Serwa Boateng’s Guide to Vampire Hunting

Roseanna A. Brown's Serwa Boateng's Guide to Vampire Hunting is a funny, fast fantasy for 10 year olds about a girl who's been training to fight vampires since she was tiny.

What happens

Serwa's family hunt adze. These are vampires from Ghanaian stories, and they hide in plain sight as fireflies. Her mum is the best slayer in the world. Her dad is a brilliant fighter too, though he'd honestly rather be looking after his begonias.

It's Serwa's birthday week, and the family tradition says she can have whatever she wants for seven days. So she's allowed to train with a three-bladed throwing axe (just this once, Mum insists).

What she really wants is to take the Initiation Test and become a full slayer. Her parents say no. Not until she's eighteen.

Then a firefly by the lake starts to glow. And scream.

Within minutes their safe house is overrun. Three adze and a glamorous woman with blood-red eyes want something called the Midnight Drum. The woman seems to know Serwa's mum from a long time ago. And Serwa has never heard of any drum.

Serwa is SUCH fun to be around. She's cocky and loud, she makes jokes about Thor and IHOP, and she really, really wants to prove herself. Underneath it she's a bit lonely too (her only company is her parents and two small, smelly forest spirits).

You'll also pick up lots about Ghanaian culture along the way. There are Adinkra symbols that work as magic, Twi words, gods and jollof rice with bofrot for lunch.

The fights are properly fierce, which is worth a mention. Serwa's dad is badly hurt in the first attack. The adze drink blood and take over people's minds. And Serwa says she learned to tie a garrote at six! If your reader likes their monster battles with plenty of laughs in between, they'll love it.

What to read next

Want another story where a kid ends up fighting monsters alongside gods? Try Tristan Strong Punches a Hole in the Sky. Tristan sets off for his grandparents' farm with his best friend's glowing journal in his bag.