Pretty Dead

By Francesca Lia Block

People pity me, but mostly they feel envy. I have all the luxury and freedom a girl my age could want.

Something is happening to Charlotte Emerson. Like the fires that are ravaging the hills of Los Angeles, it consumes her from the inside out. But whether it is her eternal loneliness, the memory of her brother, the return of her first love, or the brooding, magnetic Jared—she cannot say. What if it's something more . . .

Something to do with the sudden tear in her perfect nails. The heat she feels when she's with Jared. The blood rushing once again to her cheeks and throughout her veins.

For Charlotte is a vampire, witness to almost a century's worth of death and destruction. But not since she was a human girl has mortality touched her.

In what way will you be transformed?

Until now.

• Language: English
• Publisher: HarperCollins
• Release date: Sep 22, 2009
• ISBN: 9780061924118

Francesca Lia Block

Francesca Lia Block, winner of the prestigious Margaret A. Edwards Award, is the author of many acclaimed and bestselling books, including Weetzie Bat; the book collections Dangerous Angels: The Weetzie Bat Books and Roses and Bones: Myths, Tales, and Secrets; the illustrated novella House of Dolls; the vampire romance novel Pretty Dead; and the gothic werewolf novel The Frenzy. Her work is published around the world.

Reviews for Pretty Dead

[manka23 · Rating: 3 out of 5 stars]

The cover drew me in, even though I feel as if vampires have been overdone lately and far too often I find myself reading the same story with a different title. But this novel is eloquently written and not your run-of-the-mill teen vampire love story. Throughout the entire novel Charlotte's grief and depression can be felt. I find myself filled with sympathy for her loss. Otherwise the book falls emotionally flat.It is not often that you get to hear of a vampires past. Sure, they've lived 100 years, but what was the Holocaust like? In Pretty Dead Charlotte shares the horrors of the past with you. It sounds incredible to live for eternity, but this novel reminds you that humanity and love are more important. I do wish that there was more on the fact that Charlotte was a vampire. You could exchange the word vampire for immortal and you'd practically have the same story. Overall this one falls short for me.

[catfantastic_1 · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

Pretty Dead is a very beautiful little book. It's a young adult vampire story that portrays beauty and immortality as great catalysts for heartbreak and loneliness. Block makes use of the vampire's long life spans to dazzle the reader with descriptions of Paris, Rome, Manhattan and other great cities from the 1920's through to the 2000's, as seen through the eyes of an eternally teenaged girl. Her descriptions of food and fashions sparkle and captivate. "I am wearing a dress by Paul Poiret, a celery-green silk crepe sheath beaded with geometric gold and silver, a cloche hat and a gray coat with a fox-fur collar. Poiret, the emperor of fashion, has provided three decorative barges for the exposition, but after this he will fall into financial ruin. No more embellishments - roses everywhere, silver curlicues and swirls, crystal bottles with petal-shaped stoppers. His perfume line, Rosine, named after daughter, with fragrances called La Rose de Rosine, Pierrot, Fan Fan La Tulipe, Le Fruit Defendu and Nuit de Chine, will disappear from the market. He will die penniless in 1944, as out of fashion as the charming buildings all around us." (p. 104-105)Charlotte, the vampire protagonist, may live in a mansion filled with beautiful clothes and priceless antiques, but she is painfully aware of what she traded. Once she sweat and bled and cried, once her skin had imperfections, once she had dreams and visions and could paint and write poetry. Since becoming a vampire, Charlotte has been encased in a cold beautiful shell, unable to create anything or, she fears, truly feel anything except the loneliness. "When you become only art and not the artist, the girl in the shocking-pnk dress, what becomes of your soul?" (p.114)Charlotte is pursued by the vampire who transformed her, a man called William, who had been her lover for centuries - but her original obsession with, and devotion to, him have nearly destroyed her. At the same time, she finds herself in love with a human boy named Jared. Pretty Dead examines the double-edged blade of love and romance, revealing both its destructive and redemptive facets in a beautifully written and succinct novel.

[underwaterlily · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

Lush and lyrical. The blood imagery/the vampire lore is unique and seeps into my subconscious. (I dreamt about this book for weeks after I read it.)

[rosa.mill · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

Like most Francesca Lia Block books this book is all about ambiance. The prose makes it very easy to feel what the characters are feeling. Narration jumps around and various parts of the story are told by different people. It's a quick satisfying read that reminds me of the book Silver Kiss.

[booknerdreviews · Rating: 2 out of 5 stars]

I loved the concept of this book, but not really the excecution of it if I am honest.Not that it was written badly, because it really wasn’t. It just felt like it didn’t have a lot of passion put behind it, which as a reader you can tell straight away.I felt with more depth and detail the book actually has a lot of potenial. I really love the idea of having a female vampire who falls in love with a human guy. And I truly adored the idea of love bringing someone back from the dead – or the undead.Perhaps to summarise my rating I’ll put the pros and cons:Pros: The cover is magnificent.. it’s beautiful The characters themselves were actually really very interesting The story line itself was very cleverCons: The book was not long enough, and so being a short read didn’t allow me as the reader to really care about the characters, which is a shame because I wanted to love them The book has a lot of romance in it, but you don’t feel the tenderness behind it because the book doesn’t feel like it was written from a place of emotion, but rather fact.I wanted so badly to love this book, and I was so excited to read it. I just felt let down by it when I did read it. I should give it a 2 out fo 5, BUT in the interest of being fair, I did like aspects of it, and so I am bumping it to a 2.5 out of 5.I’d be interested to see if any of my readers have also read this book just to compare reviews or thoughts to! Feel free to let me know what you think in the comments below.

[lizard_698959 · Rating: 3 out of 5 stars]

This was more like a novella its almost 200 pages long and the words are large. I did enjoy the short escape it was quite a cute little book. This story could have been greatly added upon as there is so much to the back story we don't know. But it was a rather good short story. Its about a girl named Charlotte Emerson who is a Vampire and she just wants to be human. She ran away from her master who has now found her. Everything is sad and depressing only she wakes up one day and everything is different somehow she is starting to turn human how did this happen and will it stay. Also what will happen with her and Jared????

[titania86_1 · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

Charlotte Emerson seems to have it all. She has designer clothes, a gigantic mansion in LA, and more money than she could use in a lifetime. The only thing she doesn’t have is the thing she wants the most: to be human. She became a vampire a hundred years ago, just after her twin brother died, and she has regretted the decision ever since because of her empty, lonely existence. Recently, her only friend Emily killed herself, leaving Charlotte alone with her riches that provide little comfort. Emily’s boyfriend, Jared, starts to come around to find out about his girlfriend’s mysterious friend and Charlotte falls in love with him. As her love grows deeper, she discovers that her vampire perfection is slowly fading. She develops blemishes, sweats, and blushes, things she hasn’t been able to do since she became a vampire. However, their relationship isn’t enough for Jared. He wants more than anything to become a vampire. What is happening to Charlotte and can she convince Jared that with immortality comes unending suffering?I’ve been a fan of Francesca Lia Block’s for a long time and I’m pleased that she still writes awesome teen fiction. Her lyrical, poetic prose has always drawn me into her stories and made them memorable. I’ve reread some of my old favorites and I still enjoy them as an adult. I was a little surprised when I heard that she wrote a book about vampires. It seemed a little out of her normal range, but I don’t think it’s fair to fault an author for branching out. The novel turned out to be just as good as her others. The language she uses really lends itself to the vampire Charlotte, who has lived in hollow decadence for a century. Charlotte was my favorite character. I liked that as the story went on, there were flashbacks into her past to show how she was when she was human and when she first became a vampire. These interludes into the past just added to the story and gave Charlotte depth. Her transition of states of mind through each stage of her life was believable. As a human teenager, her happiness and idyllic life gave way to grief and suffering, leading her to want to escape by becoming a vampire. Although her existence seems enviable because of her eternal youth and wealth, it’s really an inferior existence to being human. Vampires are just glorified parasites and every painful memory still plagues her through her long life. She grows tired of feeding off of people and wants to life a peaceful life. I’m glad that Francesca Lia Block gave vampires her own unique twist. Although vampires are done to death now, Block manages to make an eternal being relatable to teens because of loneliness. I think everyone has been lonely at one time or another and everyone wants to experience love. Also, many think that material wealth can make them happy, but it’s really the relationships and our loved ones that make our lives rich. I would recommend this to fans of vampire novels and Block’s previous works.

[trishalynn0708 · Rating: 3 out of 5 stars]

I don't want to sound like a prude 22-year-old, but I am shocked this book is a young adult novel. It has a lot of sex in it and it has the F word in it quit a bit. I have to say that if I had a 14-year-old (Which is the age it says for readers, 14 & up) I don't think I would let her read this until she was at least 17 or older. Saying that I really enjoyed this book. It was well written and a very fast read. The book was all over, one second you would be in the present time and the next second you would be back in the day, before Charlotte became a vampire. I really like books like this. I know this is a messed up review. I start off dissing the book and then say that I love it. Not sure if that is what the author was going for or what. But I really did enjoy this book and do recommend it for adults or older teens.

[bookspot · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

It's hard to summarize Pretty Dead too much because not only is it short (208 pages) but much of what's in the summaries published on a lot of book sites, doesn't happen until the story really gets going. I mostly went into reading it knowing two things: Francesca Lia Block wrote a vampire book and my friend who's favorite writer is Block basically got the book in the mail and sat down and read it until she was done (and adored it). If you'd like a little more info (but not as much as Amazon has): Charlotte Emerson is tall, gorgeous and lives by herself in a mansion full of designer clothes, artifacts and furniture that nearly anyone would envy. In fact, that's her problem, that everyone envies her. She's been around nearly a century but she's incredibly lonely. She might have what any girl would want, but it also stops 'any girl' from ever being her friend, too. Except for one. Now, though Charlotte has to deal the loss of that one friend, the sudden feelings she has for a certain boy--feelings she hasn't had in years, and the changes she's experiencing (the tear in her nails, the blood suddently rushing to her cheeks again). Somethings happening to Charlotte, but what? Told in flashbacks that fill you in on Charlotte's one friendship and her life as a human and then the present where sophisticated, well dressed Charlotte's life just might be coming undone, Pretty Dead is super enjoyable. I can't think of anything to compare Pretty Dead to and though I want to say Charlotte might have been friends with someone from Buffy, I think that's actually wrong and some part of her and her life just reminds me of Drusilla (minus that craziness)...I might be super wrong on that, though, so don't let it put you off and just read the book? It does jump around a bit and a few times it was hard to figure out just what or who was being talked about (or doing the talking), so that's all I'd take off from the book for. 9/10

[ekanderson_1 · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

First and foremost, this is NOT another vampire novel. This is a love story, through a century of fashion, music, architecture, friendships and losses. This is a story of grieving, after the suicide of a young girl – the story of the vampire girl and the human boy who have survived her. This is a story of fear – fear of the unknown, of death, and of the people we cannot ever leave. Francesca Lia Block is as elegant and beautiful as ever in writing her take on the current vampire trend. And, you know what? It is ethereal and disorienting and nothing like anything else in the genre. Pick it up. Read it. Fall in love.

[kperry_64 · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

Charlotte seems to have it all. She lives in a lavish mansion, has clothes busting out of her closets, and no adult supervision. But, like usual, things aren’t always the way they seem. Charlotte is a vampire and longs for a friend. She thinks she has found the perfect girl to fill that role when she sees Emily in English class one day.Emily is a fragile thing with sad, dark secrets she’s only shared with Charlotte and Jared, her loving boyfriend. One evening, Emily sets wheels in motion that changes her and Charlotte’s life forever, without even knowing it, when she says the words, “Now I want to live forever. If I had one wish it would be to live forever with the one I love.”Charlotte’s past and present collide when her old love comes to town with plans of his own, but that might not be such a bad thing for Charlotte. She might finally get what she has been wanting for a long time.

[missdanaidae · Rating: 3 out of 5 stars]

Charlotte Has been a vampire for nearly a century. She has lived in major cities of Europe and Asia, always traveling in style. After the death of a friend, Charlotte finds her nails breaking, her skin breaking out, and taste for blood waning. Is she becoming human again or is something else at work?I have been in love with Francesca's writing since I was 15 so I always have high hopes for every book by her. I enjoyed Pretty Dead, but it left me with mixed feelings. The book starts off presenting Charlotte as a very strong woman. She's seen a lot of tragedy and fashion in her century of life, and she has gone from being controlled by her sire to being free. At least, as free as one can be when they label themselves "a monster." But this story isn't full of self-pity.What it is full of is mystery, romance, art, and forgiveness. Pretty Dead asks what meaning life has when you have it forever, and does anyone know if they really want mortality or immortality?The only part I didn't enjoy was the relationship between Charlotte and Jared. They talk so often about being in love, but it still felt like lust to me the entire time. I was willing to accept the fact that they wanted comfort after losing a mutual friend, but what is progressed to wasn't believable for me because they did not have a connection before the death. I have no problem with them lusting after each other, but I wish it hadn't been passed off as love since they are such different things.The end of Pretty Dead was satisfying. Francesca surprised me by taking her characters places I didn't think they would go, and it felt rewarding to see them battle for the lives they wanted, whether they be mortal or eternal. She shows that evil and goodness do not know gender or age.I recommend Pretty Dead to anyone looking for a quick vampire read. Francesca's work is poetic and enthralling.

[bookwhisperer · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

Pretty Dead was received as a review book from Harperteen. I was anxious to get a start on this book, and soon found that it was well worth the wait. The storyline of Pretty Dead was very similar to that of Anne Rice's Interview with a Vampire, portraying a young girl that was turned in a vampire to satisfy her masters companion desires. Life of luxury is easy to endure, unless terror and destruction follows in your wake. Over time Charlotte tires of pain and destruction and decides it is time to start new and alone. She soon settles into a life with mortals, and begins attending attending school with others that appear to be her age. When she meets Emily life begins to have a whole new outlook, and Charlotte finds unexpected companionship of her own. She learns to live vicariously through her best friend, but envy can be a dangerous thing in the hands of a monster. (Even a monster with a good heart is ultimately still a monster. ) As the reader we follow through this somber story of grief, love, and loss looking for a happy ending that Block successfully provides. All in all in the first couple chapters separate characters in separate times narrate the story leaving the reader a little confused, but ultimately curiosity propelled me forward in the story to unravel the complex storylines. Charlotte’s character is very loveable; her compassion for those she loves captures the readers attention. William on the other hand was easily disliked, and with little knowledge of the character was effectively made into the villain. I was startled by the Emily twist in the end of the story; this thickened the plot and was an excellent shift in the story. This was my first glance at any writing from Francesca Lia Block, and I am impressed by my experience. This author is very talented as an author, and at no point was her writing predictable. She surely has the wow factor that I love in books, and I look forward to reading more for her in the future.