I wanted to read this because the premise sounds so silly, and it was such a good time.

Tess left her writing program at Columbia after something bad happened, started working at a hotel because she wasn't sleeping anyone, and continued her obsession with a bestselling sensation series called Blood Feud. Then she learns Blood Feud is real.

Tess encounters the vampires she's read about, and the Isle they were banished to, but nothing is quite how the Blood Feud books make it out to be. Tess learns there are different kinds of evil and different lengths we would go to in order to protect the people that we love. She also finds a chance to confront her past and re-envision her dreams.

I teared up a little bit, had a good time, and would definitely read more from this author.

So I was a HUGE Twilight fan. I read the first one and was immediately enamored with the Cullens. I remember standing in line to get Breaking Dawn on publication day and have watched the movie at least twenty times. I love the scene where Bella Swan and Edward lock eyes in the parking lot on an overcast rainy day. I can close my eyes and picture the whole scene, that’s how much I’ve watched it. I think if I could live in the world of those books for a day I would probably squeal with excitement. For it to be confirmed that vampires are real and hang out with Alice and Rosalie?! Sign. Me. Up.

The premise of Fang Fiction is just that. Tess gets to enter the world of the book Blood Feud and it really is everyone you can imagine. This book was highly entertaining and the perfect one to read during Halloween season.

Kate Stayman-London is so much fun. I read her first book One to Watch and this story has some of that same flavor with a strong female lead, really really fun supporting characters and a storyline that keeps you guessing, swooning, and very charmed and amused.

"But if you want something in this life, you have to sack up and be vulnerable and fucking go for it. So quit whining and do it already, okay?"

One thing that really makes a story for me is the tenacity of the main character and Tess is definitely on my favorites list now. She’s gone through some hardship. You’ll know right away what that is and I love that Stayman-London gives you that heads up in her thoughtful Author’s Note. Before reading I highly suggest you read it.

Tess is stubbornly determined and fierce but also vulnerable and searching for and needing things we all search and need at times.

I really loved that you get to read her point of view, and also some of the other characters.

Her bravery and watching her step into her own was so inspiring and fun! I also really loved Tess’ friendship with Joni and you are going to love what happens with Tess and Callum!

I don’t want to give too much away but this story has magic, a really cool bar I wish I could visit, some mystery and intrigue, and a great ending!

This is a book I wish I could step into and I think you’ll want to, as well!

This was such a fun and unique take on the typical vampire romance trope. With POC, plus sized, and LGBTQ+ representation , it was easy to fall in love with the characters. My ONLY complaint is that the plus sized FMC wears the dreaded wrap dress 💀

Thank you to Dial and NetGalley for the ARC in exchange for an honest review

I would recommend if you're looking for (SPOILERS)

-paranormal with a real world twist
-a love letter to fan fiction
-portal
-multi POV
-vampires
-soft for you
-hurt/comfort

Gosh I adored this book. This was a love letter to romance, to fan fiction, and just how amazing it is to escape into a story for a million reasons. I honestly want to read the books in this fictional world Kate created now. A look at who the villians really rae, who writes the story, and how we can think we know what we need but opening ourselves up to something else can be even better.

Tess has shifted in her life, left scool, but ends up intertwined with the world of her favorite books. There's so many wists and turns and I just had the best time reading this one.

I feel like this was two different books or this book didn’t know for sure what it wanted to be. I think the author handled the trigger warning well and didn’t go into too much detail on what happened to Tess. Then, there was the great story of the vampires. It felt like what happened to Tess was shoved into this other great story and that was for Tess’ development, but it didn’t really work that well. Although the author made it work, it felt forced. I understand why Tess did some of the things she did to a point, but at the same time she left her found family and just exited her life. I don’t know, I’m conflicted about the areas that worked together and the areas that didn’t. Most of the book was enjoyable.

Thank you to Random House Publishing Group - Random House | Dial Press Trade Paperback for providing an eARC of this book. All opinions are my own.

I really enjoyed Fang Fiction. It's perfect for those who want something with a spooky twist without delving into dark romance. The book is light-hearted and fun, while addressing serious topics quite well. I had a great time reading it, and I'd describe it as "book candy" because I couldn't put it down. A big thank you to NetGalley and Kate Stayman-London for the ARC in exchange for an honest review!

When I saw that Kate Stayman-London was coming out with another book, and that this one was a vampire romance, I clicked "request" as fast as possible. I loved her debut, One to Watch, and while this one is decidedly more in the fantasy realm, they both stem from intense fandoms and wish fulfillment in a delightful fun and affirming way.

Tess is a night manager at a swanky hotel, after dropping out of her English PhD program at Columbia following a sexual assault (this is not spoiler - the author discusses it in the Author's Note right at the beginning and deliberately wanted that fact not to surprise any reader). While her love for Shakespeare and the more scholarly literature has not stopped, her reading time these days is spent re-reading her favorite sexy vampire novels Blood Feud. But when a woman strolls into her hotel who very much reminds her of one of the leads, Octavia, Tess finds out the whole world might be real too.

I loved the fun, campy, Octobery goodness of this one. Kate Stayman-London leans into the aspects of vampire lore that consumers love, riffing off Buffy and Vampire Diaries and Twilight, in a way that celebrates it and adds to it, rather than looking down her nose at it. Callum, Tess's romantic lead, very much coded as Spike, is delicious, even if I didn't really follow how they "fell in love" so quickly. I was also more invested in the relationship between Octavia and Tess's former roomie, Joni, because I loved everything about Joni period.

While I didn't devour this one quite as much as her debut, I still enjoyed myself thoroughly and almost gave it an extra half star for the bonus content at the end. KSL gives us a delightful FAQ section, a rundown of which Taylor Swift song best represents each character, a fully annotated Fang Fiction playlist, which you can add on Spotify, and just generally makes you want to be best friends. I love her.

Many thanks to Netgalley and Dial Press for the advanced copy of this book in exchange for the honest review! This one is available now -- I wish I had had this published earlier, but here I am about 20 minutes after getting back internet for the first time in more than three weeks, and that's just from my husband draping a cable across the road to connect to a pole that is indeed active, not to the actual work from our ISP. My first bout into the realm of connectivity was to get this thing published! Woot!

DNF... I just couldn't suspend reality that much. The writing was also very young adult and wasn't catching my attention. Thank you Netgalley for this ARC. Maybe I will circle back to it one day. For now I'm moving onto more vampire books!

This one took me a little while longer to get into, like 40% until I was pulled in.
I think the concept of the book is unique & fun but the story had A LOT going on. I really enjoyed how the chapters are set up in mixed style (podcasts, texts, book excerpts). It really helped to get me through slower moments and keep my interest. Octavia had to be my favorite character by far; she's so strong and fearless!
Thank you to NetGalley & Random House Publishing for the ARC in exchange for an honest review.

Thank you to Random House Publishing Group and NetGalley for the ARC of this book!

3.5 rounded up to 4.

I'm not even sure how to rate this one! It was so unique in its concept - a vampire book series obsessed fan finds herself at the very center of her favorite books. She becomes the plot twist! I mean, insanely unique! People have fallen into stories before, but I've not read one similar to this.

I enjoyed the characters. The entire book felt really nostalgic in a way. It reminded me of The Vampire Diaries with the good guy/bad guy dynamics.

The writing wasn't great. Don't go into this one expecting a literary masterpiece. HOWEVER, this one was fun! It's not serious or pretentious. It's just an all out good time. The perfect read for the Halloween season!

Thanks to Random House Publishing Group - Random House and NetGalley, who provided me with a copy of this book in exchange for an honest opinion.

This book was such a wild ride, and I mean that in the best way possible. I truly appreciated Tess's development and recovery process following her trauma; it added depth and authenticity to the story.

Kate Stayman-London’s debut ONE TO WATCH is one of my all-time favorite romances, so I was thrilled to pick up her newest. FANG FICTION follows a woman who discovers the vampire characters from her favorite novels are real, so this is *very* different from OTW; I would say it’s 70% vampire book and 30% romance. What is similar to her debut is the beautiful character development and fantastic line-level writing.

*4.5 Stars On My Instagram Account*

"Don't be ashamed to ask for what you need."

The transcendental Fang Fiction by skillful engaging multi genre author Kate Stayman-London will leave you smiling, satisfied and wishing you could read it for the first time again.

With Tess, this writer has created a character that could be any of us obsessed book lovers, and sadly, also any one who has suffered PTSD from a traumatic event. The fact that I laughed so much from this allegoric story is a testament to the author's creative storytelling.

Tess works nights at a hotel. When she's not working she is reading Blood Feud. A bestselling vampire series with the sexy but villainous Callum and his sister Octavia. There are podcasts, forums, and clubs devoted to the series. Tess loves it because she can be who she used to be before the incident. Brave, adventurous and sexy. But she misses the life she ran from, her campus, best friend and her goals.

Everything changes when the rumors that the vampires are real are proven true when Octavia walks into her hotel. What follows is wild, fun, hilarious, and often dangerous for Tess but what a ride.

It's very meta that the talented actress and writer Amber Benson, performs this paranormal romcom. Playing Tara on Buffy the Vampire Slayer gave her perfect insight.

Though there are great callbacks to Buffy, Twilight, True Blood and Supernatural it's how strategically the vampire story weaves together with the human one that's flawless. The ending was perfectly satisfying taking a bite out of fiction with some hard hitting reality.

I received a free copy of this book/audiobook from the publishers via #NetGalley for a fair and honest review. All opinions are my own.

TW: sexual assault

Years ago Tess dropped out of grad school and began working nights at the hotel where she still works. She even left behind her best friend and roommate Joni, with no reason as to why. When she suddenly runs into Octavia, yes, that Octavia. One of the main characters in her favorite book series, oh and a vampire, she wonders if she is loosing it. Octavia needs her help though, and Tess can’t bring herself to say no, even as crazy as it all sounds.

3.5 stars. I was so excited to read this book after loving One To Watch by Kate Stamen London, even though this was a very different type of book! It was a bit slow to start, but once I was in, I was IN. I really enjoyed the idea of suddenly being a part of the book series you have read and loved for years. the random sections of the podcast and the sections that were pulled from the books were a bit distracting and felt unnecessary, but they were short and didn’t ruin it for me. Overall this was a fun idea and an enjoyable read.

Thank you to @thedialpress for my gifted copy of this book!

This book felt like a straight up love letter to fandom. So many times, I have wished that I could dive headfirst into my favorite books and their worlds, and Fang Fiction gave me a protagonist who felt the same way AND had that magical wish granted! There is so much to love about this book, and it was ultimately just the most fun experience reading through it.

I love the "book within a book" trope, and this took it to a whole new and unique level! Getting to see excerpts from the written work but then building upon it with the actual people (or vampires) was so creative and intriguing. And the characters themselves were all so interesting. I loved the whole cast and had the best time jumping through their minds and perspectives. I also adored the additions of external content in their world such as podcasts transcripts, chat boards, snapchat etc. It added a fullness and entertainment value to the book beyond the main story being told.

As for the fantasy world itself, I loved how easy it was to follow and understand. With so much ground to cover, I was curious to see how the author meshed the real world with the fantastical one, but I found it super easy to keep track and to understand the larger picture. There also was a neat nuance to the characters and the book itself because of the multilayered approach. Technically, Tess knows all of these characters deeply since she read about them, but in reality, we see complete other sides of everyone, and it was such a heartwarming aspect within a fun and hysterical book. (speaking of hysterical.... just three words: Vampire Book Club!)

Thank you to NetGalley and Kate-Stayman London for the chance to read this arc. It felt like a hug from one fantasy reader to another, and I loved every second!

Thank you, NetGalley and Random House Publishing, for providing this book for review consideration. All opinions are my own.

I went into Fang Fiction knowing how much I loved Kate Stayman-London’s previous book, One to Watch, but it took me a while to get into this one. I found it hard to understand the world it was set in and the different rules and elements, as it felt like I was supposed to immediately know what certain things were. The characters came off as a bit cringey and two-dimensional, and the stakes weren’t always clear based on the tone.

Switching to the audiobook made it easier to accept the story’s oddities, and I started enjoying it more that way. The narration was well done, and listening instead of reading allowed me to stay in the flow of the story without getting caught up in trying to figure out the worldbuilding. Even though the book was a bit weird for me, I ultimately enjoyed it, especially the podcasts, emails, and message board posts interspersed between chapters.

I would recommend this book to:
Fans of vampire media
Anyone looking for a quirky October read

This was fun! The first third of the book was especially strong - but I will say it starts to lose itself a bit after 65% of the way. In a way I wish KSL had made this a series rather than a standalone. I understand why, it’s likely an easier sell, but there was so much content that we started speeding through I would have rather had drawn out into 2-3 books. Overall still fun though, although a bit rushed, especially the delicate subject matter which had some ‘and then love fixed me’ energy I didn’t love.

While I liked this book, I didn’t love it. In my opinion, it was just ok. I feel like it was pretty slow to start, and I didn’t really care for the FMC. The concept was really cool, but none of the characters really did it for me unfortunately.

I wanted to love this one more but struggled with the writing/narration feeling so young or immature, which may have been intentional and just wasn't for me. The concept is quite fun, but the story leaned a bit too much into a chaotic direction for me to absolutely love it. Didn't hate it by any means, it was just a bit messy in the plot and character development for me to be a stand out. Eager to see what else the author will have for us in the future!

𝟯.𝟱 𝗦𝗧𝗔𝗥𝗦 𝗥𝗢𝗨𝗡𝗗𝗘𝗗 𝗗𝗢𝗪𝗡

Cute! Fun! Fresh! Felt very much like reading a fan fiction. I wasn't totally sold on the connection between Tess and Callum, but I am a romance girlie at heart so every crumb we got of them I was EATING UP. Loved the references to countless other vampire fandoms! Also, I really appreciated the SA survivor rhetoric and how much care Kate Stayman-London had in writing about it and how Tess copes with her assault. I enjoyed this while reading it, I just don't think it is a story that will stick with me and a couple of the scenarios felt a little too hokey for my taste.