The Coffin Club

The Coffin Club by Ellen Schreiber is one of my sweet obsessions in the YA genre.

Vampire Kisses was one of those series I binged read on a school trip. They were all adorable, they were sweet and it was everything I needed at the time. Going back to them, they are for sure my guilty pleasure. Happy endings, cute drama, adorable romance - everything I need in a guilty pleasure during rough times!

These reads are fast, and somewhat mindless. There's no crazy Dan Brown plot lines or Inception like mysteries to be solved. It's a YA novel with vampires and ooey gooey romance and drama. It's everything that it's designed to be - the perfect guilty pleasure package.

This isn't the best in the series - this book is definitely one of the "filler" show more books that give you required information and new characters that will be extremely important as the series goes on. There is still crazy teen angst and drama to fill up the pages, but it doesn't rival the first four, or the next novel in the series. That being said, it's still great in my eyes. Not every book will be a home run, or else technically none of them would be.

Raven and Alexander are a cute couple - and Raven will do anything to get Alexander back (since he's missing, of course). With a supporting cast like Jameson, Jagger, Phoenix and Onyx in this book, I definitely recommend it. It's funny and sweet!

Overall - I love this series. If you want a sweet, easy read that is YA based and full of the vampire craze this book is for you!! Five out of five stars! show less

Yeah! This is the best book that I have received, so far, from my delving into the world of advanced reader's copies! I am absolutely thrilled to have it! Of course, my cover looks nothing like the lovely photo above (it merely says "The Coffin Club" in that font on a purplish-black background with a big red "Art Not Final") but that doesn't matter :)

The Coffin Club was not quite as mature as some ARCs I've had the privilege of receiving, and it was so strange to find so many errors in a book! I quickly became accustomed to it, however, and enjoyed the story:

The Coffin Club has gotten the Vampire Kisses series back on track! Number five in the series (after, in order, Vampire Kisses, Kissing Coffins, Vampireville, and Dance with a show more Vampire), it made up for the large disappointment that was number four. It felt like the series was just starting to be produced with no real thought to the plot or characters--just a quick deadline-meeter to keep the money rolling in. Things are looking up, however, as there was actually some substance to this story! The excitement I felt at the first two was renewed!

As Schreiber's website sums:

"Its [sic] tough for love-struck Raven to imagine what's keeping her nocturnal boyfriend from returning to Dullsville. So there's only one thing to do find Alexander. Along the way, Raven cant resist the spot where she feels most at home, The Coffin Club. But when she stumbles upon a secret door in the club, she descends into a dim catacombto a hidden hang-out where the house-drink happens to be Type A or B. Drawn to one of its shadowy members, Raven suspects shes in over her head. But exploring the covert club is too tempting, even after coming face-to-face with Alexanders trouble-stirring enemy.

Can Raven delve further into the Underworld unbeknownst to Alexander? And also solve the mystery of her true loves own secrecy? Ellen Schreibers sizzling Vampire Kisses series continues with its darkest installment yet."

Now I don't know if I'd call it the darkest installment yet (and it was a tad predictable, with the identity of the "mystery" character clear from the first mention [because who else could it be?]), but it was certainly one of the most interesting. Raven and Alexander's too-good-to-be-true,-we-all-know-readers-like-a-little-conflict relationship finally hits a deceptive little bump as Raven's mischievous ways cause her to actually lie to her golden boy.

I think it also helped the book's cause that none of it took place in "Dullsville" with her draggy parents and/or brothers. Supervised only by her hippie aunt, Raven's curiosity is completely free to entertain itself in this book--and there's actually some danger to her actions!
Before, her meddling wouldn't have caused anything more than a breakup, but her snooping around the Coffin Club, which she soon founds out is really a REAL vampire club, puts her very life at stake (cheesy pun intended) for some great, page-turning action. Gripping? No. But a definite rebirth for the series that had been walking dead, as of late.
Again, cheesy pun intended :)

This review is also a post on my blog. show less

In this Vampire Kisses book Raven goes to visit her aunt in Hipsterville so she can find Alexander, who has yet to return from his trip to return Valentine to his siblings from the end of the previous book. Raven is still her smart sassy self, although she takes more foolish risks in this book than in the previous works. The ending is a little confusing and more unrealistic then ever. It implies that Phoenix is Alexander, which would mean that Alexander was completely aware that Raven was lying to him about her involvement at the Coffin Club the entire time and not only didn't get mad, but didn't react to it at all...that's a little bit strange. But I still love Raven and will probably keep reading the series.

In this Vampire Kisses book Raven goes to visit her aunt in Hipsterville so she can find Alexander, who has yet to return from his trip to return Valentine to his siblings from the end of the previous book. Raven is still her smart sassy self, although she takes more foolish risks in this book than in the previous works. The ending is a little confusing and more unrealistic then ever. It implies that Phoenix is Alexander, which would mean that Alexander was completely aware that Raven was lying to him about her involvement at the Coffin Club the entire time and not only didn't get mad, but didn't react to it at all...that's a little bit strange. But I still love Raven and will probably keep reading the series.

In this Vampire Kisses book Raven goes to visit her aunt in Hipsterville so she can find Alexander, who has yet to return from his trip to return Valentine to his siblings from the end of the previous book. Raven is still her smart sassy self, although she takes more foolish risks in this book than in the previous works. The ending is a little confusing and more unrealistic then ever. It implies that Phoenix is Alexander, which would mean that Alexander was completely aware that Raven was lying to him about her involvement at the Coffin Club the entire time and not only didn't get mad, but didn't react to it at all...that's a little bit strange. But I still love Raven and will probably keep reading the series.

In this Vampire Kisses book Raven goes to visit her aunt in Hipsterville so she can find Alexander, who has yet to return from his trip to return Valentine to his siblings from the end of the previous book. Raven is still her smart sassy self, although she takes more foolish risks in this book than in the previous works. The ending is a little confusing and more unrealistic then ever. It implies that Phoenix is Alexander, which would mean that Alexander was completely aware that Raven was lying to him about her involvement at the Coffin Club the entire time and not only didn't get mad, but didn't react to it at all...that's a little bit strange. But I still love Raven and will probably keep reading the series.

This is the fifth novel in the popular Vampire Kisses series by Ellen Schreiber. It focuses on a goth girl named Raven and her desire to become a creature of the night. When Alexander moves into the creepy mansion in her home of Dullsville all of her dreams suddenly seem possible. Overall the series is something of a gothic fairy tale where happy endings undoubtedly exist and vampires are just misunderstood. And honestly, what’s wrong with that?

In this installment, Hipsterville’s vampire night spot the Coffin Club is in turmoil. Its secret vampires-only underground club The Dungeon is filling with the undead, all worried about the growing sense of tension. It seems Jagger is up to no good once more, this time wishing to take over show more the town and expose the presence of his race. Using crop circles to attract more vampires, he’s amassed an army, but not all the vampires want to be exposed. It seems the Coffin Club is designated as a safe zone where they can be free to be themselves. Naturally, Raven finds solace in this underground club among people who also feel ostracized from the rest of the world and wants to help fight to keep it as it always has been, a refuge.

Even with the lingering feeling of tension in the novel the story is upbeat with lots of kitschy details making the dark and dreary world of Goths disappear, instead replacing it with strong indivualism and an unyielding desire for acceptance. Raven at the forefront, is a strong character that can be looked up to, though her over exuberance often leads her into trouble. However, it is also this over exuberance that allows her to see past stereotypes to the person beneath.

The pace was a bit slower in this novel then in previous books, but the storyline was still interesting, though I did miss the more dire adventures that held you with their mystery. There was also a lack of time with Alexander. Considering this book was all about Raven going to Hispterville to spend time with him, she spends very little in his actual presence, though we come to find he was never far.

Overall, this novel is one that you can feel secure that your child is reading. It holds some strong messages about love, tolerance and self identity and while it is a romance book there’s nothing steamier then a kiss. This is simply a fun quick read that keeps you coming back for more. show less