Road Trip with a Vampire Summary: A Sizzling Paranormal Escape
TL;DR: The Quick Book Summary
A 400-year-old witch has spent a decade hiding her magic behind yoga mats and morning classes in a small California town.
Then a vampire with no memory of his past arrives at her studio door carrying a letter from the one person she never wanted to hear from again.
Road Trip with a Vampire by Jenna Levine follows two supernatural beings who agree to drive across the country together — one to recover lost memories, the other to keep her own power from burning her life down.
The novel is the third book in Levine’s My Vampires series and mixes romantic comedy with vampire and witch lore.
- Who’s in it: Zelda Turret, a retired elemental witch running a yoga studio, and Peter Elliott, an amnesiac vampire with a duffel bag of cash and a cryptic journal.
- The setup: A cross-country road trip from California to Indiana, with stops meant to trigger Peter’s memories.
- The complication: An ancient vampire faction known as The Collective is watching, and Peter’s forgotten past is connected to them.
- Core themes: Self-acceptance, guilt, reinvention, trust, and found family.
- Tone: Light, witty, cozy, and romantic, with bursts of paranormal danger.
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Book Snapshot
- Genre & Subgenre: Paranormal Romance / Romantic Comedy (Contemporary Supernatural Romance, Vampire & Witch Romance)
- Core Narrative Tropes: Grumpy x Sunshine, Road Trip Romance, Amnesia, Forced Proximity, Secret Identity, Opposites Attract
- Tone & Atmosphere: Fast-paced, comedic, cozy, witty, emotionally warm
- Primary Conflict: Peter must recover his memories while The Collective pursues him, and Zelda must face her fear of her own magic and her distrust of vampires
- Pacing Style: Moderately fast, structured around episodic road-trip stops that build toward a confrontation, then resolve in a quiet romantic ending
- ISBN: 978-0593819913 (ISBN-10: 0593819918)
- Pages: 416
- Book Structure: 28 numbered chapters plus an epilogue
- Publisher: Berkley, September 23, 2025
Road Trip with a Vampire Summary: What Happens in the Book
Spoilers ahead. This section covers the full plot, including the ending.
Zelda Turret runs Yoga Magic, a community studio in Redwoodsville, California, with her human friends Becky and Lindsay. Her real name is Grizelda Watson, and she is a four-hundred-year-old elemental witch.
A decade earlier she caused a fire in Evanston, Illinois, faked her death, and abandoned both magic and the supernatural world. She has kept her power suppressed ever since.
One night a stranger appears at her studio. Under the lights she sees his fangs — he is a vampire, and his glamour does not affect her.
He introduces himself as Peter Elliott and hands her a letter from Reginald Cleaves, her chaotic vampire ex-best friend from Chicago. Reginald explains that Peter has severe amnesia and asks Zelda to help him.
Zelda lets Peter sleep on her sofa for one night. The next morning her bedroom curtains catch fire from an accidental surge of sleep-magic.
She realizes she must leave town temporarily to release her built-up power safely. Peter, meanwhile, has received an anonymous note in red ink directing him to a warehouse in Blossomtown, Indiana.
Zelda proposes a joint road trip in her red convertible. They will follow the locations sketched in Peter’s leather journal on the way to Indiana, jogging his memory while she vents magic at remote stops.
Their first stop is Big Earl’s Singing Chicken Emporium in Nevada. There Peter discovers that Diet Coke makes him tipsy, and the two grow closer.
At a desert motel, Zelda sneaks into a dark field to cast a glowing orb. Peter finds her and tells her she should not suppress who she is.
At a luxury resort in Wyoming, Peter recalls having stayed there before. That night they become intimate, and Zelda lets him feed from her neck.
They continue to a bowling alley in Wyoming and then to South Harbor, Michigan. There Peter finds the mid-century house he designed as a human engineer.
On a nearby Lake Michigan beach, Zelda conjures a bonfire and finally controls her magic without destruction. In Chicago they stay with Reginald and his human girlfriend, Amelia Collins.
Reginald recognizes the red ink on Peter’s notes as the mark of The Collective, an old vampire faction with a grudge against Grizelda.
At the Blossomtown warehouse, Zelda and Peter find six red station wagons and four murdered humans. A blood-soaked red plaid pocket square triggers Peter’s full memory.
He remembers working as a “fang for hire” for John Richardson, leader of The Collective. Richardson had hired him to crack a warded safe in Chicago that supposedly held an artifact able to strip Zelda of her magic.
The safe’s wards knocked Peter unconscious when he tried to break in, causing his amnesia. Zelda, feeling betrayed, secretly teleports a stake-tipped dagger into Peter’s hand.
Peter stakes John Richardson through the heart, and Zelda escapes by teleportation powder to a hotel. Reginald later reveals the “legendary safe” was a 1981 prank containing a whoopee cushion.
Peter returns Zelda’s car and asks for twenty minutes to explain. He tells her he was captivated by her photo before they ever met, which is why his instinct drove him to California.
Back in Redwoodsville, Peter grovels with handwritten notes and homemade cookies. When a storm damages the yoga studio roof, he volunteers to fix it at night.
Zelda invites him inside during the downpour. They reconcile, declare their love, and begin a life together.
In the epilogue, Zelda buys Peter a loft in town to use as his architecture studio, and the two look ahead to their immortal future. Jenna Levine closes the story on a settled, domestic note.
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Characters in This Book
| Character | Role |
|---|---|
| Zelda Turret / Grizelda Watson | Four-hundred-year-old elemental witch and protagonist who runs a yoga studio under a false identity |
| Peter Elliott | Vampire and former human engineer who suffers amnesia after a warded safe knocks him unconscious |
| Reginald Cleaves | Zelda’s vampire ex-best friend in Chicago who sends Peter to her for help |
| Amelia Collins | Reginald’s human girlfriend and a CPA in Chicago |
| Becky | Zelda’s friend and co-owner of the Yoga Magic studio |
| Lindsay | Becky’s cousin and a yoga instructor at the studio |
| John Richardson | Leader of The Collective and the book’s main antagonist |
| Frederick J. Fitzwilliam | Two-hundred-year-old vampire who advises Peter in Chicago |
| Cassie | Frederick’s human partner |
| Katie Chadwick | Bookseller in Redwoodsville and member of the studio’s Early Crew |
| Archibald Steves | Grizelda’s landlord in 1978 who evicted her after a kitchen fire |
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Summary by Chapter
Spoilers warning: The following section provides a brief summary of each chapter for readers who want to explore what’s inside. The book contains 28 numbered chapters plus an epilogue.
Chapter One: Zelda reflects on her past as the infamous Grizelda Watson while running her yoga studio. She meets a shy stranger named Peter, who demands to see her, and she sees his vampire fangs.
Chapter Two: Peter hands Zelda a letter from Reginald explaining his amnesia. Zelda lets him stay one night on the condition he feeds from a blood bank.
Chapter Three: Zelda finds Peter’s leather journal of cryptic notes and architectural sketches. She calls Reginald and reflects on the Evanston fire that made her fake her death.
Chapter Four: Peter attends his first yoga class and struggles with balance. Zelda learns Diet Coke gets him drunk and deflects Lindsay’s teasing about dating him.
Chapter Five: Zelda’s bedroom curtains catch fire from suppressed magic, forcing her to plan a trip. Peter shows her a note directing him to Blossomtown, Indiana, and Zelda proposes a road trip.
Chapter Six: Zelda secretly packs daggers, powders, and a crystal ring. She secures two weeks off and stuns Becky and Lindsay by leaving with Peter.
Chapter Seven: The drive begins with icebreaker games and a Spice Girls playlist. Peter identifies their first stop as Big Earl’s in Nevada and feeds at a rest stop.
Chapter Eight: At Big Earl’s, Diet Coke makes Peter tipsy and flirtatious. He voices fears about who he was before the amnesia, and a waitress assumes they are a couple.
Chapter Nine: They check into a run-down motel. Zelda vents her magic in a dark field, and Peter finds her and walks her back to the room.
Chapter Ten: Peter challenges Zelda’s choice to hide her magic. He sleeps on the floor due to the cold and wakes screaming from a returning memory of being attacked.
Chapter Eleven: Their car gets a flat tire, and Peter lifts the vehicle to change it. At a truck stop, Zelda scrapes her leg and Peter panics with concern.
Chapter Twelve: They book a luxury resort suite in Wyoming with two connected bedrooms. In the bar, Peter confesses he wants Zelda and recalls visiting the resort before.
Chapter Thirteen: A second note signed “JR” arrives, directing Peter to the Blossomtown warehouse. Zelda tells Peter her full history as Grizelda the Terrible.
Chapter Fourteen: Zelda and Peter become intimate, and she lets him bite her neck. He promises he is not going anywhere.
Chapter Fifteen: Reginald agrees to host them in Chicago. Peter remembers living in South Harbor, Michigan, and at a Wyoming bowling alley Zelda wins a bet that makes Peter publicly praise her.
Chapter Sixteen: They find the mid-century house Peter designed as a human. On a Lake Michigan beach, Zelda conjures a bonfire and controls her magic.
Chapter Seventeen: They arrive at Reginald’s Wrigleyville condo, decorated with an Edward Cullen poster. Peter invites Zelda to nap in his guest room.
Chapter Eighteen: A third red-ink note arrives, and Reginald identifies it as The Collective’s style. Zelda reveals her stash of daggers and powders and insists on going to Indiana.
Chapter Nineteen: They reach the Blossomtown warehouse at sunset and find six red station wagons. Inside are four dead humans and a blood-soaked red plaid pocket square that restores Peter’s memory.
Chapter Twenty: John Richardson emerges and reveals he hired Peter to crack Zelda’s safe. Zelda teleports a dagger to Peter, who stakes Richardson to dust, and she escapes by powder.
Chapter Twenty-One: Reginald explains the “safe” was a 1981 prank containing a whoopee cushion. Peter texts Zelda that he drove her car to her hotel, and she gives him twenty minutes to explain.
Chapter Twenty-Two: Peter recounts his life as a human farmer-engineer turned vampire and explains he was drawn to Zelda’s photo before they met. He leaves after pledging to make it up to her.
Chapter Twenty-Three: Peter asks Reginald and Frederick for advice on winning Zelda back. Two weeks later he texts her a photo of himself in the googly-eyed chicken hat, and her friends encourage her to give him another chance.
Chapter Twenty-Four: Peter sends homemade cookies and an apologetic note, and Zelda replies by handwritten note. Becky and Lindsay tell her Peter offered to fix the studio roof.
Chapter Twenty-Five: A rainstorm leaks into Zelda’s apartment, and she invites Peter upstairs. He confesses his love, they reconcile, and they commit to a future together.
Epilogue: Two weeks later, after a Goat Yoga event, Zelda shows Peter a loft she bought for his architecture studio. They look forward to their immortal lives together.
Who Should Read Road Trip with a Vampire?
This book suits readers who follow paranormal romance and supernatural romantic comedy, particularly titles that blend humor with vampire and witch worldbuilding.
It works well for readers who enjoy road-trip plots, amnesia storylines, forced proximity, and slow-building attraction between opposites.
Fans of the earlier My Vampires books will recognize returning characters like Reginald, Amelia, Frederick, and Cassie.
The story uses an episodic structure across multiple states, alternating light comedic scenes with a supernatural confrontation. Readers looking for cozy, low-gore vampire romance with a settled ending will find that here.
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