Junior high really stinks for thirteen-year-old Vladimir Tod Bullies harass him, the principal is dogging him, and the girl he likes prefers his best friend And Vlad has a secret his mother was human, but his father was a vampire With no idea of the extent of his powers and no one to teach him, Vlad struggles daily with his blood cravings and his enlarged fangs When a strange substitute teacher begins to question him a little too closely, Vlad worries that his cover is about to be blown But then he realises he has a much bigger problem he's being hunted by a vampire killer who is closing in fast