Kevin the vampire is part of a travelling carnival. They are on their way to Monstros City but run out of gold and stop in Lower Drudging instead to get to work setting up the carnival for the town.

It is a well written, fast paced story with beautiful illustrations. It can be quite spooky in parts which created the perfect atmosphere. There are monster fact files at the end of some chapters which were a great added addition. There is a miserable mayor, horrid aunts and various memorably characters throughout. The story is about working together, accepting others and friendship.

Bea & I have been reading the finished copy as a bedtime story and she loves the characters...could not get over the mean humans though!

I loved this story about Kevin the Vampire and the Carnival filled with amazing acts. It a brilliantly funny book about friendship, accepting others and working together. I will be looking out for the next book in the series.

A wonderful story ! It's quite spooky and perfect for halloween and fans of Laura Ellen Anderson "Amelia Fang" serie !
Loved the intrigue and characters so much. It's perfect for children (and grown-ups too haha) who want a fast read.
The illustrations are great too and give a real plus to the story.

We are big fans of Flavia Sorrentino's cover art and this brightly-coloured number drew us in like a vampire is drawn to blood. Except for Kevin, that is. Kevin is not your average bloodsucking vampire. His family run a carnival and it's Kevin's dream to be a dragon rider like Gogmagog. But an unexpected adventure is about to befall him...

Kevin and his family are on the way to Monstros City. But when their Batnav goes wrong, they end up in a human town called Lower Drudging. In desperate need of gold to continue their journey, they decide to put on a show for the locals. But humans from Lower Drudging don't want anything to do with monsters and, besides, they might be hiding a monster secret of their own...

Full of great world-building, fun and charm, this, for me, has a Roald Dahl vibe to it. With horrible aunts, a miserable mayor and a cast of unusual and memorable characters, it is a high-stakes, fast-paced adventure that will readers of all ages can enjoy. Other comparisons include Vlad the World's Worst Vampire and The Addams Family, making it a book that is perfect for the spooky season but which can also be enjoyed all year round.

Matt Brown has created some lovely twists that set this story apart from other vampire stories. Kevin is able to enjoy daylight, for example, and although his family have little experience of humans, they are excited to meet them (although, unfortunately, the humans don't feel the same way.) Kevin and Susie are great characters and I liked the way the narrative switched between their two stories. This enabled the pace to stay strong and made the climax of the story more satisfying, as we were invested in both characters. There's some great little fact-files to break up the chapters and lots of scope for future adventures.

So, if you're looking for a fun, light-hearted and spooktacular new series to get hooked on, this is definitely worth a read.

This is the first book in what I think promises to become a well-loved favourite of children, parents and teachers alike.
Meet Frankie Aurelius, a young vampire whose family run Carnival Monstromo, featuring a variety of weird and wonderful creatures. When their Batnav fails and leaves them stranded in Lower Drudging, they decide to put on a show for the humans there. But the people of Lower Drudging do not like fun. They do not like noise. Living in the shadow of Cold Mountain, home to evil The You Know What, they know that a quiet town is a safe town. Only Susie, the orphaned niece of aunts Vilieous and Dingy, is excited about the show and willing to give the new arrivals a chance.
This hilarious tale of friendship, with its message of tolerance and acceptance, is the perfect read-aloud for 6-10 year olds. Get your voices ready for this colourful cast of characters.
With names such as Gladys Nightpips, Dr Frankie Stein and a supermarket advertising Very Little Helps, adults will also appreciate the humour.
This will be a sure fire hit for anyone who has read and enjoyed The Nothing to See Hotel series and what could be better than a book of vampires, werewolves and ogres in time for Halloween.

This book had us at the cover illustration and did not disappoint. Kevin is a great character and we loved following him on his father unexpected adventure. Are there more books in the pipeline ? Please...

Kevin is a friendless vampire, tormented by older siblings, who hasn't yet mastered the skill of bat-transformation. He helps out in his parents' monster carnival, and when it accidentally ends up in Lower Drudging, a human town, it is Kevin's idea to put on a show for the humans. Meanwhile in Lower Drudging, where fun is banned, Susie Cabbage spends time when she is not a school waiting on her aunts hand and foot (literally - applying verruca cream yuk!). When the monster carnival wakes up the town's monster, it's up to Kevin and Susan to save the day.
This is a fun, light-hearted story for younger readers. The humour is a little juvenile, based in part on silly names, stinky animals and an incident or two that grossed me out but which are sure to go down well with its target audience.
If this type of humour appeals, this is a good story to pick as the premise is good, the theme of not judging by appearances works well, the protagonists are likeable, and who doesn't like a dragon and vampire story?
It's also illustrated, and monster fact sheets are dotted through the story which are always fun.
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What a brilliant read for children! Following Kevin, we discover what life is like for him as part of a travelling show. The twist? Kevin is a vampire and the travelling show is full of monsters who perform! The humour and creativity in this story would easily engage readers, bringing in lots of elements that children find funny and want more of. As you read through, there are lots of lovely illustrations to help bring the story to life and support younger readers, especially as there are many strange a wonderful creatures that they may not have encountered before. Another nice feature of the story is the addition of the ‘Monster Fact File’ at the end of chapters to give more information about the creatures that have been introduced in the story. There are lots of wordplay and puns in the story, which I greatly appreciated - the monster alphabet did make me chuckle too - it’s very well thought out and witty.
The theme of friendship and not judging others runs throughout this story subtly and is actively encouraged by the main characters - a great moral for children!
I would definitely recommend this to pupils that I work with and will look out for more books in this series!

Thank you to NetGalley, Matt Brown and Nosy Crow for an ARC of this story in exchange for my honest review.

Kevin the vampire is part of a travelling carnival. When they run out of gold, they stop in Lower Drudging to put on the carnival for the town.
Susie lives in Lower Drudging with her terrible aunts, allowed no fun at all. The town is terrified of the You-Know-What returning. What will happen when the carnival comes to town?

I read this to my 6 year old (almost 7) and he absolutely loved it. We read it as a bedtime story with 2 (or 3 or 4) chapters at a time. Before the end of chapter 2, he'd asked if we could buy the book when it's published and by the middle of the book, he wanted to know if there were more Kevin stories. He had a lot of fun guessing what the You-Know-What is and was very pleased when he got it right!

I also loved the book (and genuinely had to stop myself from reading ahead to find out what the You-Know-What is). It's a lovely story, well written and the illustrations add to the story (probably better in print when you can see the illustrations across both pages).
The monster fact files at the end of relevant chapters were a great touch, adding extra information to the story.

We'll be buying a physical copy and looking out for more Kevin the vampire stories as they're published.

Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for an advanced ebook copy in exchange for an honest review.

I have to mention the layout, even though I read this in digital form the word and line spacing was a great sight, it's inviting rather than daunting, the mix between lower case and upper case , bold and regular, gives extra interest in a sort of Tom Gates, L Pichen style which is great for children of varying abilities as well as varying interest levels.

The black and white Flavia Sorrentino illustrations have a quirky softness giving the text further meaning and having a point of interest for those that may not picture things as they read them... again, adding another level of accessibility.

As a true advocate for reading for enjoyment I believe there is a book for everyone, as I read this other authors and book series and even TV shows and films came to mind, which is great when wanting to recommend this book based on previous enjoyment or books that follow after enjoying this one
- Roald dahl
- How to Train a Dragon
- Harry Potter
- Fantastic Beasts
- Hotel Transylvania
- Dr Who
- Lord of the rings
- The Hobbit
To name just a few that popped in my head while reading this.

The gross humour, tangent narration, fact files and monsters a plenty made me think of many children I would recommend this to, across both year 3 (7-8 years) and year 4 (8-9years), fearless children and pesky adults, believing in yourself, following your dreams, making friends, suspense building,
What more could you ask for... maybe some meatball spaghetti smothered in apple sauce or as a human, maybe toenails on toast would suit you better.

**Possible spoilers ahead**
Following Kevin's story and Susie's alongside makes you want to route for them, you want Susie to join the wonderful monsters and escape those that lurk in the normality or humanity, and waiting for Kevin to embrace his form and find a way to shine, he may be a natural at languages but it's clear he's a true dragon whisperer, he shouldn't have to wait over 300 years for his dreams to come true because of a silly rule.

I have mixed feelings about this. The idea of vampires acting like a little boy is surely going to be hit among children, so are some of the jokes there. Maybe it is my old age but I personally do not find it funny.

Kevin Aurelius is almost eleven, not a great age for a vampire, and can't quite turn himself into a bat just yet! He is quite lonely too, his brother, sister, mum and dad all take part in the Carnival Monstromo but he's not old enough to ride the dragon Branwen which is what he really wants to do.

Although she doesn't know it Susie Cabbage is the same age as Kevin. She lives in Lower Drudging which is as dreary as it sounds! Brought up by her aunts, Susie lives a quiet life - everyone in Lower Drudging lives a quiet life because when they don't there are consequences!

When circumstances mean the Carnival and the inhabitants of Lower Drudging become neighbours it isn't long before things begin to go wrong. Can new friends, Kevin and Susie work together to prevent a disaster or is history about to repeat itself?

Matt Brown's new series is aimed at 7/10 year olds and should be a rip-roaring success. As an adult (yes, really) I found it a fun if little formulaic read but it wasn't written for me! I have no doubt my grandchildren will love all the jokes, silliness, and disgusting habits of quite a few of the creatures humans have never come across before. Susie's story, not unlike Cinderella's in places is also enjoyable and I have a feeling there is more to her than meets the eye!

I was able to read an advanced copy of this book thanks to NetGalley and the publishers, Nosy Crow, but the opinions expressed are my own. I am looking forward to sharing this and think it will appeal to confident and reluctant readers alike.