"The Radleys" by Matt Haig

I seem to be falling into a pattern with my reading habits. It's either factual (popular science, economics, sociology) or it's horror. It's like the 17 year old Stephen King fan in me is fighting with the old man youth worker I am now. 

Anyway, this is another one of those 'clever twist on the vampire mythology' books that I seem to be a sucker for (pun intended).

The Radleys are a seemingly ordinary family living in a nice pleasant middle-class village. The parents try desperately to fit in with their peers through dinner parties, book groups and listening to Radio 4. Their teenage children are angsty misfits who are bullied, uncomfortable with opposite sex and dabble in poetry and veganism. So, just like every other family, right? Except of course, the Radleys are vampires - albeit Abstaining vampires.

In this mythology, it is possible for a vampire to survive by abstaining - those who have a conscience about killing to live, can choose to abstain. They'll spend the rest of their lives like an addict craving their next hit, they'll be weak and their lifespans will be terribly shortened - in other words, they'll be like most normal humans (or 'unbloods'). The sun doesn't kill them, but brings them out in a rash, and crucifixes do nothing. Garlic and stakes are still to be avoided though.

There are 2 things going on in this book. There is the story, and there is the METAPHOR. I use capitals deliberately.

The story is amusing and very easy to read - Haig writes very small chapters, making it easy to whizz through. He seems to have particular empathy with the teenage Radley children, giving them most of the emotional issues and danger. There are some clever bits - a specialist police force who negotiate with the vampire hirearchy on who they can arrest or not, and the constant referring to of who was a vampire through history (Hendrix, Byron etc).

Then there is the METAPHOR. Maybe I'm being unkind in suggesting it's a little heavy handed - I'm guessing he wasn't really trying to make a cutting social satire. But hey, no-one really feels like they fit in - we're all outsiders when you think about it, yeah? Especially teenagers - they all feel like outcasts. Uh-huh. I did enjoy the concept of an abstaining teenage vampire choosing to become vegan in an effort to stop animals running away from her though.

I believe the rights to it have been purchased by Alfonso Cuaron - who directed 'Children of Men' and one of the Harry Potter movies, and I imagine it'll make a fun film or mini tv series. I also note that when it was originally released, it was done so as adult fiction, but it's being repackaged as a 'young adult' novel now. I'm glad the copy I have has the 'adult' cover on it, so I don't feel like a nonce.