The Chronicles of Vladimir Tod

Everything About Fiction You Never Wanted to Know.

The Chronicles of Vladimir Tod is a five-book series by Heather Brewer. It is centralized around Vladimir Tod, a teenaged half vampire who was orphaned three years prior to the first book. A spinoff series The Slayer Chronicles came out September 20, 2011.

The books in this series are:

  1. Eighth Grade Bites
  2. Ninth Grade Slays
  3. Tenth Grade Bleeds
  4. Eleventh Grade Burns
  5. Twelfth Grade Kills
Tropes used in The Chronicles of Vladimir Tod include:
  • Aerith and Bob: This is especially noticeable with the vampire names. We have Tomas and Otis, and D'ablo, Cratus, Jasik, and Dorian.
  • Applied Phlebotinum: D'Ablo thought he could become the Pravus by extracting Vlad's Pravus powers and injecting them into himself. He attempted this at some point-- the powers were supposedly a tangible, fluorescent purple liquid. Vlad was able to break free, but in the process broke the syringe and spilled his Pravus powers all over the floor, therefore losing them.
  • Back From the Dead: Tomas Tod
  • Betty and Veronica: Vlad being Betty and Joss being Veronica, fighting for Meredith's affection.
    • For a little while there, Snow was Betty, and Meredith was Veronica, fighting for Vlad's affection.
  • Big Bad: Several throughout the series, though D'Ablo is one of the leading causes in all of the books until he dies in book five. After that, the Big Bad is revealed to have been Tomas Tod the whole time.
  • Character Title: Guess who the main character is?
  • Chosen One: Vlad is thought to be the subject of a huge Elysian prophecy because he is the first ever vampire to be born instead of made.
    • Turns out, he really is the Pravus. Not that you didn't already know by book three.
  • Cypher Language: In Tenth Grade Bleeds we get a full translation of Elysian code which turns out to be English letters substituted with slashes and dashes encased in parentheses (or Teneo indicators). This adds a layer of humor to Otis's comment that a human would find the elegant script impossible to understand. It is also mentioned that a vampire's mark is a jumbling of their initials in Elysian Code, and their mark is as unique as a fingerprint.
    • For Repetitive Names and initials, like Otis Otis and Tomas Tod, the vampire's mark could simply be that letter of the alphabet in Elysian Code.
  • Death Row: At the end of Eleventh Grade Burns Vlad is given one week to live before he is to be put to death for disfiguring D'Ablo.
  • Dhampir: Vlad
  • Dogged Nice Guy: Vlad could be considered a Type 2 towards Meredith, and Snow could be considered a Type 1 towards Vlad.
  • Dysfunctional Family: Vlad's uncle is in love with his "Aunt" Nelly (who actually was just a really close family friend), Vlad's grandfather tries to kill him, and his father faked his own death.
  • Eerie Pale-Skinned Brunette: Vlad, Snow, and pretty much all of the Goths.
  • Et Tu, Brute?: Vlad to Joss in Tenth Grade Bleeds. Though the words are never actually said in the context of the story, one of the chapter titles is Et Tu, Joss?
  • Evil Mentor
  • Evil All Along:In the last book we find out that Tomas created Vlad so that he could take his powers and become the Pravus, and Vikas had been helping him the entire time.
  • Evil Plan / Xanatos Roulette: Vlad's entire existence was Tomas Tod's plan all along...
  • Exactly What It Says on the Tin: It's a series chronicling the life of a boy named Vladimir Tod.
  • Face Heel Turn: Vikas and Tomas.
  • Faking the Dead: Vlad's dad.
    • Also, to a lesser extent, D'Ablo.
  • Fictional Document: The Compendium of Conscientia.
  • Foe Yay: Eddie Poe and Vlad in Twelfth Grade Kills might be considered this. I mean, come on.
    • Don't forget Joss and Vlad! I mean, he made a whole Heel Face Turn, betrayed his previous views on vampires that he'd held dear for a significant part of his life, and turned his back on the Slayer Society (who, mind you, could easily dispose of him at any time) just because he "missed" being Vlad's "friend"? There's got to be more to that.
    • Not to mention how half of "Eleventh Grade Burns" is Vlad crying about how they need to be friends again! He talked about losing Joss more than Meridith!
  • For Halloween I Am Going as Myself: For Halloween in Eight Grade Bites, Vlad wears plastic fangs and a black cape.
  • Half-Human Hybrid: Vlad, half human, half vampire.
  • Handsome Lech: Henry.
  • Heterosexual Life Partners: Vlad and Henry, all the way.
  • High School: Obviously
  • High School Dance: A few, but most noticably, the Snow Ball.
  • Honorary Uncle: Though, in this case, it's an Honorary Aunt. Aunt Nelly isn't technically related to Vlad's mom, Melina, but was as close as a sister, and therefor gets the honorary familial title.
    • Otis is technically not Vlad's real uncle, as he is only Tomas' "brother" through vampiric ties.
  • Human Mom, Nonhuman Dad: Melina Tod, Vlad's mom, was human, and Tomas Tod, Vlad's dad, was a vampire.
  • Like Father, Like Son: Vlad is often compared to his father. His name written in Elysian Language is almost exactly like his father's. He also carries around a journal that says The Chronicles of Vladimir Tod to mirror one his father had, which said The Chronicles of Tomas Tod.
  • Love Triangle: All over the place.
  • Luke, I Am Your Father: Otis Otis, Vlad's weird teacher who Vlad thought was out to get him, ends up being Vlad's uncle.
  • MacGuffin: The Lucis, to an extent.
  • Morality Pet : Henry is one for Vald
  • Name's the Same: Eddie Poe is obviously named after the famous horror poet and short-story writer.
  • Off the Wagon: Vlad
  • Opposites Attract: In a friendship way, Henry and Vlad. Henry is the cool, popular, lady's man while Vlad is the dorky "goth" that can't seem to get the girl. In the romantic way, Vlad and Meridith, the sunshiny, popular girl clad in pink.
  • Our Vampires Are Different: Mostly averted, surprisingly. It's nice to know in a world of sparkling vampires, some of the old myths of garlic and levitation and stakes through the heart still live. Though, with enough sunblock, it seems, the vamps in Vladimir Tod can go out in the sunlight.
  • Parental Abandonment: Vlad's parents died in a fire that destroyed their home.
  • Perky Goth: Some of Vlad's little Goth clique can be categorized as this, to some extent.
  • Prophecy Twist
  • Psychic Link: Vlad and Henry, because Vlad drank his blood when they were eight.
  • Repetitive Name: Otis Otis
  • School Newspaper Newshound: Eddie Poe after discovering that Vlad is Not Quite Human.
  • Shout-Out: Hm, vampire slayer from California named Joss? Anyone else smelling Buffy?
  • Stalker Without a Crush: Eddie Poe is one, following Vlad around for the perfect moment to snap a picture and expose him as a vampire, or rather an half-vampire.
  • Take That: "Mulling this over, Vlad wiped her lip gloss from his lips with the back of his hand. Vampires, after all, don't sparkle.
  • Tear Jerker: "On it, in Joss's handwriting, was a single, short phrase, written in stark, black ink: friendship over."
  • Unfazed Everyman: Henry. His best friend is a vampire who bit him and turned him into his human slave when they were eight, and his cousin is a vampire hunter who is trying to kill said best friend.
  • Vegetarian Vampire: Vlad mostly drinks blood that Nelly brings home from the hospital.
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