Last Sacrifice

by Richelle Mead

Here it is, the final book in the Vampire Academy series. One of the things I've liked most about this series is the different take on vampires. In the VA books, there are a few types of vampires - the royal, pure Moroi vampires, who live on blood, but don't kill to get it; the dhampirs - a mix of Moroi and human who don't drink blood and live to protect the Moroi, and the evil Strigoi, who kill anyone they can get their hands on. Throughout this 6-part series we've meet Rose (the dhampir), Lissa (her best friend, the Moroi), as well and their ever-widening group of friends and acquaintances. We've seen Rose's love Dimitri turned Strigoi and then back again, and watched Rose struggle with her feelings for both him and party-boy Adrian.

At the start of this book Rose is in prison, accused of killing the Moroi queen. Desperately trying to think of a way to clear her name and avoid execution, Rose is surprised when she is suddenly broken out of jail. On the run, Rose and her companions begin a search for Lissa's previously unknown half-brother or -sister. Meanwhile, back at court Lissa and the gang are searching for who really killed the queen so Rose's name can be cleared.

Oh, and did I mention that Rose is still trying to decide between Dimitri and Adrian? Because she is - that's what young adult book heroines do!

I liked the whole solve-the-mystery aspect of this novel, even though it was a little slower than the previous books. The main thing I didn't like was how blase Rose was at the end about how things had turned out for others. **Spoilers**Adrian was right when he called Rose out for not being concerned enough for others. She didn't fret long over cheating on him with Dimitri, as soon as she was back at court and had the answers she needed she forgot all about Sydney, and she only spared a few passing thoughts for how Christian was feeling about the turn of events. It was all about her getting Dimitri, with a side of saving Lissa. I actually think this could have been alleviated by including an epilogue at the end, to fully explain where everyone ended up, and hopefully showing how Rose had made an effort to patch things up with everyone. As it was, she came across a little selfish. **

Mostly satisfying conclusion, a few character problems, but redeemed mostly by good story-telling.

Infinite Days

by Rebecca Maizel

Some book are just hard to rate! I liked this interesting and atypical teen vampire novel, but parts of it still bugged me.

Lenah is a sixteen-year-old girl, attending a prestigious boarding school for the first time. She's nervous, timid and at times naive. But Lenah's got a secret - she's been hibernating for 100 years underground, and only recently awoke from the ritual that turned her back into a human, after hundreds of years of existing as a powerful vampire queen.

In Lenah's world, being a vampire truly is a curse. Vampires lose their souls and therefore can never experience happiness or kindness. They delight in evil and give no second thought to killing humans. The thrill of the kill gives them a temporary respite from the constant pain and suffering, but there is never a relief that lasts. Lenah was tired of the suffering, and after much begging and threatening to walk out into the sunlight to end herself, Lenah's love Rhode performs the ritual that will give Lenah her humanity back. Rhode sacrifices his life for her.

And so Lenah wakes up in a unfamiliar place and time period, with virtually no instruction on how to live. She makes quick friends with a boy named Tony, and despite promising that she not "one of those girls", she soon finds herself falling for the heart-throb of the school - Justin Enos.

However, Lenah's time is running out as she knows her old coven will soon discover she is missing and hunt her down - and she's sure they won't be happy to find her human.

So the premise of this book is what grabs me - a girl who's hundreds of years old, turned from vampire back to human, trying to live a normal teen life in a time period so foreign to the one she's known. Lenah is smart, but she's also often clueless - she doesn't know what snorkeling is, or a prom. The book is peppered with flashback sequences where we get to learn what Lenah was like as a vampire. However, I didn't understand her many times. She makes friends with Tony, but gradually ditches him when she discovers that Justin likes her. She trusts Justin more than Tony even though Tony has given her more reasons to trust him.

Also, I really didn't understand why Rhode waited 100 years to perform the ritual. The hibernation was supposedly to throw her coven off the trail so Lenah could escape them to become human. If that was the case, why didn't they just tell the coven she was hibernating 100 years, then Rhode could dig her up after 5, perform the ritual, and then Lenah could live out her entire life before the vampires ever figured it out. By the time they realized she wasn't there anymore she'd be dead! Maybe there was a reason for it, but it wasn't explained and therefore made the whole time line of the story seem silly.

I'm still interested though, and anxious to see where Maizel takes this story with the next two installments in the trilogy.

Still Sucks To Be Me

by Kimberly Pauley

After all the teen vampire books lately that demand to be taken seriously, Still Sucks To Be Me is a fun light-hearted take on the genre. This book is the sequel (not sure if it's going to be a series) to the book of a similar name, Sucks To Be Me.

At the end of the first book Mina has made her decision to become a vampire. She was finally able to tell her friend about it (although secretly), she now has a vampire boyfriend and she doesn't have the Vampire Council on her back anymore. Things should be looking up. However, it's not long before Mina learns that she and her parents are being relocated and must fake their deaths. Mina is distraught to learn she'll have to leave her best friend behind. She's even more upset to learn that her boyfriend George is travelling to Brazil to spend some time with his parents.

Mina end up moving to a tiny town in Louisiana. She make a few friends, but things are not going the way she'd hoped. Her pal back home is stressed about her parents and Mina can't be there to help. George doesn't answer her emails, and while her new vampire friend Cameron may seem nice, he associates with some questionable people. Mina's starting to wonder if her life will ever NOT suck.

This book is funny and light-hearted. Mina's narration is funny and sarcastic. It's not sophisticated, but if you're looking for a funny take on the vampire genre, this might fit the bill.

The Short Second Life of Bree Tanner

by Stephenie Meyer

I have mixed feelings for this book. It's sad, and I don't particularly like sad endings. However, the ending isn't exactly a surprise, so that helps. Likely, if you're reading this book you've already read Eclipse and know that Bree dies. And even if you didn't, the title is kind of a dead giveaway (no pun intended).

However, on the flip side, it was interesting to see Meyer tackle a story that does not end well. The Twilight series is notorious for its peachy-keen ending, and while I did enjoy that, I also like seeing a different side of Meyer's writing. Does she pull off the sad ending? Yes, I think so. And notably, despite knowing that this character was doomed for destruction, and trying specifically to not get attached to her, I found myself loving Bree anyway! Ah! All in less than 180 pages no less. How do you do that Stephenie Meyer? I always get so invested in your characters!

Now I just want to know more about Fred!

Spirit Bound

by Richelle Mead

Ok, last we left this series Rose had returned from her physically- and emotionally-draining trip to Russia to hunt down her former love Dimitri (who had turned from harmless dhampir to malevolent Strigoi) and kill him. Rose is relieved because she has freed Dimitri from his evil, undead state, just as he wished, only to soon receive a package in the mail - the stake she used to kill Dimitri, and a note from him - he's not dead after all, and now he vows to hunt her down and kill her.

In Spirit Bound, Lissa and Rose graduate from St. Vladamir's, and travel to court to receive their guardian assignments (Rose as the guardian and Lissa as the guarded). *Spoilers ahead* However, along the way they also stage a jail break, escape to Las Vegas, learn a possible method to restore Strigoi, dodge a mob of Strigoi attackers, and return to be punished. Lissa travels to her future college, gets attacked again by the Strigoi, and Rose assists the rescue operation. Lissa performs the nearly impossible feat of staking Dimitri herself with a spirit-charmed stake (was this really any surprise though?) and he remarkably becomes dhampir once more. They all return to court - the guardian assignments STILL looming...but no! More things must happen first! Rose attends a secret Moroi party with Adrian (of which they are none too happy about), Dimitri worships Lissa but pushes Rose away, the council changes the law to make guardians graduate at age 16, Rose had a swearing outburst at the queen, and right near the end we learn that Queen Tatiana herself has been murdered, and Rose is the prime suspect. *End spoilers*

In short, lots of twist and turns, which were interesting, but also made the book seem a little aimless at times. What is the point of this novel? Turning Dimitri back? Not quite. Guardian assignments? Not really that either. Graduation? Barely even mentioned. And all of a sudden, out from nowhere at the very end - a trial?! Sometimes it seemed like this book's purpose was to be a set up for the final book. However, I did enjoy it, despite Dimitri being annoying. Eager for book 5!

Oh, and the cover - only 1 star for that. Seriously, I took the blasted dust jacket off so I wouldn't look like I was walking around with a Harlequin novel! Sheesh. Less seductive looking next time, please!

Betrayals

by Lili St. Crow

This book is the sequel to Strange Angels, a book whose story I enjoyed but I had some reservations over the method of telling.

I have largely the same complaints for the sequel.

Again, Lili St. Crow seems to have a small vocabulary when it comes to words to expresses anger or shock. The only ones she can think of would get bleeped out on cable television. This is frustrating because these aren't words I enjoy hearing - even in my own head, and also because I think it shows a real lack of creativity. Seriously, not EVERYONE in the world uses those words in every sentence. It's crude, and sounds uneducated. I realize these are teenage characters, but I have a hard time believing that all teenagers have such a foul mouth as Dru and Graves do.

Second - the smells! Ms. St. Crow focuses way too much on the way things smell and not enough on other senses. Many sequences are hard to understand and picture in your head because the only information you have is what things smell like. (And yes, Christophe STILL smells like apple pie!) Oh, and by the way, it's mentioned quite a few times that Graves smells like cigarette smoke, as if this is supposed to be a nice thing - um, ew!

Unfortunately, I'm giving this book one less star than it's predecessor. I just didn't find the story as interesting, and it was often confusing! There were a few chapters that I wasn't really sure what was going on and it felt like the author was being intentionally vague.

Will I read the third installment? Probably only if Dani assures me that it's better than this one!

Sucks to Be Me

by Kimberly Pauley

It's another new teen vampire book! However, unlike Twilight and Vampire Academy, Sucks to Be Me does not take itself so seriously. The whole thing almost reads as a spoof of vampires.

Mina finds out in the first chapter that she has to attend vampire class and decide in a few weeks whether or not she wants to become a vampire. This is because the vampire council just found out her parents - who are already vampires - have been keeping her secret her whole life.

So Mina goes to classes, learns new things about vampires, is torn about what to do, meets a few cute guys, etc. It's pretty standard teen book stuff. However, Mina was an enjoyable character with some funny commentary. The other characters were pretty flat, and the ending was wrapped up a bit too tidily. It was amusing though.

Blood Promise

by Richelle Mead

I'll admit, when I read the last book in the Vampire Academy series, I was mad - it's pretty much certain that Dimitri is a Strigoi and Rose now feels she must hunt him down and kill him. It was such a downer of an ending! However, by the time Blood Promise was released I was eager to read more.

For the first time ever Rose has left Lissa behind. She has chosen Dimitri over Lissa, because while Dimitri's life has left him, he is not dead. He has been turned into one of the Strigoi - a type of vampire that kills for pleasure. Once Dimitri told Rose he'd hope someone would kill him if he ever became a Strigoi. And so it is with this conversation firmly in mind that Rose sets out to find Dimitri - to kill him and fulfill his wish.

The first half of the book is a little slow. Rose spends a lot of time vacillating between options of what to do next. All the while she is mourning for Dimitri and trying to push everyone from her old life away. Thankfully, Rose eventually gets herself and gear and continues on her mission. From that point on the book races toward the finish. As expected, Rose does manage to find Dimitri, and her encounter and interaction with him is one of the most interesting parts of the novel.

The ending of this book is less of a downer, while it does easily set itself up for the next instalment - another I'll be eagerly waiting for!

Jessica's Guide to Dating on the Dark Side

by Beth Fantaskey

If you've read Twilight, this book will remind you of it.

If you've read Pride and Prejudice - Lucius will remind you of the way you felt towards Mr. Darcy at the beginning.

That said, Jessica's Guide to Dating on the Dark Side is not a copy-cat novel. Jessica is quite different from Bella, and while Lucius has his Darcy/Edward moments - he is neither of the two.

Let's start at the beginning.

Jessica is quite ready to just have a normal Senior Year. She hoping to maybe start a relationship with cute, nice Jake - the boy who came into the diner where she worked often during the summer. She plans on continuing riding her horse, competing in 4-H and math competitions. However, Jessica's plans get all turned around when a mysterious stranger appears at her bus stop one morning whispering her name. Not Jessica - but her old name, Anastasia, the one she had before she was adopted as a baby, the name that no one but her parents and her best friend Mindy know. Understandably Jessica is creeped out when the guy appears behind her in her English calls - condescendingly and creepily announcing to the whole class that his name in Lucius Vladescu. Even more shocking, is when Jessica's mother invites the boy over for dinner. It is during this dinner that Jessica learns that she is the daughter of a powerful pair of vampires in Romania, who died shortly after her birth. She is a vampire princess, and has been betrothed to Lucius since their births.

Saying much more would spoil the story, but I will say that Lucius is just ANNOYING at the beginning. I was reading it thinking why in the world the author thought we were going to like this creep! Then I was reminded of one of the most annoying male leads in a novel - Mr. Darcy. And indeed, like Mr. Darcy, somehow along the way you find yourself starting to like Lucius. Even after the fact it's hard to remember the point where you started to like him. One aspect of the book that does help this along though are Lucius letters to his uncle - which are interspersed throughout the novel. Through these we see Lucius sense of humor and also sympathize with the difficult place in which he finds himself.

Jessica in turn is a relatively strong character. She won't let Lucius push her around. However, she does have the problem common to many female protagonists - the unwillingness to confide in anyone! Many times she avoids telling her parents her problems (which I can understand, as she is a teenager and many teenagers don't feel comfortable talking to their parents about everything) but she also never confides in her best friend, instead opting to keep her out and eventually push her away.

I was really liking this book and read furiously to the end. However, I was just a little disappointed by the end. It seemed rushed, and not completely explained. In fact, it was if the author picked up Jessica's habit and kept the reader out of the loop. I wasn't sure what was going on until Jessica explains it to Lucius, and even then I was thinking, "Wait. What?" I didn't think it was entirely convincing and actually I found myself liking certain characters just a little bit less because of their reaction to things going on around them.

Good book, could have been great if the ending had just been a little more fleshed out.

City of Ashes

by Cassandra Clare

Ok, I'm finally returning to The Mortal Instruments trilogy after a short break for Jenna Fox, the completion of the Gregor series, The Penderwicks, and various other fantasies and paranormal fiction. I've been on a bit of a paranormal kick lately actually and after I finish this series I'm not sure what I'll read next. My roommate is teasing me that she's frightened by my book choices, which really just makes me want to read them even more! Thankfully Cassandra Clare gives the reader enough clues in City of Ashes that it did not take me long to recall the sequence of events of the previous book - which I read about 2 months ago.

Anyways, I was told that City of Ashes was the slowest of the series, and a bit of a disappointment, so I went into the book not expecting much of it. Maybe that's part of the reason, but I really enjoyed this book. I think I may have enjoyed it more than the first book, City of Bones.

At the end of the first book we get the (supposed to be) shocking news that Clary and Jace are actually brother and sister. (A little nod to Star Wars there?) :) So a good part of City of Ashes involves the pair of them trying to deal with this knowledge and fight off the continuing romantic feelings they have for each other. Meanwhile, Clary is trying to start a romantic relationship with Simon, even though she doesn't feel that way toward him. Simon knows it and it just causes all kinds of messes. Ah the love triangle - a perennial favorite among YA novels.

Last book we were introduced to werewolves and vampires. The werewolves were good (or at least, not evil) and the vampires were mostly bad. However, in this book we get to see more of the vampires and they are not portrayed as negatively - although Jace certainly holds no fondness for them.

Valentine is up to his oddly predictable tricks again, yet still elusive to all Shadowhunters. Quite the slippery fellow, that Valentine.

Towards the end of this book I am starting to suspect that Clary and Jace may not actually be brother and sister. No confirmation or denial of this suspicion so I'm continuing to mull it over in my mind. Not such a great thing when it's already 1am and you're lying in bed trying to figure out all the possible ways they might not be related but it would be reasonable for everyone to think they are (as they do now). I have a number of theories. Here's hoping I can report I was right in my next blog entry - appearing here upon my completion of City of Glass. Now I must end this entry so I can go read!

Stange Angels

by Lili St. Crow

Zombies and Djamphirs and Werwolfen, oh my!

Dru Anderson is alone and scared. The book jacket, however, proclaims her to be a "Night Hunter. Knife Thrower. Heart Breaker." as well as "not afraid of the dark." But she never goes hunting at night, she never throws a knife (although she does wield one at times as well as an assortment of guns), she doesn't break anyone's heart, and she is very scared of the dark! She should be - her dad leaves her behind most evenings while he's out hunting the things that "go bump in the night". One evening he doesn't return home. The next night, he does - as a zombie. Dru must muster up all of her courage to dodge the zombie that used to be her father, and kill him before he can kill her. She's left traumatized and utterly, completely alone.

Thankfully, Dru soon makes a loyal friend in Graves. He helps her the best he can, not knowing the true danger that Dru is in, because someone - something - wants Dru dead, and he's still searching for her.

I liked Dru despite her not being as tough as the book packaging portrayed her to be. She could handle a weapon, and she knew how to defend herself to an extent, but she was still scared out of her wits and desperate for someone to help her. She gets that help through Graves as well as the mysterious djamphir Christophe.

One aspect of the book that started to bug me near the end was how the smell of EVERYTHING had to be described. I learned that Graves smelled like deodorant and smoke. Christophe smells like apple pie (that's weird). Dru's mom used to smell like "perfume and goodness." Zombies smell like a whole host of nasty rotting things. Christophe smells like apple pie. When something bad is about to happen, Dru can smells (and taste) oranges. When something REALLY bad is about to happen, it smells(/tastes) of WAX oranges. Christophe smells like apple pie. Did I mention that Christophe smells like apple pie? Yeah, the author did too - a lot! I wish I'd counted.

My biggest complaint of this book however, was the language. The story was interesting and different from other books of the genre but it was just littered with profanity! I tried to just read over it, but that would certainly stop me from recommending this book to most people I know - despite the interesting story.

City of Bones

by Cassandra Clare

I've been wanting to read this book for a while, and when the third entry to the series came out a few months ago I made sure to finally put this on hold at the library.

City of Bones was a fun mix of action, romance, and supernatural elements. I enjoyed the twist at the end even though I suspected that it was coming.

I wish I had written this blog a few weeks ago when I actually finished it (around the date this post is dated.) I can't remember many details or specific things I wanted to say about it. But I did enjoy the book and the supernatural world that the author created, and I'm looking forward to reading the rest of the series.

Shadow Kiss

by Richelle Mead

The third book in the Vampire Academy series, Shadow Kiss, continues the story of Rose and best friend Lissa.

I really liked this entry in the series. There was a lot going on, and we got to see more of Adrian, who was introduced in the previous book and is a pretty interesting character. There's a lot going on in this book and a lot of it readers are left to try to figure out for themselves. Secret societies, ghost sightings, dark auras, spirit magic....it's all connected but Mead doesn't tell us how until the end.

However, the end is just terribly sad! This is not the end of the series, so I'm dying to know what the author is going to do with this twist she's thrown in. I'm sure it will be very interesting, but I'm not sure we have the almost-guaranteed "happy ending" that Stephenie Meyer's vampires got. I'm okay with a little sadness, but I don't know, I may be mad by the time this whole series is over. I'm holding out hope that she's got some sort of twist up her sleeve. Now we wait til August! Grr...I hate waiting!

Frostbite

by Richelle Mead

Wow, in those last two entries I completely forgot to use Dani's non-patented rating system! So here we go:

1st star (butt-kicking) - oh, yes, much butt-kicking is done! Delightful. +1

2nd star (romantic touch) - yup, yup - and not just with one character! So at least +1

3rd star (some wacky fantasy) - Three kinds of "vampires" who have secret schools and resorts? +1

4th star (love triangle) - Ack yes! So frustrating, but that's what makes it great! Mason, Adrian, Dimitri....tis so so complicated! +1

5th star -(delectable male co-protagonist) - Did I mention Dimitri? And Adrian....he just is fun. I'm gonna give it +1

6th star - (scene that is truly tear-jerking) - ummm...yeah, definitely... :( +1

7th star (expertise with a bow and arrow) - no bow and arrow in this book, but there are swords and magic fire power and silver stakes...so I'm giving it the seventh star anyway! +1

Tada! Seven Star book! Yes, I realize on Dani's system is gets 100% and on mine I only gave it 4/5 - it's just missing a little of that "I wanna run out right now and tell all my friends about this!" aspect, which is required for 5 star books. I did like this one better that the first in the series though. Onto book 3!

Vampire Academy

by Richelle Mead

Happy Birthday to me! This book was a birthday present from Dani (my often spoken of book-loving friend who never writes her own entries anymore!) :)

Before reading the Twilight series I'd never read any vampire novels. So when Dani gave me this book (the start of a new series) I wasn't sure what to expect. The vampire world that Richelle Mead creates is very different from Meyer's Twilight. This book is darker, and considerably more mature in language and content. I didn't really care for the language used in this book, but the story was interesting enough that I wanted to keep reading.

There are a lot of fun (and a lot of annoying) characters in this book. And I mean the annoying thing in a positive way - you're supposed to find them annoying. Rose was tough and sassy while Lissa was sweet and caring. The two creating an interesting duo. The male characters were also an intriguing lot. Dimitri, Christian, Mason, Jesse - all of them different and funny or sweet or interesting in their own ways.

While this book didn't have quite the mesmerizing "stupor" effect I spoke of with Twilight, it did suck me in, and I proceeded to read the next two books in the series in the next two days. I have not been very social, and my sleeping has suffered a bit, but it was fun!

Breaking Dawn

by Stephenie Meyer

I wrote this review after I read Breaking Dawn for the first time, but my thoughts are pretty much the same after my second reading, so I'm just going to paste it in!

So many people hated this book, but I have to admit - I adored it! Sure it may not be "realistic" but there's a reason the genre is called fantasy. I've read lots of books where people die. And yes, I can understand why an author would choose to do this - to add realism, to point out that victory is not without sacrifice, etc. But it was kinda nice to read a book - a series none the less - where you get to the end and all the characters you love are still kicking! After all, we all know real life can suck enough - I prefer it if the books I read for pleasure didn't have downers for an ending. Bella has to make a lot of difficult choices in the previous books and in Breaking Dawn we see the consequences for these choices. We were all wondering what would happen to Jacob, how Charlie would react to Bella's mysterious disappearance, what Bella would be like as a vampire, if Edward could avoid killing her on their honeymoon, if the Volturi would come for her, etc. I was hoping that Bella would not be like all the other newborn vampires. All along, Stephenie Meyer has made it pretty clear in her books that Bella was not like everyone else - from the very onset when Bella is the only person whose thoughts were hidden from Edward. I was hoping that she would end up not being a crazed newborn like they all assumed she would be, so I was thrilled that that was the way SM wrote it. Not only does Bella come into her new life with her wits about her, but she develops into this really strong character who not only takes charge, but totally saves the day! Yes, the name Renesmee struck me as totally weird when I first read it, but after a while I got used to it. The worst thing about Renesmee was that she was so hard to picture in my head! A baby that looks like a baby but doesn't act like one....it'll be interesting what they do with that if they ever try to make this book into a movie. And then there's Jacob and Charlie. After thinking that surely these two would be cut out of Bella's life, SM finds a way to bring them back in. I was shocked when I read the part where Jacob imprints on Renesmee - I remember running upstairs to where my friend Dani was (she was about 100 pages ahead of me) and yelling out something like "He imprints on the BABY?!?!" - but I wasn't really grossed out by this - SM had gone to some lengths to explain in Eclipse that it wasn't a romantic kind of love when the girl was so young, just a need to see that she is safe and happy. And I was doubly relieved that Charlie could still see Bella, and that he was finally able to know just enough so he could know his granddaughter. So yes, Breaking Dawn does wrap everything up at the end in a nice pretty bow, but I liked it that way. Bella gets everything she wanted, and everything she thought she couldn't have anymore. Lots of readers have said that this makes it too fake or cheapens it, but if we were Bella, wouldn't that be exactly how we'd want things to turn out? Real life isn't always so peachy - but books can be, so I'm thankful to Stephenie Meyer for giving us a better happy ending then I thought was possible. I enjoyed it.

Eclipse

by Stephenie Meyer

Eclipse, Eclipse, what to say about Eclipse?

So many great things happen in Eclipse - Bella's and Edward's compromise, Victoria's final apperance, Bella finally thinks about what it will mean if she becomes a vampire, we hear the stories of Rosalie and Jasper, Edward has a jealous moment but is smart enough to stop telling Bella what to do, the werewolves and vampires work together, etc.

Favorite parts: Edward's reaction when Bella agrees to marry him, when Edward talks to Jacob in the tent, and anything with Alice!

First time I read thisI was dying to get my hands on Breaking Dawn and I only had to wait a few months. Second time, I jumped right from it into Breaking Dawn. I believe both times I read it in about 24 hours. Which is quite something when you consider it's 600+ pages. Completely absorbing, every time! Stephenie Meyer knows how to suck you in!

New Moon

by Stephenie Meyer

Ack, I am seven books behind on this blog!

So after re-reading Twilight, I immediately started my second time through New Moon. Now while I still believe that there is just something magical about the first time you read a book that can only be experience that one time - the suspense, the wondering, the tension as you hope that the author you've put your trust in will finish their story in the way you hope - some books are better even better the second time. New Moon is one of those. The first time I read New Moon I spent most of the book wondering when in the world Edward was coming back! I remember stopping and flipping page after page looking for Edward's name, and despairing at how far I had to flip to find it! The pages in between I read as fast as I could.

This time, I was much more calm. I knew what was going to happen, and when Edward was going to come back (and even, the eventual end to the whole saga) so I was able to chill out. I enjoyed Jacob's part of the story more, as well as pay closer attention to the specifics of the werewolf pack that I'd missed the first time.

I was also careful to read the Italy parts more carefully this time around. I had forgotten the names, positions and talents of many of the Volturi - which was frustrating while reading Breaking Dawn the first time and not remembering them!

Still my least favorite of the Twilight series, but considerably better the second time. Now, onto Eclipse!

Twilight

by Stephenie Meyer

A couple weekends ago I was pretty excited to go see the Twilight movie in the theater. For those who have been hiding under a rock, Twilight the movie is based on Twilight the book by Stephenie Meyer. It's the first entry in a wildly popular 4-book series. I read the series for the first time this summer - the first 3 in June (each in less than 24 hours), and the fourth on August 2nd (the day of it's release) after getting it at a midnight release party at around 1am and reading without stopping or sleeping for pretty much the entire day. So needless to say these books are engrossing! But this post is about Twilight - both the book and the movie, because after seeing the movie (twice) I felt compelled to re-read the book. This time I even allowed myself 2 days to finish it! I'm actually in the middle of another book, but I found that the movie of Twilight does have some familiar side effects - something Dani and I refer to as "Twilight stupor" - basically you find yourself walking about through your day not really focusing on real-life, but instead day-dreaming about vampires, werewolves, and soggy forests. It is most troublesome! Previously I have tried to cure myself of this disorder by shelving my Twilight books and not letting myself look at them again for at least a week. However, that just did not seem like fun at all, and since I have this entire week off from work for Thanksgiving, I decided to try to cure myself by simply allowing the stupor to spread and re-read all the books! And now I begin my blog:

Twilight remains on my list of all time favorite books. However, whenever I try to explain the plot and it's appeal to someone, it always comes out sounding really hokey. And I guess you could say it is, in a way. But there is something about the way that it's written that grabs your attention and won't let you go until the final page is turned (and by final page, I mean the final page of the 4th book!) We love Bella because she's caring, selfless, and just a little bit feisty. And we love Edward because he fights for the people he loves, he always knows what to say, and he struggles to do what's right. Edward's vampire family is diverse and interesting, and the romance that runs through the books is sweet and endearing.

Now we come to the movie. You can probably figure out that I liked the movie simply by the fact that I saw it twice on opening weekend. Is it as good as the book? No. I don't think that any movie can be as good as the book. The book is always better. Always. I can think of no exception. But I did think the movie was very, very good and that they stayed very true to the book. They didn't add anything completely out there, or take anything away that was essential to the book. That said, however, there were a few items from the book that were not in the movie that I missed. Maybe some will show up in deleted or extended scenes when the DVD comes out.

Let's see...first thing was Bella cooking for her dad - instead they ate at a diner. Not a terrible change, but I did missing seeing that nurturing aspect of Bella's character played out on screen.

Second, the blood typing scene. I suppose again, that this wasn't essential to the plot, but I missed seeing the interaction between a smitten Edward, a jealous Mike, and at whoozy Bella! (dare I hope for a deleted scene?!)

Third, no where in the movie did they mention Jasper's gift! I'm hoping for this in the sequels.

Fourth, the Cullen's weren't at prom! This was one of the bigger disappointments - I was so looking forward to seeing Alice's and Rosalie's outrageous dresses!

There were also a few other minor things I missed, such as Edward staying with Bella after the car accident, there was no mention of Edward "dazzling" people, and there was no racing heart monitor in the hospital.

However, there were some changes or additions found in the movie that I DID like. Such as, Bella talking to her mom more on the phone, Bella's friends having slightly more filled-out personalities, the fight scene in the end being all flashy and such, and that they had the prom at a pretty location instead of just in the high school gym.

Biggest gripe: Edward seeming so creepy weird when he had to save Bella at the ballet studio. In the book he seemed very calm and in control of himself, but in the movie he was a little crazed. Didn't like that much, but that was my biggest complaint. All in all, a pretty decent effort!