Release date: 14th August 2025
My Big Fat Vampire Wedding is a supernatural romance based on the pretend marriage trope. It follows Pandora, a ‘modern’ vampire who doesn’t drink from humans and works at an all night coffee shop. Her parents won’t release her 125th birthday money unless she gets married. Cue Victor, the PhD student Pandora has a huge crush on, and an elaborate fake marriage scheme where naturally, the two fall head over heels.
My favourite part of this novel is the vampire family and Gadziala has had a lot of fun with them! They are eccentric and varied, more over the top than most writers could get away with and yet despite the caricature, it’s weirdly believable (in as much as a vampire novel can be). We all have that uncle who dresses oddly and an aunt with too many pets, right? I love that even the dogs and the birds have their own personalities which shine through and really make the book stand out.
The will they/won’t they between Pandora and Victor does get frustrating at times. Despite being 124, Pandora acts exactly like a teenage girl in her first relationship. I appreciate that the author wants her to remain relatable to teenagers but she could use some backstory. Why has she been single so long? With Hotel Transylvania, for example, they make a clear reason for Mabel’s dad to baby her. My Big Fat Vampire Wedding doesn’t offer any kind of explanation.
Outside of that, the pacing is spot on. The descriptions are fabulous and the relationships feel genuine. I would have appreciated more depth to the antagonist of the piece, Pandora’s cousin. She currently does everything to split up the happy couple seemingly because she’s a natural villain with no redeeming qualities. It’s written as a long standing feud but I would have appreciated some personality outside of ‘awful singer’. Considering the absurd nature of many elements already, a light-hearted comedic reason would have worked fine – think Debbie in the Addams Family Values, “all I ever wanted was a Ballerina Barbie”.
Things end well and the humour throughout makes it a fun, light-hearted romance which is perfect for a summer holiday release. Overall, I really enjoyed this and can’t wait for more from Jessica Gadziala!
| Criteria | Scores | Our Score |
|---|---|---|
| Artistic Achievement | 1-5 | 4 |
| Pacing | 1-5 | 5 |
| Characters | 1-5 | 4 |
| Writing Style | 1-5 | 4 |
| Originality | 1-5 | 4 |
Final Grade
B
Written By: ivetafox
Favourite Game – Long Live the Queen || Favourite Film – Sweeney Todd || Favourite Book – Wuthering Heights
About: Ivy is a disabled, autistic writer from the UK, passionate about inclusive gaming. When not reviewing, she can be found writing short stories and micro fiction or reading the latest gothic novel.
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