'The best books, reviewed with insight and charm, but without compromise.'
- author Jackie French

Tuesday 21 November 2023

Review: Solomon Macaroni and the Vampire Vacation

Solomon Macaroni and his mischievous cousins are off to Paris in book 2 of this great middle grade series.

And even though Uncle Dracula planned the whole trip and so many fun activities across the city, he seems distracted and a little bit sad.

Solomon and his cousins decide to cheer him up by gifting him a very special piece of art – the Mona Lisa. But stealing art has consequences, and stealing this particular piece of art has DIRE ones, not just for Solomon and his cousins, but for Uncle Dracula, the people of Paris and also the entire world.

Because stealing the painting leads to magic returning to Paris, which means vampire powers return along with vampire tastes. Witches, werewolves, skeletons — they’re all back. And now they’re all making mischief and plotting no-good things across the city.

It’s up to Solomon and his favourite cousin Lucy to make things right (because his other naughty cousins are having too much fun). But to do it, they’re going to need to unlock clues to solve an old mystery, all whilst keeping Uncle Dracula from drinking human blood.

Vampire Vacation is a fast-paced action-packed ride with loads of twists and turns and mysteries to solve. It packs in real history sliced with fantasy-fuelled make believe, bringing fun and hilarious chaos to the story.

The concept of this series is such a fun one — vampires and other beastly creatures are real, but without magic in the world anymore they don’t have their powers and are basically like you and me (until they're not!). It’s a fun new way to explore fantasy creatures in storytelling and sets up so much fun and calamity for these books.

If you’re a middle grade fan and you love fun, funny, and action-packed fantasy adventures, Solomon Macaroni is for you.


Title: Solomon Macaroni and the Vampire Vacation 
Author: Ashleigh Barton
Publisher: UQP, $16.99
Publication Date: 3 October 2023
Format: Paperback
ISBN: 9780702266300
For ages: 8 - 13
Type: Middle Grade Fiction