Recommended for grade 8 and up
Tantalize is a delicious and thrilling dark fantasy. It was a page-turner that kept me glued to the book until the unexpected ending.
Quince Morris is a 17-year-old with a lot on her plate. Her parents have died, she’s living with her uncle, managing a restaurant and trying to keep it going all the while trying to get the guy she loves to see her as more than just a friend. Oh yeah and the boyfriend Kieran happens to be half-werewolf.
Adding to the things she has to deal with, Quince’s boyish uncle is remodeling the restaurant to have a vampire flare and flavor – they’ve renamed it Sanguini’s – A Very Rare Restaurant. He also has a very weird and vampire-obsessed girlfriend who is driving Quince crazy.
After the mysterious death of the chef, Kieran is a suspect, a new chef steps in and boy is he is creepy, with his red contacts and habit of always plying Quince with wine. His menu item – baby squirrels with honey sauce - totally creeped me out. Yech!
There’s good stuff here and it’s all original and different. Quince made a great narrator and character. The other characters were multi-dimensional and interesting. My only disappointment was that it ended. I smell sequel!
Article comments
1 - Noemi
I love this book, but I still not read...because is in english but I hope that will be released in spanish soon!!!
2 - Mackenzie
I read this book in like less than 5 days.. it kept me glued to it... i loved it but the ending wasn't exactly like i thought it would be... i hope there will be a second :)