A Girl's Guide to Vampires by Katie MacAlister

Year Published: 2003

My Rating: 5 stars

384 pages

Weight: 7 ounces = 0.4375 lb.

This is the first book in the Dark Ones series.

Joy Randall's Top 5 Tips for Vampire Hunters:

1. Location, location, location. Remember, if you wouldn't be there, neither would a bloodsucker.
2. Trust your eyes. You know the handsome, annoyingly arrogant, self-assured man in the shadows with long hair and a cleft in his chin? He's your vampire.
3. No matter how tempting it might be, do not "accidentally" acquire a paper cut and suggest YOUR VAMPIRE kiss your finger to make it better.
4. From here on out, play it cool. Don't offer to accompany your prince of the night on the talk show circuit and whatever you do, don't offer him your heart.
5. And most of all, remember?being a vampire is nothing to laugh about.

Joy and Roxy and two American best friends, planning on going on a dream vacation to Europe together and hoping to find their soul mates on the way.

Before leaving for the trip they meet up with the witch Miranda to ask for the help of the goddess to find their soul mates.. Skeptic as she is Joy doesn't believe any of what Minanda has to say about finding a Dark One in her path that could be her soul mate.. since she does not believe in vampires as Roxy does..

So of they go to the Czech Republic, where they find the castle of their favorite Moravian Vampire series author CJ Dante next to the hotel they are staying in and plan to meet with him. Meanwhile a vampire fair is to start and they get to meet some of the fair people including Raphael the head of security, Christian who becomes a close friend, Arialle, Tanya, Dominic and Milos.

Then the visions start, so joy tries to blame them on the beer but they become more vivid and disturbing. Not knowing who is sending her these images and starting to believe there really might be a Dark One doing this to her, she starts investigating. Could it be the sexy gorgeous Raphael or the cool smooth Christian or fang face Dominic?

While doing so, a murder occurs on the fair grounds and Joy and the love of her life are on the list of prime suspects. But she knows who the murderer is so she is determined to prove to the police who he is and prove her lover innocent!

Although I read this book out of order since I read the second book in the series first I kinda knew who would be with who in the end, but I enjoyed it nevertheless.

The friendship between Joy and Roxy is so adorable and lovable! The love scenes are HOT! The guys are GORGEOUS! I LOVED it!!

I will be continueing in this series very soon!