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Blood and Chocolate (novel)
Encyclopedia
Blood and Chocolate is a 1997 romantic
supernatural
werewolf
novel
for young adult readers
by Annette Curtis Klause
. It is set in the contemporary United States
.
with the power to shapeshift at will into wolf-like creatures, and the urge to transform becomes painfully irresistible with the coming of a full moon. Loups-garoux are portrayed as glorious beasts who revel in their dual nature, but do not reveal this truth to humans at the risk of violent backlash. In keeping with the traditional werewolf lore, silver
is poisonous when introduced into the bloodstream, oftentimes proving fatal, and death is a real danger in that "anything that will sever the spine will do".
Loup-garou is the French
word for "werewolf". Its plural form is loup-garous. A faux-French plural could be loups-garoux.
Then Vivian falls in love with a human, a "meat-boy". Aiden is kind and gentle, a welcome relief from the squabbling pack. He's fascinated by the supernatural or unknown, and Vivian longs to reveal herself to him. Surely he would understand her and delight in the wonder of her dual nature, not fear her as an ordinary human would.
Vivian's divided loyalties are strained further when a brutal murder threatens to expose the pack.
Romance novel
The romance novel is a literary genre developed in Western culture, mainly in English-speaking countries. Novels in this genre place their primary focus on the relationship and romantic love between two people, and must have an "emotionally satisfying and optimistic ending." Through the late...
supernatural
Supernatural
The supernatural or is that which is not subject to the laws of nature, or more figuratively, that which is said to exist above and beyond nature...
werewolf
Werewolf
A werewolf, also known as a lycanthrope , is a mythological or folkloric human with the ability to shapeshift into a wolf or an anthropomorphic wolf-like creature, either purposely or after being placed under a curse...
novel
Novel
A novel is a book of long narrative in literary prose. The genre has historical roots both in the fields of the medieval and early modern romance and in the tradition of the novella. The latter supplied the present generic term in the late 18th century....
for young adult readers
Young adult literature
Young-adult fiction or young adult literature , also juvenile fiction, is fiction written for, published for, or marketed to adolescents and young adults, roughly ages 14 to 21. The Young Adult Library Services of the American Library Association defines a young adult as "someone between the...
by Annette Curtis Klause
Annette Curtis Klause
Annette Curtis Klause is an American author and librarian, specializing in young adult fiction. Annette is currently a children's materials selector for Montgomery County Public Libraries in Montgomery County, Maryland. Born in Bristol, England, she now lives in Hyattsville, Maryland with her...
. It is set in the contemporary United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
.
The Loups-garoux
In Klause's novel, the loups-garoux are a separate species from humans, referring to themselves as Homo lupus. Legend states that their ancestors were humans blessed by the moon goddess SeleneSelene
In Greek mythology, Selene was an archaic lunar deity and the daughter of the Titans Hyperion and Theia. In Roman mythology, the moon goddess is called Luna, Latin for "moon"....
with the power to shapeshift at will into wolf-like creatures, and the urge to transform becomes painfully irresistible with the coming of a full moon. Loups-garoux are portrayed as glorious beasts who revel in their dual nature, but do not reveal this truth to humans at the risk of violent backlash. In keeping with the traditional werewolf lore, silver
Silver
Silver is a metallic chemical element with the chemical symbol Ag and atomic number 47. A soft, white, lustrous transition metal, it has the highest electrical conductivity of any element and the highest thermal conductivity of any metal...
is poisonous when introduced into the bloodstream, oftentimes proving fatal, and death is a real danger in that "anything that will sever the spine will do".
Loup-garou is the French
French language
French is a Romance language spoken as a first language in France, the Romandy region in Switzerland, Wallonia and Brussels in Belgium, Monaco, the regions of Quebec and Acadia in Canada, and by various communities elsewhere. Second-language speakers of French are distributed throughout many parts...
word for "werewolf". Its plural form is loup-garous. A faux-French plural could be loups-garoux.
Plot synopsis
Vivian Gandillon relishes the change, the sweet, fierce ache that carries her from girl to wolf. At sixteen, she is beautiful and strong, and all the young wolves are on her tail. But Vivian still grieves for her dead father; her pack remains leaderless and in disarray, and she feels lost in the suburbs of Maryland. She longs for a normal life. But what is normal for a werewolf?Then Vivian falls in love with a human, a "meat-boy". Aiden is kind and gentle, a welcome relief from the squabbling pack. He's fascinated by the supernatural or unknown, and Vivian longs to reveal herself to him. Surely he would understand her and delight in the wonder of her dual nature, not fear her as an ordinary human would.
Vivian's divided loyalties are strained further when a brutal murder threatens to expose the pack.