Vampiric Parasites and Other Lovelies

Autumn has definitely come to stay in this neck of the woods, and originally I was planning to wax poetic about it, but then I finished a book, so instead of speaking of leaves, let us speak of vampires.

The book in question is by one of my absolute favorite young adult writers. It is the last of his young adult novels that had, until earlier, been unread by me. I even read its sequel unwittingly, which may have influenced how I read this novel.

The novel in question? Peeps, by Scott Westerfeld.

Via Goodreads

As far as novels go, this one certainly sits high on my list of Really Weird Concepts That Totally Work. It's also just barely squeaking by as YA, considering both a) the concept and b) the character's age. (My qualifications for YA are typically PG-13, written with teens in mind, and a main character under 18 for a considerable portion of the novel.) However, I still rather enjoyed it.

Cal was infected with a parasite by some random, goth-looking girl named Morgan in his freshman year of college. Now, one year later, he's hunting down all of his ex-girlfriends, because this is no regular parasite. Cal's a carrier of the vampire parasite. Now, his exes are all crazy light-hating cannibals.

When he finds his ex Sarah, the last of the girls he's infected, Cal realizes he still doesn't feel 'finished'. On the advice of the Shrink, an ancient carrier of the parasite, Cal sets out to find the girl who gave him the parasite, hoping for both a sense of closure and some answers the other vampires (or 'peeps') won't give him.

Overall, Peeps is very entertaining, and one of my favorite interpretations of the ever-popular vampire. Not only did the author create a unique plot and storyline, but he recreated the vampire as well. He uses science and other real parasites to influence how a vampire parasite might come to be and show itself in modern society. He thought through everything, from how it spread to its cure and symptoms.

I also rather liked Cal. Despite the fact he was rewired by the parasite in his brain, he still managed to be unique and the perfect narrator. He was intelligent, but clearly didn't know everything, which fueled the plot. (Also, his cat was named Cornelius. Any guy who names his cat Cornelius has to be pretty awesome.) Cal had his own voice, and he had common sense.

Lace, Dr. Rat, and Chip also proved to be excellent backup characters, each with quirks and reasons for Cal to be interacting with them regularly. Not only that, but they each were incredibly consistent in their behaviors, which held together the idea that no one knew what was happening.

The plot was what really brought me into the book. There was both the uniqueness of the vampires and the mystery/thriller of what really happened in Morgan's apartment building. Even knowing the answers (due to reading The Last Days a year back) I still found myself on edge, wondering what was going on with the freaky message and the basement.

There were some things that I wasn't too crazy of, but for the sake of the story I dealt with. For example, due to the parasite's overpowering desire to spread to more hosts, Cal (and all of the other peeps) are inclined to be either overly-affectionate or manic killer. (The parasite is spread through bodily fluids. Biting, kissing, et cetera.) This made for quite a few awkward scenes, but they showed that this parasite was a disease, not some supernatural phenomenon.

There's also a light sprinkling of swearing and a heavy dose of gross with the Parasites 101-esque chapters. (Personally, I didn't mind the Parasites 101 stuff, but its still gross.) Overall, not too much content-wise that was frown-worthy.

I didn't care too much for Morgan's character, being all-knowing, creepy, and a little over-powered in general.

In the end, though, I loved Peeps, just like I've loved every other Westerfeld book I've read.

Speaking of Westerfeld, who else is excited for Afterworlds, even though its still a good year off and we know next to nothing about it?

Until next time,
Hailey Jenkins