The Vanquishers, friends first, vamps second, but delivers some feels         

The Vanquishers has a great title. Its name alludes to a once great team of vampire slayers who were so successful that their prey is now extinct. However, much like Doc Brown in the very last minute of Back to the Future, “It’s your kids Marty”. Now it’s a couple of decades later, the vampire hunters are older, and have families and grandchildren of their own. It’s the families of the original Vanquishers that still keep an eye on the rearview mirror. It’s a book with more heart than vampire horror but will deliver for those mglit audiences that want more silly, than scary.

The cover of The Vanquishers projects exactly the vibe that the book is trying to tell. You see four tweens on bicycles, looking over their shoulders at something that’s chasing them. The top of the covers has four claws that are extending down, as it they’re the ones pursuing the kids. One of the kids is smiling, one is scared, another is eager to ride faster and the last youth is a mix of all of them.

Boog has grown up thinking of the original Vanquishers as her idols. Even though they saved the town from vampires a long time ago, her parents still hold onto the old ways. They don’t invite people into their homes, have an affinity towards lead being used in everyday objects, and so on. Her parents aren’t in the kooky fringe, but they do seem overbearing in regard to her parent’s friends.

She’s a typical middle school kid. Anyone over 25 is potentially weird and has ulterior motives, she gets in arguments with her friends, doesn’t listen to her parents all of the time, and has best friends. In The Vanquishers everything is going middle school awesome until a new employee shows up at school. Then, little things start to go sideways and one night after a party one of her friends doesn’t return home.

Aaron is a good kid, so when he goes missing everyone realizes that what was once gone, now might be back. These suspicions are realized when Boog hears someone tapping on her window, and her bedroom is on the second floor of the house. Can she, with the assistance of her friends, and maybe the original Vanquishers save him in time? And, what’s the reason for the possible resurgence of vampire activity-is it localized or is the threat aimed at a bigger target?

The Vanquishers is a pleasant read, with just enough action to keep mglit adventure readers hanging on. If you’re more of the relationship mglit reader this will be your jam. The characters are ones that middle school students will understand and roll their eyes at when they make the same mistakes that they do in real life. It’s the same as people talking to movie screens during horror movies. As a viewer or reader you know it’s a bad idea, but you know that the character is going to do it anyway.

There is a very strong family story that audiences will enjoy in the book. At the core, it’s the four friends as they try to figure out the mysterious happening, but as The Vanquishers comes into its own, generations of their families enter the fray.

One or two of the chapters in the book are too long and should’ve been divided up, and I would have personally liked more vampire action or mystery. However, these are small things that don’t take away from the mass appeal of the book for the most part. Towards the end of it, readers will suspect that it’s attempting to build a world that’s intended for additional books in the series. It ends with that suspicion being verified as the kids enter Vanquisher training. Again, it’s a pet peeve, but I prefer that world-building books to really wow me so I’m asking for more and really curious about what else exists for those characters. This is more of a soft entry that we hope improves when its sequel comes out, lest it be vanquished from libraries.

The Vanquishers is by Kalynn Bayron and is available on Bloomsbury Children’s Books, an imprint of Bloomsbury Publishing.

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