Tantalize

Present-day Austin, Texas, is a hotbed of vampires and werewolves in Cynthia Leitich Smith's fantasy (Candlewick Press, 2007). The parents of 17-year-old Quincie Morris, who narrates the tale, died three years earlier in a car crash, leaving her to live with her Uncle Davidson, with whom she co-manages the family restaurant, Sanguini's. A few weeks before the re-opening of the vampire-themed restaurant, the chef is mauled to death. They scramble to find a new chef, hiring the talented but quirky Henry Johnson who prods Quincie into drinking wine, skipping school, and discovering her sensuality. At the same time, Quincie's half-werewolf best friend and long-time crush, Kieran, under suspicion by the police for murdering the chef, reveals that he will be leaving Austin to join a pack of werewolves. There are more murders and, as Henry's and her uncle's behavior becomes increasingly bizarre, Quincie starts to fear for her life as well as Kiernan's. Although listeners will be intrigued by the vampire lore and the life and death ending, they may find the plot development at the beginning of the story a bit plodding. Kim Mai Guest voices Quincie in an expressive, young voice and handles all of the other characters equally well. This audiobook is for mature young adults who are vampire aficionados.