A Bite of Pepper

Skateboarding teenage vampire Pepper is uninterested in choosing a bride for her turning, a required vampiric ritual for becoming an immortal being. Forced to attend a vampire ball with her meddling mother and conniving younger brother Jeb, Pepper intervenes as Jeb mesmerizes Ana, a human waitress and art student. Fleeing the ball together, Pepper shares with Ana the details of the ritual, and how a young vampire must turn a human in order to become a true creature of the night. Pepper’s mother then hires Ana to work in the family’s antiquarian bookstore, hoping to encourage Ana and Pepper’s continued friendship. Ana’s sketches of Pepper skateboarding captivate both Ana’s art teacher and Jeb, who, sensing a money-making opportunity, thrusts himself into Ana and Pepper’s budding relationship. As Pepper settles into her role as Ana’s muse, she struggles with her romantic feelings for the human. Lorinczi (Wolfpitch) deploys heavy black inks to conjure a fitting, noir-like atmosphere that’s levied by pink accents that accentuate coming-of-age plot points and sweet depictions of a self-conscious teen’s foray into all-encompassing first love. Ages 14–up. Agent: Brent Taylor, Triada US. (Aug.)