EXCERPT: 'Jessica's Guide to Dating on the Dark Side'

July 1, 2009— -- Beth Fantaskey finally answers the question 'What's a girl to do when she discovers she's the heir to a vampire throne and betrothed to a bloodsucker, who happens to be a pompous, yet drop-dead gorgeous vampire prince?"

Read an excerpt from the book below and head to the "GMA" Library for more good reads.

The first time I saw him, a heavy, gray fog clung to the cornfields, tails of mist slithering between the dying stalks. It was a dreary early morning right after Labor Day, and I was waiting for the school bus, just minding my own business, standing at the end of the dirt lane that connected my family's farmhouse to the main road into town.

I was thinking about how many times I'd probably waited for that bus over the course of a dozen years, killing time like any mathlete would, by doing calculations in my head, when I noticed him.

And suddenly that familiar stretch of blacktop seemed awfully desolate.

He was standing under a massive beech tree across the road from me, his arms crossed over his chest. The tree's low, gnarled branches twisted down around him, nearly concealing him in limbs and leaves and shadows. But it was obvious that he was tall and wearing a long, dark coat, almost like a cloak.

My chest clenched, and I swallowed hard. Who stands under a tree at the crack of dawn, in the middle of nowhere, wearing a black cloak?

He must have realized I'd spotted him, because he shifted a little, like he was deciding whether to leave. Or maybe cross the road.

It had never struck me how vulnerable I'd been all those mornings I'd waited out there alone, but the realization hit me hard then.

I glanced down the road, heart thudding. Where is the stupid bus? And why did my dad have to be so big on mass transit, anyhow? Why couldn't I own a car, like practically every other senior? But no, I had to "share the ride" to save the environment. When I'm abducted by the menacing guy under the tree, Dad will probably insist my face only appear on recycled milk cartons. . . .