A Bite of Pepper is a delightful little graphic novel about a skateboarding vampire who hasn’t yet come into her fullness—meaning no bat wings. This makes her feel a bit ostracized among other vampires, but in some ways, she doesn’t mind. She worries that if she did gain her wings and other powers, skateboarding wouldn’t feel the same anymore—the thrill would be gone.

At its core, this is a coming-of-age story about learning to be comfortable with yourself, embracing who you are, and working together with others. It’s quirky, fun, and perfectly suited to the graphic novel format. I really enjoyed it!

This was so cute! I love the premise we have Pepper who is being pressured into choosing a “wife” to be able to become a full vampire. She doesn’t feel ready but then she meets Ana. As they get to know each other they strike up a deal that will help Ana but is Ana interested in Pepper or just on what Pepper can do for her? I enjoyed this graphic novel! The artwork was so cute! A vampire dog?! Yes please! I think this is a perfect read for this fall season make sure to check it out. 3.5⭐️

I feel like Pepper was a bit of a brat. She was being rebellious with a true reason for being one. She focused more on trying to fight against her family when they just couldn’t do anything to make her happy. Even when they tried to meet her half way to be close to her. I also didn’t see the closure at the end. It would have been nice to see her and her mom talk more in depth about their relationship. To understand fully both sides of what the issue actually was. I just didn’t get it personally.

Overall, I found this graphic novel enjoyable, but it didn’t completely hit home for me. That might have just been my mood while reading. There were definitely some standout moments, and I liked that the story didn’t end the way I thought it would. I appreciate that the author didn’t make it overly predictable.

The art style was a highlight for me. I really loved it. The story felt like a meaningful coming-of-age journey about finding yourself and remembering that it’s okay to take your time in life instead of rushing.

Pepper is a vampire and her mother has been urging her to find a bride soon, so she can be fully immortal. But she doesn't care about that, because skateboarding and her dog are all she ever needed. That is until she met a human artist named Ana, who’s fascinated by her hobby and turned her into her muse, that quickly turned into a business matter.

Seemed interesting in hindsight but sorry it’s kinda boring… for a graphic novel there’s too much telling rather than showing. Nothing striking’s happening & the romance is very subtle.

Rating: 4.5/5 Stars

Thank you Simon Teen for access to this e-ARC in exchange for an honest review.
I love a good graphic novel, and this one did not disappoint! Pepper is as chaotic as you can expect a teenager vampire to be. She's very impulsive and has strong opinions, but she can also learn from her mistakes and own them. And the other characters like Ana and Jeb were amazing. I loved the relationship between Jeb and Pepper, and the low-key flirting between Pepper and Ana. Overall, this was a light, quick read that has a good message.

A gothic skateboarding vampire and a human artist bond at a 'Fangs & Wings Ball'. Pepper and Ana instantly have chemistry, and they are adorable together, but it's hard for Pepper to develop feelings with all the pressure from her mother. Pepper has a big decision to make: is she ready to become a full immortal? Or does she wait and hold on to a bit of humanity for a while longer? A Bit of Pepper is witty, charming, and readers will love the pink and purple pastels.

Pepper is a young vampire who feels pressure from her mother to take part in a tradition that would make her a true immortal vampire. But Pepper just wants to be young for a bit longer. She is great at skateboarding and hates when others don't take her skill seriously, assuming that her skill comes from her special vampire powers. If only they knew that it is all her. And then she meets Ana. They have instant chemistry. Add in Pepper's cute dog, Shroom, and it's even more adorable. Ana draws Pepper and quickly becomes her muse, and with the help of Pepper's brother, a whole skateboarding brand is born. Bite is supposed to appeal to humans and vampires who enjoy skateboarding and really sports. But now Pepper's insecurities are at the forefront. Is Ana only using her to make a brand? Will she ever belong?

Loved loved loved this graphic novel! Finished in one sitting!

pepper is a teenage vampire who loves skateboarding. being a vampire creates some problems for her, though—such as people thinking she shouldn’t compete in skateboarding competitions and her mother pestering her to find a bride so that she can become a full vampire. then she meets ana, a charming art student who’s interested in pepper. at least, she’s interested in her as a muse. then, pepper’s brother proposes a business idea that might help bring humans and vampires together. as pepper juggles her hobbies, pressures, and now business, she must decide who she wants to be.

i’m kind of glad i went into this without brushing up on the blurb beforehand. the blurb makes this graphic novel sound much more romantic than it is (though the romance that was there was pretty cute!). since i didn’t have this expectation going in, i wasn’t disappointed, but i can see how this would be misleading for others. with that said, i did really enjoy pepper’s character development! she (mostly) stayed true to herself even with being pressured by some others.

i also loved the color palette in this! the drc only had a few pages colored (i’m not sure if this will be different in the finished version), but i loved the pastel color palette. i thought this was a unique, but fitting, choice.

overall, this was a sweet graphic novel. highly recommend!

Honestly I loved this and thought it was super cute! Though it’s not fully colored in at the moment the color scheme is beautiful. It’s a great story that will teach kids that their reactions to things can cause some negative consequences sometimes. It’s a great coming of age story that will appeal to all younger generation.

I really enjoyed how quirky and unique this book was. Its fresh take on vampire lore felt both creative and engaging, and I found Pepper to be a particularly relatable and endearing protagonist. The artwork was stunning—the color palette, in particular, added so much to the overall mood and tone of the story.

My only real critique is that the characters often seemed to struggle with communication, which at times became a bit frustrating. Their constant misunderstandings occasionally disrupted the flow of the narrative. Still, this didn’t take away too much from my overall enjoyment of the book.

A lesbian vampire named pepper mint who likes to skateboard and fight with her mother? It was giving “vamparina all grown up”, but in the BEST way. This was funny, entertaining, and had so much heart. This book is perfect for the YA who feels misunderstood and misrepresented.

A heartfelt, adorable graphic novel perfect for everyone!

This was such a unique coming of age story; we meet Pepper, a vampire on the verge of her 'turning', who does not know for sure if she's truly ready for it. While at times acting quite immature, I enjoyed getting to see Pepper really grow into her own by making mistakes and standing up for herself, even when it hurt.

I just wish we had gotten more of Shroom, Pepper's vampire dog! Such a cutie!

I adored the art style and color palette for the story, and thought it really suited Pepper and her loved ones. Definitely check this one out!

This had no right to make me cry but here we are.

I loved the art style and the color palette is so easy on the eyes and so so pretty.

This was surprisingly emotional. I thought it was going to be just a quick and fun read, which it was, but I actually cried. You really get invested in the characters quickly and man that ending sneaks up on you 😭.

I think was a super cute graphic novel! I loved the artwork and the colors that were used. It did feel rushed to me at some points and some of it kind of fell flat. I did still like it so if you like graphic novels and vampires you should read this!

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thank you to Netgalley and the publisher for sending me an ARC in exchange for my honest review. all thoughts are my own.

A pastel soaked paranormal graphic novel with a skateboarding vampire?? Say less.

We follow a young vampire named Pepper who has been putting off her turning, the ceremony that will make her a full fledged immortal, despite her mother's insistences. At least in her current in-between state she can somewhat feel like a human, and therefore experience the thrill of skateboarding and mastering a new trick. Becoming an indestructible immortal would strip all that away from her. However when Pepper meets Ana, a human girl who wants to make Pepper the muse for her art, it creates the perfect opportunity for her to finally embrace immortality. But will she make the leap?

This was such a unique coming-of-age story as we see Pepper teetering between two choices. She feels a lot of pressure from her family to have her turning, but she is afraid that it will crystalize her into who she is now forever. She doesn't feel ready, and this vulnerability makes her lash out at those around her and feel very insecure in her interests and identity. Pepper's struggle really mirrors the inner turmoil a lot of us have on the cusp of adulthood. When you're expected to know who you'll be for the rest of your life, but you still feel so young and lost.

I did find the climax of this story to be a little melodramatic. Pepper becomes incredibly distrustful of everyone in her life and completely shuts down because of it. Her choices after came off as super immature, especially after a monologue from Ana showed how much more mature she was in comparison. There was a romance insinuated between Ana and Pepper in the summary for this graphic novel, and we do get some flirting scenes in the beginning, but it quickly gets forgotten.

I loved the art style and the bubblegum color scheme we had going on. Also, vampire puppies are the greatest creation on the planet. Shroom was absolutely adorable and I want ten of them. Overall, I enjoyed this and think it's a great quick read!

To start with, this was just a gorgeously drawn and colored book.

The premise of skateboarding vampires is also top notch, especially with how the lore was handled, which was not heavy handed and was easy to just casually pick up on.

Honestly would be perfectly happy to have a few more stories with these characters and set in this charming world.

This fun graphic novel tells the tale of a few vampires, their human friend, and the skateboarding start-up they try to build. Not to mention, of course, the sapphic budding romance between the main character and her new friend. Amid all this are the relations between vampires and humans, balls, and plenty of teenage emotions.

The colors are mostly the same as the cover, whites, blacks, grays, and lilac--all of this creates a calm yet engaging storyline, almost giving the sense that it's dusk or dawn no matter the time.

Cute, fun, and all-around a good read.

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.