“This place drives me nuts sometimes: nutty vampires, a bitchy werewolf, a zombie, a grumpy billionaire, and a vampire on a hunger strike.”Sounds crazy, doesn’t it? Well, sadly, the book isn’t that thunderous and comical as you may think from the quote above. Yes, all of the aforementioned creatures are in the story, and more. Let’s see what we have:The zombie. Totally pointless. As if he just accidentally took the wrong attic. The “bitchy werewolf”. That’s Antonia, who doesn’t want to be called Toni. Pretty much it.The “grumpy billionaire”. That’s Jessica. But grumpy? Why? Because she has principles? The “vampire on a hunger strike”. Well, that’s Betsy. She decides not to drink blood anymore:"—it's just something I have to do for myself, you know? Not drink, I mean. I know it seems dumb to you—what'd you call it? My stupid bid for independence? If I was you, I'd probably think it was dumb, too. But it just seems—this whole past year—like I've been on a ride I can't get off. This is something I can control.”It soon becomes clear that – obviously – she can’t control it because she is a freakin’ VAMPIRE!She is totally unreasonable, and dizzier than ever. “Actually, I was starting to think about blood a lot more and more. You know those cartoons when the wolf looks at his friends and they turn into rib roasts and stuff before his eyes? Jess and Marc were starting to look reeeally good.”What else?Laura, the daughter of the Devil? Disappointingly spiritless.The visit of the European vampires. Boring. I really feel for Alonzo, and I totally disagree with Sophie. Jon is back at the apropos of the release of Betsy’s biography written by him. He is upset. I’m bored. I had high hopes for Cathy, but sadly she couldn't fulfill them.No doubt, certain parts could bore anybody to death. I personally don’t give a damn about which parlor Betsy’s favorite, or the design of the wallpaper. Anything else? Actually, not much. No action. No story. No dynamism. No excitement. No drinking blood (yes, it is still the vampire story I’m talking about…). No passion. No sex.Good points:- I’m still in love with Sinclair – oh, my God, he is so gorgeous and cool!- And I really appreciate the light humor and witty dialogues.All in all. Although ‘Undead and Unpopular’ has some funny moments, it isn’t appealing enough to make me engaged in the story. Originally posted on my blog on May 28, 2013.My favorite quotes.
I think this is my favorite Queen Betsy book so far. The mysterious European vampires – are they friend or foe? What’s wrong with Jessica? Is there really a Zombie in the attic? And if so, what’s he doing there? Along with appearances from some of our favorite guest stars, Sophie and Liam and Garrett and Antonia (the werewolf, not the stepmom…although, the stepmom makes an appearance as well). Betsy herself actually seemed a little bit brighter, as well, which is nice, because the one thing I lament about her is her dim superficiality. She does state it rather eloquently though when she mentions that Eric is regal and commanding, Tina is smart, Jessica is a gazillionnaire, Antonia is a psychic werewolf, Marc is a doctor, Laura is the devil’s daughter, Cathie can walk through walls and she, Betsy, has the least to offer of all her friends even though she is, nominally, the Queen. When looked at from that perspective, Betsy becomes a more sympathetic character, and her foibles can be overlooked. She didn’t ask to be the queen, she just is. And apparently, vampire queens aren’t chosen for their I.Q. Okay. I can live with that, as long as there are enough other fascinating characters surrounding her. That number continues to grow, so I am optimistic.
What do You think about Undead And Unpopular (2007)?
Spring is here! Betsy finally got an engagement ring! And her birthday’s coming. So she's excitingly planning the surprise party she told everyone she didn’t want. But things have to be put on hold because they have two groups of visitors coming. Sophie and Liam (from the anthology ‘Bite’) are there to ask Queen Betsy for her permission. And a European delegation who finally get around to visiting the new Queen. To make it worse, she’s decided to go on a bender. I love how Betsy is starting to get the hang of her new queenly authority and is deciding on a platform. And I love her new big sister babysitting duties. What made me cry was Jessica’s news. I think Sinclair should write a short biography of his history so Betsy can be aware of what’s going on when they meet people, especially as pertains to Tina. That relationship is so creepy. The creator working for the prodigy and living there with your mate. Sinclair spends as much time with Tina as he does with Betsy. Sounds like a threesome to me, I don’t care if she is homosexual. Quick Thoughts: 1)O come on now. Are we going to have a reference in every book to a previous one? Talk about promotion and publicity? We’ve already read the previous books so know what went on. We don’t need to be reminded. This is just stupid. 2)I hate it when people talk in a different language in front of people who don’t understand them. It is SO RUDE!! Fave Scenes: Sophie meeting Alonzo, Jessica’s bloody nose, Carolina’s conversation with Betsy and the zombie.
—Theresa
This is the 5th book in the Undead series about the vampire queen Betsy Taylor and her vampire followers and her human friends.This one is not as good as the previous books, there was not that much of story to it. It is more just day to day life which in itself is okay. I would like to see more interaction between her and her king Eric Sinclair. She is still planning her wedding that Eric seems to be reluctant about and she is getting ready to celebrate her 30th birthday. I have to admit that sometimes Betsy gets my goat up the way she acts, that is probably what disappoints me.I will keep reading the series though.
—Bronwyn Rykiert
Betsy is back. And this time she's decided to give up drinking blood. And she has lots of unscheduled visitors to her home at all sorts of hours and it's great.Still more like lots of little sub-plots, but I am also still glad about that. I read this one in a little more then a lunch hour. I am a little bummed that there is apparently a short story between the last one and this one - which explains Garrett (formerly known as George the fiend) and Toni the werewolf's relationship. And as a result
—Kristen
