Almost To Die For

Hallaway's witty, fast-paced series starter cheerfully details the horrors of magical war and high school life. Anastasija Ramses Parker is a modern-day witch's daughter, fond of wearing "black with black and black" but hopelessly unable to perform actual magic. When she flunks her coven's initiation ceremony, she learns that her father is a vampire—and not just any vampire, but a vampire leader, which makes her "some kind of vampire princess." Possibly more important, Ana's best friend, Bea, has a crush on vampire hunter/punk rocker Nikolai, who's torn between kissing and killing Ana, who thinks he's cute but wants to stay loyal to Bea. Ana's narration is pitch-perfect and totally teen: half calculated attitude, half wistful empathy. This all-too-brief tale will have readers hunting down Hallaway's Garnet Lacey novels while they wait for Ana's next adventure. (Aug.)