A cute graphic novel with lovely art and a fairly interesting story. I always enjoy when people have different takes on vampires, and the best part of this book were vampire dogs. I'm in a weird head space about it because I wish it was longer so the pacing wouldn't have felt so weird, but I couldn't wait for it to end because I didn't love any of the characters (besides the aforementioned vamp dogs).

Thank you to NetGalley and publisher for the opportunity to read and review.

Thank you to NetGalley and Simon & Schuster Children’s Publishing for a complimentary early copy of A Bite Of Pepper by Balazs Lorinczi.

I really like the art style for A Bite Of Pepper, it’s cutesy and the pastel coloring goes nicely with the art. The story however isn’t for me, I didn’t like many of the choices that were made plus none of these characters were enjoyable to read about. The only one I liked was Shroom Pepper’s vampire dog. I thought there was going to be a bit more of a romance and it’s teased a bit but with how the characters act it’s giving some toxic vibes. All of these characters struggled a lot to communicate with each other and it got annoyingly repetitive quick.

The start of the book is on the slow side but once you reach the middle it goes by so quick. The ending was rushed and I feel like I am missing some events that were suppose to bring these characters together more. The characters hardly knew each other, the romance is blink and you’ll miss it, and no one in this family listens or talks to each other. I couldn’t feel for any of these characters but the dog and art style are cute.

This was an adorable graphic novel!!! A goth skater vampire girl with a pushy mom trying to get her to find a "bride" meets a human artist and a friendship develops into more. This was very funny with great characters and a fun take on vampire lore. Plus there's a cute little sapphic romance in the mix! I really like the art style and enjoyed how the main characters are good foils for the others personality. Definitely one worth picking up! I received a copy of this book for review via NetGalley, all opinions are my own.

I absolutely loved the art style and the color scheme of this graphic novel! I’m also a vampire girl at heart so I enjoyed seeing how the author portrayed their vampires. It’s always so interesting to see what combination of vampire traits they’re given or if there’s some new ones tossed in. A Bite of Pepper had vampire dogs with wings and that is pretty much the coolest thing ever in my eyes. Shroom was the cutest vampire dog.

Now my main issue was the pacing. I felt like the last 25% or so of the story was so rushed. That threw me off because it seemed like the most important part was just glossed over. Another minor thing, I was absolutely floored that Ana would want to go into business with Jeb, Pepper’s brother, at all. I mean I know she was thinking about the money but I was focused on their first meeting. But maybe that’s just a me thing.

Overall, I did enjoy the story though. Especially Ana and Pepper’s connection. If you love vampires like me this will be a quick, easy read to get your fix.

A cute coming of age story about a not-yet-full vampire and her new relationship, whatever it may be called. I liked this well enough but the tory didn't catch me.

First of all, cute and fun art work! A unique style and color choices really makes this fun to flip through and read.

This is a sweet story with a queer vampire and human romance. This story isn't to long or overly detailed, honestly a perfect read for YA!
The lessons were wonderful in regards to family and the bonds, pressures or life and relationships.

3.5 ⭐️

This was a really pretty graphic novel. The colors were so lovely. While Pepper did get on my nerves a bit with not wanting to take care of herself I did overall enjoy this book. It was cute and for the most part a lighthearted read.

Plot: 7/10
Pace: 7/10
Ending: 6/10
Characters: 7/10
Enjoyability: 8/10
Writing Style: 8/10
Would I Recommend? Yes
Favorite Character: Shroom

Adjusted Rating: 3.5 🌟

This is a graphic novel about a half-vampire.

The plot was decent enough. I was intrigued to find out what was going to happen next to Pepper with everything that was presented to her. I will say I was a bit confused about what direction the connection between Pepper and Ana was going to take, but I guess it remained unclear on purpose. The dialogue seemed a bit lackluster at times and didn’t match the visual representation of a couple of the side characters. Overall, it was mildly enjoyable and wrapped up fairly well.

I thought this was a fun concept. The story was interesting, but I wished there had been a little more, especially towards the end. I wanted at least a kiss between them at the end, but didn't get that. I did enjoy all the characters. My favorite part was the art style. I loved the color choices and how everything was drawn. It was so cute. Overall, a cute and quick read.

content warning: mention of death of a parent

Love the art and simple colors, which encourages readers to focus on the imagery and story without distraction. The story is compelling and entertaining. Recommended for fans of fans of Fangs.

This was cute and really follows a family storyline. I just didn’t see the point at the end. It felt like it needed a bit more emotion and a bit more plot and meaning. I think the family storyline was the right direction but the end just cuts off, didn’t see much of the new company or if pepper had a reason to stay alone. Pepper and Ana’s friendship also felt like it needed more connection.

Thank you, Simon and Schuster Children's Publishing | Margaret K. McElderry Books for giving me the opportunity to read this graphic novel. This is the sweetest story about trying to figure out who you are. This story reads pretty straight forward in a very succinct way. The characters have some development and the plot moves forward. It does set the scene for more in the future, but this story has a nice ending. The way Pepper matures and her family begins to understand her is a lovely way to end this. Thank you again for the opportunity.

This is such a cute lil' vampire story! I love the idea of someone making merch for the vampire community. I think the story's twists and turns of getting this business of the ground and the light love story will be popular with teens. Students that are into cutesy vampire stories will definitely gravitate to this one.

This was cute- I enjoyed the art style a lot! I didn’t enjoy the pacing as much and found the story to drag at some parts. It also didn’t read as YA to me for some reason.

Still, I liked the overall idea of this graphic novel and think perhaps the target audience would love this more than I did.

Thank you to Simon and Schuster Children's Publishing for providing this book for review consideration via NetGalley. All opinions are my own.

Oh, this was super fun! An engaging art style and color palette reel the audience into this intriguing sapphic paranormal story filled with nuanced dynamics and thoughtful main character arcs. I love how complex and unexpected a lot of the vampire lore is. The pacing was a bit off at some points, but your investment in their arcs really keeps you hooked. Genuinely, this would be a great start to a series of Pepper's world. More please!

Thank you to Simon Teen for the eARC.

Honestly, I don't know why I don't read more graphic novels. Because I've become too pampered and hate to hold open physical books to read sometimes?? We'll never know.

But A Bite of Pepper hit the spot. Fun storyline, interesting characters, amazing art design. The ending felt a little open-ended and I hope that means a second volume will be coming. I would love to see more vampire puppies, please and thank you.

This was so cute! I love reading graphic novels and getting to see all the beautiful artwork, and this did not disappoint in that aspect.

I LOVE any type of story that involves vampires. Always have and always will. And throw in some sapphic characters? Oh, this is made for me. I did wish we got to see a bit more of romance between Pepper and Ana but this wasn’t trying to be a romance-centered story.

I only had one real issue with this and it was the pacing. It felt very rushed at times to me. It seemed like we’d jump from scene to scene and I found myself wanting a bit more from a conversation or plot-line. I know sometimes with graphic novels it can be hard to find a balance on how to transition from scene to scene, but, this one struggled a bit more than others. It left me wanting more from the characters and their dynamics. I think if this story had maybe an extra 50 pages (I know, I know, that’s a lot!) it would’ve thrived.

Regardless I still did enjoy this! I think if you’re a fan of graphic novels and vampires then this would be something nice to pick up if you want to relax and just have some fun.

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for providing me with an ARC in exchange for an honest review.

I really enjoyed this graphic novel -- the storyline was great and the art was perfect. I personally would've liked more of it in color than black and white but I don't think it took away from the story itself. I think this is a great novel for YA -- despite it being about vampires (or those about to be), I think there are some great lessons of the importance of having a family (whether by blood or found family), being/embracing yourself, and more. Great job.

Thank you to the publisher for an eARC of this graphic novel- it was such a cute read.

Tropes/Themes: Coming of Age, Conflicted with Major Life Changes, Paranormal, Vampire Dog with Wings, Adopted Brother

This was an adorable coming of age graphic novel where the FMC Pepper, is struggling with becoming a vampire and losing her mortality. She loves to skateboard but isn't taken as seriously as the humans since she has "special powers" as a vampire or soon to be vampire.

The relationship between Pepper and her mom is strained and I liked the resolution of it. She also has a complicated relationship with her brother, who is kind of always trying to pull a get rich quick scheme.

The dog with wings was so cute- and Peppers winged backpack was a cute way of showing her relationship with her mom and how it had changed as she grew up.

Really loved the drawings and can't wait to see the finished book so I can see the entire graphic novel in color!

This is a solid 3.5 to me. I loved the art and I really did enjoy the story. I found Pepper to be a bit much and overblown but I appreciated the story as a whole. A very cute book.