Mary Downing HahnLook for Me by Moonlight

I’m really not sure how I want to rate this book. The last time I read it, I was maybe 15 (am now 36) and I’m not sure if I really understand the creepiness of this book. On the surface, it’s a teen vampire romance where the virginal wallflower of a girl is 16 and the vampire love interest is hundreds of years old. This idea has definitely given me the icky since becoming an adult but with this book it’s even worse because the vamp looks to be about 30 years old 🤢. This is a teen/YA and there’s grooming of not only the girl but her little brotherGood does eventually conquer evil in the end, which the only bit that stuck with me over the years (plus the parallels with The Highway Man). It’s not one I’ll be handing over to my kids. I think I’m going to give it 3 stars… the creep factor just overwhelms the narrative.

Spoilers ahoy!!This is a great story that it feels like Twilight drew inspiration from, but the vampire is the baddie. Oops—is that a spoiler? I mean, c’mon, Vincent is a creepy, sauve, thirty five year old interested in a 16 year old. Obvious to the reader (well, as an adult), no well-intentioned adult male is going to take an interest in a 16 year old, but I remember being a tween and early teenager and wanting adult attention. At 16 it’s so easy to convince yourself you’re in love and really mean it (that’s the curse of teenage emotions).Cynda is so typical in so many ways that I think she’s a relatable character. Getting Todd involved in the whole thing was a touch of how nasty Vincent really is. And poor Will, who doesn’t mean anyone any harm...I liked the ghosts thrown into the mix as well.

I've loved Mary Downing Hahn's books since I was 10 years old, so when I spied this one on my school book shelf when I was 12 I immediately checked it out and began reading. At that age, I actually became a bit freaked out as the story deals with a young woman being slowly killed by a vampire but because of the hold he has on her, she physically cannnot tell anyone what he's doing to her. I actually had to put the book down and revisit it when I was 13 and could handle the content a bit more, but that was just me, I'm sure others would be able to handle it better! Regardless, this instantly became one of my favorite books for it's interesting plot, lovely writing and twinges of supernatural and ghostly beings. I'd recommend this book to anyone who likes a ghost and vampire stories as even adults can enjoy this book, but to put an age on it, I'd recommend perhaps ages 12 to 18. I reread the book at the age of 17 and I still loved it so I think it would be good for anyone who likes this type of darker tale.

I loved this book as a kid and my sister use to read this story to us a little at a time during stormy days or days when we had to hide from my mom. So I knew I had to get this book no matter what, and let me tell you how hard it was to find this book. I am so happy to have finally found it after all that time

I love this novel. Great writing. Page turner.

So incredible, I've read it 3 times.

I read this book in a couple of hours. It was so well written I could hardly put it down! I think this is a very believable book - the way the children were enticed and tricked. Of course vampires are not real but it is easy to see how someone as charming as Vincent could charm and manipulate others. I think you could either be surprised or annoyed by the outcome. The characters had depth and seemed real. I think this is more like what Twilight should have been. Well worth reading.

As described

LOOK FOR ME BY MOONLIGHT is a brilliantly dark, sensual short story aimed for young adult readers. It tells the story of Cynda, a 16 year old who is sent to stay with her father and his new family in their secluded inn in Maine. As she tries to reconnect with her father, she cannot help but feel left out from his new family unit. It seems that the only person to understand her is a strange and very attractive man who becomes their guest, Vincent Morthanos. Older than Cynda and chanrming, Cynda quickly finds herself falling in love with the mysterious Vincent. But he is not all he seems to be, and there is a history to the remote inn - a history that is in danger of repeating itself...This book is excellently written. The prose is quite beautiful. Downing Hahn has done a superb job at creating just the right atmosphere - the descriptions of the snowy landscape and the freezing cold ocean which lies near the inn are brilliant at bringing their world more to life. Never before have I been scared of a snowman!!!!At just under 200 pages long, although LOOK FOR ME BY MOONLIGHT doesn't break any boundaries in regards to the genre, it certainly is good enough to keep you riveted and to cause a few shivers to creep their way up your spine.