I received this book for free from Reviewer Purchase in exchange for an honest review. This does not affect my opinion of the book or the content of my review.

The pain was something Poppy couldn’t ignore. The diagnosis was death. There was no hope—until James appeared in the darkened hospital room.

James, her best friend and secret love, the most handsome boy in El Camino High. But this was a James she didn’t know, menacing yet irresistible as he offered Poppy the gift of eternal life.

Only he could open the door to the Night World, and spirit her into its lonely, secret universe.

One dizzying kiss and she can see into his soul. She finds that he has always loved her. They’re soul mates—but can she follow him into death and beyond? It’s a desperate choice, and Poppy’s time is running out . . .

Short and Sweet Review

Poppy was in pain and it was a pain she couldn’t ignore, which is how she found out she had a terminal cancer. Her best friend James comes to the hospital and offers her a way to live… as a vampire. Poppy can either die from cancer or live out the rest of her days as a vampire and leave her family behind.

Night World is the first book in the Night World Series and maybe you know this book as Secret Vampire. Poppy is a teen girl and she’s ready to have fun for the summer but when she ends up in the hospital and finds out that she has cancer all of her plans go down the drain. James and Poppy have been friends for a long time and when he tells her that he’s a vampire she doesn’t believe him but she does know he acts strange sometimes. When James proves that he’s not lying Poppy decides she wants to live as a vampire instead of dying from cancer, the only problem is Poppy’s brother Phil. After an altercation between James and Poppy she doesn’t want anything to do with him. James is a vampire which makes him apart of the Night World which is full of other paranormal beings. James isn’t allowed to be with Poppy because she’s human but he believes that she’s his soulmate which is something we’ll see a lot of in the other books. After Poppy and James reunite she ends up being taken away by Ash, James cousin. Ash taking Poppy away was a weird conflict but it did introduce us to a lot of the characters we’ll see in the future books which I did like. This book was written in the 90s and it definitely reads like it was. I like this series because its nostalgic to me since I read it back in middle school but the first book isn’t my favorite but I do like how it sets everything up for the rest of the series.

Overall, Night World (I still want to call it Secret Vampire) was a good start to the series. We learn about the Night World and the soulmate principle. Poppy’s story is all about facing the current challenge life is throwing at her and one revolving her love life. I did like how James and Poppy were the first ones to set off in hopes of trying to change the Night World’s strict rules about Night people and humans. I would recommend this book especially if you’re a fan of other paranormal books or L.J. Smith’s other work like The Vampire Diaries or The Secret Circle.