Zoe spends a lot of her time alone due to her mother being in the hospital and her dad spending time with her mom or trying to catch up on work when he's not dutifully at her hospital bedside. consequently, Zoe is rather withdrawn, doesn't eat much, and begins to feel pretty sorry for herself. and her best friend, Lorraine, has no idea how to talk to Zoe about her mom (she's got her own mom issues) and is having a hard time moving away anyhow. there is just no one there to comfort Zoe...until Simon.
Simon is a vampire who is on the trail of a vicious killing vampire in the neighborhood and stumbles upon Zoe one night at the park. naturally, he is captivated by her beauty and the compassion he sees in her eyes. so he stalks her (yeah, a bit creepy and romantic in a vampire-y sort of way) and begins to share his world, and his history, with her.
i was surprised at how much of the story was about Zoe dealing with her mom's cancer, though it definitely fit with the rest of the story. the alternating chapters between Zoe and Simon provided insight into both worlds, as well as an examination of their character from an outside and inner point of view. there is minimal explanation for the origin of Simon, but as mentioned, about half the book is about Zoe and her mom's situation, so it fit well.
Klause does a nice job of balancing the realistic hurt that Zoe, her mom, and her dad are feeling with the supernatural hurt of Simon and his situation. ultimately, Zoe was able to feel comfort from someone who shared her pain (though in a much different way) and got her first real kiss as an added bonus. it was a quick read, but a very very good one. i'll be reading this again!
fave quote: "Things changed, she realized. People grew, they moved, they died. Sometimes they withdrew into themselves, and sometimes they reached out after needing no one. She remembered Simon's clinging embrace. What would it be like if nothing changed? she wondered. It would be stagnant, she supposed: decadent, terrifying. But why did it have to be painful - all this change? Why did it mean losing people you love?" (192-193)
fix er up: really could have done without the over-mentioning that Zoe had big boobs. yes, seriously. it's mentioned at least 3 or 4 times - once by Zoe, twice by Simon (to himself), and once by her friend Lorraine. it just seemed random and a bizarre point to keep coming back to.
title: The Silver Kiss
author: Annette Curtis Klause
genre: Vampire, Coming of Age
gotta keep the teen-age boy fan base placated
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