City of Ashes

Clary Fray just wishes that her life would go back to normal. But what's normal when you're a demon-slaying Shadowhunter, your mother is in a magically induced coma, and you can suddenly see Downworlders like werewolves, vampires, and faeries? If Clary left the world of the Shadowhunters behind, it would mean more time with her best friend, Simon, who's becoming more than a friend. But the Shadowhunting world isn't ready to let her go -- especially her handsome, infuriating, newfound brother,...

Part of the Mortal Instruments series
City of Bone
City of Ashes
City of Glass

Untamed by P.C. Cast

Zoey Redbird is attending the House of NIght which is a training school for vampyres in Tulsa, Oklahoma. She has found that she has special powers and an affinity for all five elements - air, water, fire, earth, and spirit. When Zoey's friends begin dying and returning as Undead, Zoey along with her friends, Aphrodite and Stevie Rae, must confront Neferet, the High Priestess, who wants to start a war between the vampyres and humans.

Marked by P.C. Cast

Zoey Redbird Montgomery is marked by a vampyre tracker and must go to the House of Night, a vampyre finishing school in Tulsa, Oklahoma where she will learn to become a vampyre. There she meets Neferet, the High Priestess; Stevie Rae Johnson, her new roommate; Erin and Shaunee who act like twins; Damien, who is gay; Aphrodite, the school queen bee and head of the Dark Daughters Society; Erik the new love interest. Zoey learns that she has extraordinary powers and pits herself against Aphrodite. With the help of her friends, she takes over as leader of the Dark Daughters and begins her training for High Priestess.

This reminded me of the Harry Potter series for vampires. She goes off to a special boarding school, meets new friends, separates from her parents, takes special classes, has more powers than the ordinary fledgling, must overcome the evil student who is in charge. Not very well written. The author's daughter helped write the book so that the dialogue would be true to the way teenagers talk. It is, but it will be quickly dated because of all of the slang used. This is the first in the House of Night series. Some sexual activity and profanity but not too bad.

The Graveyard Book by Neil Gaiman

Winner of the Newbery Award 2009. As a toddler, Bod's entire family is murdered. He wanders out of the house and escapes. He ends up in a nearby graveyard where he is adopted and protected by the ghosts and witches buried there. He is adopted by a husband and wife ghost who always wanted to have children. A vampire becomes his guardian and a werewolf his tutor. He is educated by the entire graveyard and learns the ways of the dead. He meets only one other human, a girl named Scarlett, who becomes his friend. He is captured by ghouls and makes friends with a witch. As he gets older, he wants to attend school, but finds that his life is in danger. The man Jack who killed his family is still after him. Eventually, Jack finds him and tracks him to the graveyard where the ghosts and witches help him to destroy Jack and his friends. When he becomes 15, he loses his powers to converse with the dead and enters the world of the living.