring issue to me that needed to be fixed with several rounds of sensitivity reading, especially considering the author doesn't seem to be plus sized or have any experience in the matter.

Onto the fatphobia in this book; if you told me this was a novel about how to have an eating disorder circa 2004, I would believe you. The disclaimer at the beginning of the novel is NOT ENOUGH in the slightest. By the second chapter Lily is giving real-time advice for how to suppress your appetite that can be highly triggering to those with mental health, body image, and eating disorder issues. Every single scene is peppered with how much Lily hates herself, hates her body, what diet she's trying now, how it's not working, how it's never worked, and "oh god, what if I'm fat forever?" And to that I just have to ask - why? I've struggled with body image my entire life, but I've never been so consumed by it that my self image would overtake the fact I was dead and a supernatural being. The way Lily talks about herself is so harmful and it's never fixed. She just accepts that Tristan thinks she's hot and magically that's good enough for her to be okay with it. There are so many fat and happy people in the world that didn't need a significant other or partner to tell them they're attractive to suddenly see their own self worth.

Overall, I wanted to love this book, but for my own mental health and to protect my own peace - I couldn't finish it. I did read the ending four chapters to wrap up the story from the perspective of the slayers, Lily's mother being kidnapped, and understand what happened between Lily and Tristan - but it all fell so very flat. The entire novel builds to a cusp where Lily suddenly decides to love herself in the shower and then immediately goes to find Tristan for a sex scene.

I truly think this book does more harm than the good it intended on. I think that with time, severe edits, and again, many sensitivity readers it could have been the story for me. As it stands, it wasn't and I won't be picking up any other novels by Gloria Duke.

Thank you to NetGalley and Sourcebooks Casablanca for providing me with a copy for an honest review.

If I am an undead creature of the night and still have to think about my weight, I will walk out into sunlight immediately.

I kind of preferred when she was getting all of her vampire knowledge from YA novels vs Tristan filling him as he saw fit.

She has absolutely no self preservation instinct at all. He gave her keys and told her to run and she sat on the couch and then walked right into danger despite not having weapons or any defensive skills.

I did feel like this book had every unkind and unproductive thought I’ve ever had about my body was written down and I didn’t like it. She shed her insecurity all over her social circle but this whole storyline made me sad.

The other thing that made me the saddest about this book was that there was a well adjusted plus sized woman from her past who was completely genuine, seemed lovely, and was comfortable with her body and life. She was a complete foil to the main character in this. WHY did this woman have to have something happen to her? It was wrong for this story and I will die mad about it.

The narrator sounded like Anna Kendrick though and she did a great job. ❤️

Thank you to Netgalley, Dreamscape Media, and Sourcebooks Casablanca for a copy in exchange for an honest review. My opinions are my own.

“I try to ground myself by focusing on the things I know to be true. My name is Lily Baines. I’m twenty-five years old. I live on Bleecker Street in the West Village. I work as an overnight web editor… And apparently, I’m a fucking vampire.”

Lily Baines is used to waking up hungover, overweight, and underemployed. Waking up with fangs, though? Not so much.

Fall is my absolute favorite time of year and this book was the most perfect way to start the spooky season. It was just so FUN! I mean this is a rom-com…about vampires! I laughed out loud throughout the whole book. The body positivity is just fab and Lily is someone that I would absolutely want to be friends with, vampire or not! The romance was sweet and I truly loved Tristan’s character.

The audio was absolutely fantastic! Lily is a sarcastic and fun character and this really came through in the narration. She was hysterical and so fun and her spirit and fire was captured so well. I highly recommend the audio!

Thank you so much to Sourcebooks Casablanca, Netgalley, Dreamscape Media, and the author for the ARC and ALC in exchange for an honest review.

I'm really torn on how to review this book. On the one hand, I loved the references to pop culture vampires, and the feminist slant is great. On the other hand, I had a hard time reconciling Lily's independent, feminist perspective with her negative self image. As a plus size woman myself, the body image issues in this book were hard to read - it's too much of a focus, in my opinion. It's also frustrating that Lily overcoming her body image coincided with her finally trusting Tristan's attraction to her, because it felt almost like his attraction helped her to find validation. I would definitely urge caution to anyone who finds fatphobia and negative self-talk around body image to be triggering.

ARC REVIEW FOR WHEN LIFE GIVES YOU VAMPIRES

3.5 stars

Thank you to netgalley, Sourcebooks Casablanca and Gloria Duke for the gifted copy!

This story was super cute. Outside of twilight, I’ve never really read a lot of vampire novels and I really liked the energy of this one. I thought most of the characters were well developed, albeit some needed more dimensions to them.

I thought this was an important novel in the grand scheme of body empowerment, and I absolutely can relate to Lily. Body positivity is so so important…for other people. And I think we should acknowledge that while accepting your body is important, it also needs to be said that not everyone can do that so easily. I resonated with this message so much.

Tristian was….interesting. I feel like we got to know him a little bit but he wasn’t as developed as I think it could have been. I had more questions than answers in regards to his character and if there was an improvement I would suggest it would be to give his character more background, or write a couple chapters from his point of view.

Overall this was a cute, flirty and fun romance. If you’re in to paranormal rom coms, this would be a good one to add to your tbr!

2.5 stars

I saw this anf thought... Vampires and romcon setting yes please! Yet... this was a bit of a mess.
Out heroine is a 25yo that talks like a Gen Z kid. Also I hate when older mcs act like immature teens. From our FMC I liked her best friend. She was the voice of reason yet she was also the funniest character in the book.
I didn't like the romance and I didn't feel anything beyond lust between the two main characters.
Although what really dissapointed from this book was the horrible use of fat-shaming language. I skimmed a lot of sentences that made me feel uncomfortable. You can show horrible ways society treats people with different body types and do it so without harmful expressions.
I get what the author tried to do tho, the issue was the execution. I think this book wasn't for me but still I think some people would enjoy it.

Thank you to Netgalley and the publishers for the chance to read this book in exchange for an honest review.

Loved the body positive aspect of this book. I really liked how the main character, Lily explains how she feels and shows her journey of learning to love her body. Also I loved Tristan and even though he seemed a little old school on his views at first it was really nice to see him change and realize that it was outdated. A good spooky romance for the fall time. The only parts that really lost me had to do more with pacing and just some details I don't believe needed to be added. Overall, an enjoyable read and i hope this turns into a duology!

When Life Gives You Vampires was so freaking cute. I was hooked from the very first page. This book exceeded all my expectations!

'When Life Gives You Vampires' starts off a bit rocky but sticks the landing. Very tropey and fun but dramatic at the right times. Lily, a plus size woman, has just been turned into a vampire--on accident. Now she's "stuck" in her plus size body forever, with a hot vampire she barely knows. A good chunk of the book is dedicated to Lily being a plus-size woman and what that means for her now that she's going to be that way forever as a vampire. I haven't really seen that topic discussed in vampire romances so it was interesting but more often than not it devolved into outdated terms and discussions. The book sometimes feels like is was written in the early 2000s with how it approaches body-shaming and body-positivity. Ultimately, the ending is pretty satisfying because I think both characters grew and learned together as they were falling in love. I'd very much like to see more from this author!

Thank you to NetGalley and Sourcebooks Casablanca for the eARC in exchange for an honest review,

I was hoping to love this book due to the unique vampire storyline and the body positivity journey. Unfortunately this fell a bit flat for me.
While I liked Lily's journey to begin accepting her body. I found her journey to be interesting because she becomes a vampire and so her body is no longer changing. It is going to stay the way it is forever. So Lily had to try to make peace with that. I felt her inner thoughts and comparisons to others was realistic. It could become a bit much since it occurred repeatedly, but I understood why the author inserted them so often. They were important to understanding Lily's character.
I wanted more from the romance. The attraction between the characters was certainly there but there wasn't much beyond that. I wish the romance was developed more so that I could swoon about two vampire falling in love.
The writing itself is okay but felt there was too much abbreviations used and some plots could have been developed more.
Overall this was a cute concept that was a bit underdeveloped and bogged down by the MC's insecurities.

I made it less than 10% into this book before giving up on the writing. The character discussed her diet and being unhappy in her body so much in the first chapter, it's upsetting. I understand it will probably be part of her character growth (at least I hope it is) but the internalized fatphobia isn't for me.
Also listening to her find out she's a vampire was so annoying? This book isn't for me.

3.5 stars

Initial Thoughts
I read When Life Gives You Vampires at the right time personally. After several plot-dense, complex fantasy worlds lately, this book was light-hearted enough to feel refreshing to read.

What's great about this book?
- Although towards the end of this book I found it a little repetitive, I did appreciate the conversation around body sizes and immortality, especially in the first half of the book. The fact that Lily, a plus-size and image-conscious human, got turned into a vampire and had to learn to love the size she is forever more was a clever little storyline. And whilst I'm not 100% sold on the results of what the author set out to achieve, this book was delightful enough that I kept turning the pages.
- The friendship between Lily and her best friend Cat was really adorable, and I laughed a lot when they were together.
- Lily's internal thoughts are rather humourous at times, and I liked her ability to say no. Whilst she did a lot of pushing people away with these refusal tactics, I appreciated that she felt strongly in some cases to say no and do what she thought was right.
- It's easy to read. You don't need to put in a lot of energy to consume this book. It's predictable, but I liked it. It feels like some vampire movies I watched growing up - sans the really dark and moody vibes. This is definitely more light-hearted. I feel the author got the balance right.
- I liked the different approaches to how Lily saw things as a vampire. What she had to grow accustomed to, and some of the questions she asked herself that I haven't seen addressed in other vampire novels.

Things I didn't quite enjoy
- The romance isn't great. Tristan is just okay as an MMC, and I didn't get the chemistry between them at all. Lily spends more time swearing and arguing with Tristan than she does showing the actual development of her feelings. One minute she's f-bombing him, the next she's in love. It was quite a let down.
- There are times when some of Lily's internal dialogue gets repetitive and drags. This is especially the case with her body hang ups - which as a plus size person, I could relate to in the beginning. But when they were STILL occurring at 90% of the book and then suddenly resolved, I found myself grow frustrated.
- The overused cringey abbreviations, such as "obvi". It's not necessary and it wasn't cute, either.

Final thoughts
If you don't put a lot of thought into the process, this is an enjoyable read. It made me laugh, it had some good moments, and I expected the use of several plot devices coming into it, so I wasn't left unsatisfied.

I received a complimentary copy from Sourcebooks Casablanca for my complimentary copy and all opinions expressed are entirely my own.

This book was Dumpling' meets Twilight and I loved that. It's a stranger/ friends to lovers featuring a plus size heroine . Our heroine is Lily Baines who wakes up one morning after a fun night to discover she is a vampire and not just experiencing a hangover. She navigates her new state with the help of Tristan the handsome man that bit her. I loved how the author tackled body positivity, friendship and romance. This book is perfect for Twilight fans.

Actual rating: 2.5