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Cover of Blood is the new black
Book details

Blood is the new black

a novel

by Valerie Stivers

Published 2007293 pagesISBN 978-0-3073-5213-2

When nice-girl Kate McGraw finds herself working at Tasty, a magazine with its finger on the pulse of modern style, she's finally able to put her flair for fashion to good use. But can she keep up with the Tasty staffers? Ethereally beautiful and extremely emaciated, they stay out all night, never look the worse for wear, and are always dressed to kill.Like everyone else around the office, Kate finds herself begrudgingly reading dispatches from a snarky industry blog that dubs her colleagues "bloodthirsty vamps." She knows they don't mean it literally, but . . . she's heard whispers of "fashion murders" and she has noticed strange things around the office: Like, why doesn't her boss get laminates to fix her sharp teeth? Why are the blinds always drawn, and why is there a no-garlic policy in the cafeteria? As well-dressed bodies begin to pile up near all the hot places, Kate has to wonder if there's a serial killer loose with a grudge against the stylish. Or if the truth is even more sinister: Are Kate's coworkers actually undead? And, if so, can she design an exit strategy before she finds herself at Tasty forever?From the Trade Paperback edition.

Beyond its central premise, the book can be read through the connected lenses of Fiction. Those themes offer useful points of attention as the characters, ideas, or world develop, especially where the book complicates the expectations of its primary category.

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Full BookenDeX details

What the reading experience may hold

A fuller profile for choosing with more confidence—not just another copy of the preview.

Themes to notice

Fiction

Use these as starting points rather than limits; the most memorable books often stretch beyond their catalog labels.

Content notes

Catalog signals suggest violence, death, or criminal harm. These notes may not be complete; consult a publisher or reader-supplied guide when detailed warnings matter.

These notes are inferred from available catalog information and may not be complete. Check a publisher or reader-supplied guide if you need comprehensive warnings.

Reading experience

Balanced tone · Steady pace

A comfortable full-length choice for steady daily reading.

Who it may suit

A good fit if…

Readers who want a thoughtful experience and enjoy noticing the connections beneath a book’s surface story.

At a glance

This book's DNA

A visual estimate based on this edition's categories, description, and length. Select a star to explore the signals.

ToneBalanced
LuminousDark

This signal is descriptive, not a rating. It helps compare the kind of reading experience this edition may offer.

No plot details

Spoiler-Free Emotional Arc

A broad estimate of the book’s emotional rhythm, shown without story events or outcomes.

Spoiler-free
12345
PeakRelative emotional intensity
Blood is the new blackValerie Stivers
Heightened4.1/5

This visualization is an interpretive estimate based on catalog description, categories, tone, pace, and content signals. It does not describe specific scenes.

Before you choose

A quick reading snapshot

Edition facts and catalog signals to help you decide whether this book fits what you want to read next.

Reading lengthA standard-length read293 pages in this edition
Publication eraModernFirst published or edition dated 2007
Primary categoryFictionExplore similar books below
ISBN-13
978-0-3073-5213-2
Language
English
Edition record
OL18524710M
BookenDeX editorial lens

A more thoughtful way into this book

This guide uses the edition details and category signals above to help you choose deliberately. It does not replace the author's work or a full review.

Good to know

A comfortable full-length choice for steady daily reading.

Begin with its place in Fiction, then notice where the book resists that label.

Try this reading approach

Read for connection, not completion.

Mark one passage that sharpens the book's central concern and one that complicates it. That tension often reveals more than a quick summary.

Three questions to carry with you

  1. What does the central character want, and what do they misunderstand about that desire?
  2. Which detail or relationship changes how you interpret the story?
  3. What feeling or question does the book leave with you after the plot moves on?

Editorial framework by Wesley Bryan, BookenDeX Founder and Editor.