Vlad the World's Worst Vampire: Spooktacular Surprise

Vlad the World's Worst Vampire #1

by Anna Wilson

Vlad finally has his Bat Licence, but his mother now wants him to have super-strength - or it's off to the Black Tower with him! If only he could show her how funny he is in the school play with Minxie. But he has to keep his human friends a secret from his parents, and being a vampire secret from the humans. Then, when he suddenly turns into a bat at school, all his secrets are revealed.....

Genres: Vampires, Childrens, Middle Grade, Fantasy, Fiction, Horror

Audible Audio

First published October 12, 2017

About the author

Anna Wilson lives in Bradford on Avon with her husband, two children, two cats, some chickens, some ducks, a tortoise and a dog. She is the author of The Puppy Plan, Pup Idol, Puppy Power, Puppy Party, The Kitten Hunt, Kitten Wars,Kitten Catastrophe, Monkey Business, Monkey Madness, I'm a Chicken, Get Me Out of Here!, the Pooch Parlour series, The Great Kitten Cake Off and The Mortifying Life of Skye Green series - all for Macmillan Children's Books " " " "She has also written Summer's Shadow for older readers.

Reviews

[Dash fan · Rating 5 out of 5]

5☆ A Fun, Lighthearted, Witty, Enchanting and thoroughly Entertaining Children's Book!

I thoroughly enjoyed reading like spooktacular children's book.

Vlad is a little Vampire but hates everything about being one.
He so desperately wants to experience being a normal child but knows he will never be allowed.

But when Vlad discovers a human book all about a human school it Intrigues his interest even more.

So one day when everyone is asleep in their coffin, he sneaks out with his best friend and bat Flit.

At first he is just spying on the human school children, then one sneaks up on him and before he knows it, Minxie is taking him into the school playground!

Minxie and Vlad soon become friends as she teaches him all about school. But he keeps his secret to himself scared of what might happen to him.

But can Vlad keep his secret from the rest of the class? Can Vlad really attend a human school or will he get found out?

Vlad is adorable I would want to be his friend too, especially lil flit the bat he was so sweet looking after Vlad.

There is a lil bit about bullying in the story, which is relevant and teaches children that it's not ok to bully others and it's ok to be different!
Although it isn't ok to sneak off ever!, without telling your parents... which cheeky Vlad did!

I absolutely loved this Enchanting and funny book. It's a perfect way to escape from everything that's happening in the world at the moment!
The Illustrations were superb and helped create the scene and tone for the story!
It's fun, lighthearted, witty, captures the imagination, teaches children a lil about vampires without all the so called gore.
I think it was the perfect length for younger readers, although I would of loved more as I enjoyed it so much.
I think this book would be perfect for children aged 6+ younger readers may find the vampire a lil scary even though there is nothing remotely scary as far as I read, although that is just my take.

I highly recommend reading Vlad the World’s Worst Vampire!

[Dana-Adriana B. · Rating 3 out of 5]

O poveste simpatica, dar nu foarte. Vlad, un pui de vampir cu radacinile in Transilvania, e atipic. Nu vrea sa se transforme in liliac, nu vrea sa invete sa zboare. Mi-a placut bunicul.
In schimb se imprieteneste cu o fetita, care nu este vampir.

[Lucy Banks · Rating 4 out of 5]

I received a copy of this book from Natgalley, in exchange for an honest review.

A cute concept, and a loveable protagonist.

A nice take on the classic 'weird kid doesn't fit in, but finds his way' style story. Admittedly, the whole vampire thing does seem a little tired these days, but my eldest son (coming up 8) who I read it with said he really enjoyed it. Nicely written and we loved the illustrations!

[Shan( Shans_Shelves) 💜 · Rating 4 out of 5]

Well that was fun.

Review to come.

*Thank you to Netgalley and the publisher for providing me with a copy in exchange for an honest review*

[Brenda · Rating 4 out of 5]

Vlad the World's Worst Vampire is an adorable book for Halloween, the illustrations by Kathryn Durst are just wonderful. It kinda reminds me of a gentler Addams Family, nothing spooky or scary at all. It's just a cute story about a little vampire who isn't happy being a vampire and wants to make some human friends. So Vlad does what any kid in this situation might do and sneaks out while everyone else is asleep. School turns out to be much more challenging than Vlad thought, teachers want notes from parents and require documents to be filled out, and his first encounter with Boz, a bully leaves him second guessing about coming back again. But then Vlad meets Minxie, a young girl who is very interested in being his friend and Vlad starts to see the benefits of coming to school. Vlad works really hard at home trying to please his parents expectations and sneaks out every day to spend time with Minxie. In the end, he even learns how to be a better vampire. **Thank you to Kane Miller Publishing for the review copy.**

[Vlad · Rating 5 out of 5]

Verry good

[Judith · Rating 4 out of 5]

Thank you to the publisher and netgalley.com for allowing me to read this book in exchange for an honest review.
This is a charming book about Vlad Impaler, a young vampire who finds many things about his life rather scary. All he wants is to go to a regular school and make friends like he has read about in his favourite book, Jollywood Academy.
A fun read for young middle grade children.

[D'ale lui Damian · Rating 4 out of 5]

Vlad, cel MAI nepriceput vampir din lume -Anna Wilson

O mică carte cu și despre familia Țepeș, o familie de vampiri ce trăiește în Conacul Suferinței din Anglia, cu origini din Transilvania. Familia e compusă din bunicul Gory, părinții Drax și Mortemia, dar și tânărul vampir, Vlad.

✍️Codul sănătății și siguranței vampirului este: fără soare, fără soare, fără soare-găsim în carte, dar știți care este codul copilului? Iubire, sprijin ar fi două elemente importante din codul familiei, elemente ce lipsesc din viața micului vampir Vlad de 9 ani, fapt ce-l fac trist, deprimat, neîncrezător, de aici și notele scăzute, nereusita privind abilitatea de a se transforma în liliac,
râsul malefic, principalele materii la care nu se descurcă pentru a fi catalogat un vampir desăvârșit. Probleme sunt și la alte materii, ca de exemplu: istoria vampirilor, traditii ale vampirilor, gramatica transilvana, matematica...

Pe ambii părinți îi putem integra în categoria neoamenilor de vampiri energetici, deoarece tot ce fac este să evidențieze nemultumirile lor față de copil, să-i spună câte lucruri nu este în stare să facă, ce nu face suficient de bine și ce să aibe, adică un animal de companie-liliac. Este un copil pedepsit, fiind inchis în Turnul Negru, el având teamă de întuneric.

Părinții îi sugerează să citească povestea violentă tradională Roșie-ca-sângele și cei șapte lilieci, dar el citeste Academia Veseliei, o carte despre copiii oamenilor, o carte a cărei actiune se desfășoară într-o școală, fapt ce-i stârnește interesul și astfel ajunge să se ducă la școală, să-și facă o prietenă, iar acest lucru îi schimbă viața la 180°, se văd îmbunătățiri majore in viața lui, reușește să se transforme în liliac, descoperă noi abilități -un actor minunat.

[Steph · Rating 4 out of 5]

Great, quick story about vampires and friendship! Really enjoyed Vlad's story! Hope it becomes a series!

[Megan · Rating 4 out of 5]

A cute book about young vampire, who doesn't like being a vampire, and isn't very good at it. He doesn't like drinking blood (they get it delivered), and is struggling to turn into a bat.

[Ramona Cantaragiu · Rating 2 out of 5]

This is not funny at all, it simply is a story thay slugs along a plotline that is basically crap. How can you talk abouy vampires, humans, kids who break rules etc. and still be absolutely boring?

[Jennie · Rating 3 out of 5]

hahahahha don’t worry I’m not even done yet!! This book has so much potential to have such a cute moral of finding the place where you fit in but all of a sudden it just ENDS. Every year I read this to my kids and every year I just want to add 2 more chapters of my own at the end!!!! RIP


2025 update: honestly I might not have been paying attention the first time but this book DOES have a decently happy ending. For a kids book, it does show don’t tell very well…however it’s a kids book so if there was just a little more explanation at the end, that’d be great!

[Christina (Confessions of a Book Addict) · Rating 3 out of 5]

A very cute read -- perfect for Halloween. My son loved it!

[Shaynning - Libraire Jeunesse · Rating 3 out of 5]

Premier tome de la série, ce livre fait parti des "univers ténébreux sympathiques" où il est question d'un gentil petit vampire de 9 ans qui n'est pas particulièrement bien dans sa peau.

Vlad Empaleur fait parti d'une longue lignée de vampires de Transylvanie, mais habite l'Angleterre avec son père Drax, sa mère Mortémia,son grand Père Gory, leur majordome Mulch et Flit, sa chauve-sourie. Vlad a du mal à apprendre à voler, rêve du monde des jeunes humains et déteste boire du sang. Il phantasme sur un livre humain, "L'académie Jolibois" où les personnages semblent heureux parce qu'ils ont des amis. Confiné dans son vaste manoir à recevoir des cours par ses parents et son grand-père et apprendre le B A Ba du parfait vampire, Vlad rêve d'escapade. Un jour, il décide de se rendre à l'école des humains dans le village tout près. Là, il fera la connaissance de Minxie, petite fille aux cheveux crépus aussi volubile qu'énergique, la professeure Limonade et le très peu sympathique Boz, méchant sans raisons. Mais il faudra ruser pour ne pas trahir son espèce. or, s'il est drôle et bon imitateur, Vlad est aussi piètre menteur.

Après avoir lu "Amelia Fang", "Orage, petit seigneur des ténèbres", "Mortina" et "Fingus Malister", des romans du même registre Ténébreux Sympathique, ce genre de Merveilleux inversé, je suis un peu perplexe face au roman de Vlad.

Je m'explique. Vlad est mignon et attrayant, là n'est pas le soucis. Mon soucis est dans le dialogue. À plusieurs reprises, j'ai tété étonné de certaines répliques. La professeur, par exemple, a vanté l'avance de Vlad en mathématique, ajoutant qu'il compensait le retard de "certains", en fixant la brute de la classe, qui ne comprenait rien. Pas très sympa de la part d'une prof. Ensuite, il y a la mère de Vlad, qui lui a lancé "Mais qu'est-je j'ai fait pur mériter un tel enfant...aussi frappé ( fou) que son grand-père!". Vraiment ordinaire de la part d'une mère. Et Minxie, qui a jeté à Vlad, après que ce dernier ait été complimenté pour son arbre généalogique sur sept générations:" Ne fais pas trop l'élève parfait où je ne serai peut-être plus ton amie". Oh. Charmant. On ne veut surtout pas de "grosses têtes" comme ami, l'intelligence c'est si peu attrayant ( Notez l'ironie). Je ne suis pas sur d'apprécier les nombreuses piques que se lancent les personnages.

Sinon, c'est un scénario plutôt abracadabrant, où visiblement n'importe quel enfant peu se faire passer pour un étudiant dans cette école et où la prof ne se pose pas trop de question sur son nouvel élève, qui n'apparait pas sur sa liste de classe ( une classe de 8 étudiants en plus). Pas le meilleur scénario que j'ai vu. D'ailleurs, certaines questions restent en suspend: pourquoi Vlad ne brûle t-il pas au soleil, finalement? Mythe entretenu par ses parents ou pouvoir spécial? Vlad mange des fruits, est-ce que ça signifie qu'il n'a pas BESOIN de boire du sang? Certains détails sont carrément oubliés.

J'ai bien aimé la représentation visuelle de Flit, le fait que la lune sur la couverture brille réellement dans le noir ( Si, si je l'ai essayée!) et le fait que Vlad ait un inhalateur ( mais ce n'est pas clair si c'est pour de l'asthme ou une allergie).

Bref, un petit roman qui ne démarque pas spécialement par rapport à ceux de son registre, qui aborde le fait d'être différent ( un thème majeur en jeunesse qui revient très souvent) et qui semble miser sur le pouvoir de l'amitié, mais cette amitié est plutôt surfaite et manque de profondeur.

Catégorisation: Roman Fantastique ( Ténébreux Sympathique), littérature jeunesse intermédiaire, second cycle primaire, 8-9 ans
Note: 5/10

[Matt Davies · Rating 2 out of 5]

Seeing as it is Hallowe’en (yes I always put the apostrophe in!), I thought I’d drop in a recent spooky title that’s currently doing the rounds. I’d heard a little about this title about a month ago and then stumbled across it in the local library. It seemed to fit the bill as a book that may appeal to some of the children I teach, so I thought I’d give it a whirl.

Vlad is a vampire, albeit not a very good one. He can’t fly, can’t turn into a bat and hates the taste of blood. It seems that he is doomed to be a failure in his family’s eyes. All Vlad wants to do is be more like a human. Cue the inevitable adventure into the human world.

The book is billed as the first in a series of books and herein lies my problem with the book. It feels like a book designed to set up a series. The basic premise of the series is introduced. The character and his problems are introduced. Secondary characters are introduced. Everything is all set up for a whole host of human-vampire adventures. Unfortunately, the plot of the first title is rather lacking. Throughout the book, Vlad encounters humans for the first time and masters one of his vampire skills. There isn’t really enough meat on the bones for my liking.

Before I begin to sound too negative, there are many saving graces. Anna Wilson has played around with language to great effect. Vlad has ‘daymares’ and exclaims ‘my badness’, both of which brought a wry smile to my face. It is a very accessible book, so will appeal to less-confident readers or those taking their first steps into novels. Also, despite what I have said earlier, it is a great introduction to the series. I just wish that the second title was available at the same time. I’m confident that reading this and the second on the series together would be a much more rewarding experience.

Reading the book with my mind open, there was always that lingering feeling that there wasn’t much in this title. However, I do know that many children will enjoy this book. As such, I can see a series of Vlad books being something that I will recommend in the future. After all I’ve said, I’m looking forward to seeing if the next book in the series will propel the series forwards.

www.mrdaviesreads.co.uk

[Elaine White · Rating 5 out of 5]

Book – Vlad the World's Worst Vampire
Author – Anna Wilson
Star rating - ★★★★★
No. of Pages – 160
Cover – Cute!
Genre – Children's, Comic, Vampire


** COPY RECEIVED THROUGH NETGALLEY **



This was super cute. I really loved Vlad, our main character, and the way his story was told.

Vlad is like most sheltered kids; he wants what he doesn't have and is willing to break the rules to get it. He feels useless at the things his parents want him to do – fly as a bat, drink blood and have a real vampire laugh – and the pressure gets so much that he wants to be human. So he sneaks out of the house and gets roped into attending a human school where he meets a new friend.

Vlad and Flit are the most adorable friends, and the girl he meets at human school is feisty! A great influence for him. I love that we got to see his insecurities as well as his triumphs and the way he found his confidence in the little things. I especially loved that last scene with Mulch, the butler.

The graphics/illustrations were gorgeous. I mean, the entire presentation, from page layout, text alignment, font size and the little bats to show page numbers and chapter headings were brilliantly done. The attention to detail was just stunning.

I thought, from the cover, that this would be a comic book, but it's not. It's a fully fledged children's book with gorgeous illustrations littered throughout.

Overall, a great story with an even greater message that kids and adults alike will love. And I really liked the little extra gift of a snippet from Jollywood Academy at the end.

[Efox · Rating 4 out of 5]

I ordered four of these stories to read to my kids at bedtime. We really love Hotel Flamingo series, as well as the Freddie's Amazing Bakery Series ( The Great Raspberry Mix-Up), and my kids enjoyed the Fairy Ponies books (Midnight Escape even if I didn't as much), so I had high hopes for this Usborne series.

It's cute! Vlad's vampire parents are terrible! Vlad is adorable, Flit, his bad is cute, and the kids were fascinated to follow his adventures in trying to go to actual school during the day, and fit in and make friends. In spite of my daughter's fascination with all things spooky (including getting multiple vampire books out from the library quite often) they still were surprised by many of the "normal" vampire things that the Impailer family does. They spent most of the book very worried that Vlad would get caught - either by the school or by his parents - but ultimately I think they both really enjoyed it.

Hopefully they will be into reading the next few as well!

[Eve beinguniquebeingme · Rating 4 out of 5]

Growing up as the only young vampire in his a house, Vlad is a lonely nine year old who dreams of human life as in his favourite book series he reads secretly so his parents won't find out as they being vampire's dislike humans. Vlad also struggles to learn to fly as a bat which is an important lesson his family wants him to achieve.

After Vlad dares go out in sunlight, he ventures to a school like in his favorite books and meets Mixzie a girl who accepts him as her new best friend. He finds he fits in well at the school with everyone except bully Boz who doesn't believe anything about Vlad and growing up on Transylvania.

Yet when Lizzie ends up at his house he better hope no one see's her as she's a dreaded human his parents won't want to meet!

This is a really fun and imaginative book for kids. I GRE up watching Young Dracula and to me this would be super alike that series being humorous to read. Anna is a beloved author and her other animal works are also the same style of writing so if you check any of her books out you for sure won't be disappointed!

Many thanks to the publishers for allowing me to review this book for them!

[Tanpopo · Rating 4 out of 5]

Eddie ist so gar nicht gruselig und seinen Eltern, allen voran der Mutter gefällt das gar nicht. Aber der ganze Gruselkundekram macht den kleinen Vampir ja auch nicht wirklich glücklich. Und die Geschichten aus der Menschenwelt, die er heimlich liest hören sich zudem viel spannender an. Und so stiehlt sich Eddie unerlaubterweise bei Tageslicht aus dem Haus und besucht eine Menschenschule.
Und so muss er Sachen erleben …

Das Kinderbuch von Anna Wilson mit den zahlreichen Illustrationen von Kathryn Durst besticht durch schmunzelnden Humor und animiert Kinder zum Lesen.
Dabei ist Eddie super sympathisch und gar nicht gruselig. Sein bester Kumpel Flori, eine Fledermaus und sein Opa Grufti haben sogar Verständnis dafür, dass Eddie nun einmal nicht so ist wie andere Vampire. Und Flori unterstützt den Jungen dann auch tatkräftig bei seinen Ausflügen in die Menschenwelt.

Das Buch kommt auf jeden Fall in unsere Grundschulbibliothek, denn es ist für geübte Leser sicherlich ein riesiger Spaß. Die Kapitel sind kurz mit zur Geschichte passenden Illustrationen und auch der Schreibstil lässt sich gut lesen.

[Amy (Golden Books Girl) · Rating 4 out of 5]

In this utterly lovely younger middle grade book, we follow Vlad, a young vampire who is struggling so much with his vampiric studies that he decides to give human school a go instead, with some interesting results. This was really gentle but also well paced; it was a one sitting read for me mainly due to its length (between 150 and 200 pages), but also because I was so immersed by Vlad`s world I didn`t want to put it down. The book`s humour also appealed to me- I was chuckling constantly. Vlad`s fabulous pet bat Flit was the source of much of this; he was totally hilarious. Finally, Kathryn Durst`s illustrations added so much to my already extremely positive view of this book as they truly brought the story and the characters to life. I couldn`t have been more overjoyed when I discovered a few days later that there`s going to be a sequel in a few months! 4.5/5

[Desiree · Rating 5 out of 5]

This was such a cute lil pick me up to read during Halloween fall times. In between all the heavy reading I’ve been doing with adult books, my positive disposition towards this story my have blind sided me from any critical thinking. Essentially we get a story about a young boy who wants to forge is own lane away from his family’s traditions/customs. And him making a friend who positively accepts him into this new world. I just want to get the whole series and read it during the cozy fall nights, and pass these books on to my niece and nephews. Would definitely recommend

[Theediscerning · Rating 3 out of 5]

A book that definitely suffers from being volume one in a series, but this young reader of a vampire lad (or is it 'lad vampire'?) breaking away from the hellish nocturnal world that just plain scares him has a few decent dramatic elements for the target audience. I'd be able to define and mark it with more confidence if I knew what the typical franchise entry read like, but this is a firm enough beginning, even if a little too simplistic at first.

[Laura Noakes · Rating 4 out of 5]

This was charm-filled and fun, an excellent start to a series. I read it in one go, and couldn't help but grin throughout. Friendships in fiction are my kryptonite, and I immediately adored the relationship between Vlad and Minxie.

I also really enjoyed this concept--I thought it was executed brilliantly, and I can't wait to see more of Vlad and his family in future adventures.

Also, PLEASE CAN I HAVE A PET BAT?

[Green Jazz Blues · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is a really delightful book for young readers. Quite humorous. Minxie (proper name, Malika) turns out to be rather a mystery - There seems to be more to her than meets the eye. Then I find out at the end that there'll be a sequel which is slightly annoying as I would have expected everything to be in one book.
One thing's for sure: Vlad is certainly not your traditional vampire! In fact, he's really likeable!

[Chloe (Always Booked) · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book was a really cute start to a new series about a boy named Vlad who is a vampire but doesn't really feel like one. He doesn't enjoy blood and has a hard time sleeping during the day. He ventures out and stumbles in to a human school and makes a friend named Minxie. This book is him figuring out how to fit in the human world and keep it a secret from his parents who really dislike humans. I"m excited to see where the series goes!

[Rachel · Rating 5 out of 5]

Parental note: I was genuinely surprised how much talk there was of drinking human blood in the first couple chapters. I mean, obviously if you're reading about vampires that's going to come up. But considering this book is for like first graders, I was surprised by how much it was discussed. Nothing graphic, but just something parents should keep in mind.

This book was adorable! I loved it!

[Eriksson · Rating 2 out of 5]

A cute, light-hearted book, pretty fun, and easy to read. The ending felt a bit abrupt. A more prevalent narrative could have helped, as it was just a few days of adventure for the little vampire. I won't be reading more of the series, but I could check out other works by the author. I would recommend it for younger kids.

[Marie Reed · Rating 3 out of 5]

Reading age for this is 6-9 years but definitely is better for the younger end. Cute story for a non-spooky October read with young kids, but if we didn't already own the whole series we probably wouldn't continue them because there wasn't much substance to it. Maybe the next story will have more of an adventure.

[Claudia Riendeau · Rating 4 out of 5]

Un vampire qui ne sait pas voler, qui veut aller à l'école comme les autres jeunes et des parents qui ne le comprennent pas. Une aventure drôle et émouvante qui est parfaite pour les petits. Les illustrations sont également fort belles.

[Ashlynn · Rating 4 out of 5]

Really cute! Love that while Vlad didn’t fit in, he found friends to help him. Though he starts off at odds with the vampire life, he learns to appreciate who he is and where he came from. Lovely and cute! Can’t wait to read it with my boys!