• Age: 10 to 18
• Grade: 5 to 12
• Reading age: 10 to 18

“LOL funny.” –Girls Life

A Huffington Post Best Children’s Book of 2018

A middle schooler comes head-to-head with his vampire slayer crush in this laugh-out-loud funny graphic novel that’s a perfect coming-of-age story for anyone who’s ever felt too young, too small, or too average.

It’s the beginning of the new school year and AJ feels like everyone is changing but him. He hasn’t grown or had any exciting summer adventures like his best friends have. He even has the same crush he’s harbored for years. So AJ decides to take matters into his own hands. But how could a girl like Nia Winters ever like plain vanilla AJ when she only has eyes for vampires?

When AJ and Nia are paired up for a group project on Transylvania, it may be AJ’s chance to win over Nia’s affection by dressing up like the vamp of her dreams. And soon enough he’s got more of Nia’s attention than he bargained for when he learns she’s a slayer.

Now AJ has to worry about self-preservation while also trying to save everyone he cares about from a real-life threat lurking in the shadows of Spoons Middle School.

Whitney Gardner is an author, illustrator, and cartoonist. She started drawing stick figures in second grade and somehow no one’s been able to stop her. If there’s ever a moment when she isn’t drawing, she’s likely to be found rolling twenty-sided dice. Her favorite color is yellow. She is the author of the YA novels You’re Welcome, Universe and Chaotic Good, as well as the creator of Fake Blood and Long Distance and the illustrator for Debbie Levy’s Becoming RBG and Stephanie Cooke’s The Racc Pack series.

Whitney Gardner's profile page

“Gardner’s artwork is whimsical and charming, and the cartoonish faces perfectly capture the extreme moods inherent in this age. Warm colours and dynamic shifts in visual perspective give Fake Blood an autumnal coziness that pulls the reader into each scene.

The story has a simple sweetness to it, championing family and friendship over hard-core action or fighting.”

Quill & Quire

"Gardner’s tale, which includes a share of lighthearted pokes at the Twilight series, is a fun romp through sixth grade."

Publishers Weekly

“Charming, hilarious, and full of vampires . . . my favorite kind of graphic novel!”

James Riley, New York Times bestselling author of Story Thieves

"Whitney Gardner puts an unexpected twist on the classic dilemma of how to be yourself. Full of cleverness, charm, and—most importantly—vampires, FAKE BLOOD gives readers a fresh new voice and a taste of something truly special."

Booki Vivat, the New York Times bestselling author and illustrator of FRAZZLED

"The dialogue and pop culture references in this graphic novel are LOL funny."

Girls Life

*"“[T]hink Raina Telgemeier with a Noelle Stevenson slant…Gardner's middle school romp is a magnum opus.”

Kirkus Reviews, starred review

“FAKE BLOOD is a sweet and funny book with a surprise ending and plenty of winks for lovers of vampire fiction — but more than that, it’s a story about trying on identities and learning to be comfortable with yourself.”

Molly Knox Ostertag, author-illustrator of The Witch Boy