New Moon

I've caught Twilight fever. I recently packed New Moon the next book in the series to read on a recent long weekend trip. I could not put it down. It's one of those rare books where when it was too late to read, I'd find myself skimming several pages because I was just dying to know what happened next.

Now, I'm not saying Stephenie Meyer's books are perfect. There's something that bothers me about them, I can't quite put my finger on it. I think they do tend to be a tad overly melodramatic. However, there's something I really like about Bella's character. They tend to be very engrossing books.

I have Eclipse, but am taking a break. I don't want to finish the series too quickly. I do, however, have quite a large stack of vampire books that I'm hoping to tackle.

Twilight Midnight parties

Move over Harry Potter, there’s some competition in town – Bella Swan. The last book in Stephenie Meyer’s comes out the first Saturday next month. Like Harry Potter, a number of midnight parties are in the works for the release of Breaking Dawn.
According to the Associated Press, the first printing of Twilight was 75,000. Two books later that number was bumped up to 1 million for Eclipse. The series has taken off. Meyer’s The Host is also on the New York Times bestseller list and Twilight is ranked number four according to Amazon’s sales rankings.

Vampires at midnight! Parties for last 'Twilight' – http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20080710/ap_en_ot/books_midnight_madness;_ylt=ApUhuAxvuHH1rKQFdlM0jb9REhkF

http://www.bordersmedia.com/meyer/events.asp

Promotions really work! (or I'm a sucker)

Yes, yes. I've said I'm trying to not to bring any new books into the house. Then I got this email from Borders touting a special edition of eclipse and the new moon in paperback. I was intrigued. I really enjoyed twilight and to top it all off a 30 percent coupon.

This is kind of neat promotional idea. The special edition of eclipse has the first chapter of the upcoming breaking dawn, the cover doubles as a poster with the book's cover. There's also a t-shirt transfer sheet, which strikes me as a little dated. Do kids today even know what t-shirt transfers are?

Once the dust jacket is removed, there's a regular cover.

These two are going on my summer reading list, which I promise I'll be sharing soon!

The bookseller hinted that the buzz around this series is comparing it to Harry Potter. I can see how, these books could be a series that like Harry Potter both adults and the younger set (in this case, probably teenagers enjoy.)

twilight

Since May is Vampires month, I thought I'd my part by reading by twilight by Stephenie Meyer. ;-) It's the first book in her series that's geared towards young adults. I thought this was a good start to her series - parts of it felt like it was building the foundation by introducing the characters and their back stories. I know this is technically a young adult book, but I thought it was rich and a surprisingly dense read. I really liked the characters, but the one thing that irritated me is how quickly the main characters fall in love.

Once I started reading, I was definitely hooked. I found myself skimming ahead, because I really wanted to know what happened next.

In a nutshell, Bella moves to a small town in Washington to live with her father. She meets Edward and falls in love. The hitch - Edward is a vampire.

About three things I was absolutely positive.
First Edward was a vampire.
Second, there was a part of him - and I didn't know how dominant that part might be - that thirsted for my blood.
And third, I was unconditionally, and irrevocably in love with him.

I find interesting how vampire mythology really varies from author to author. For instance, in twilight, vampires can go outside during the day time, rather than burning in the sun, they sparkle almost irresistibly. They do prefer to go out in overcast/ rainy weather so at not attract attention. Meyer's vampires also don't need to sleep or breathe and are virtually indestructible. In contrast, in the Sookie Stackhouse series and other books like Tanya Huff's, vampires sleep during the day/ or spend the daylight hours in a suspended state, not alert/wake/alive. Charlaine Harris' vampires will burn and can die if they go out in the sunlight.

http://www.stepheniemeyer.com/index.html

May is for vampires?!

I’ve been meaning to post about this for awhile because I think its fun.

First Second, which specializes in graphic novels, has declared May Vampire Month.

Amazon: Vampires? In May? Why, First Second, You Are a Cheeky Publisher, Aren't You? - http://www.omnivoracious.com/2008/05/vampires-in-may.html

First Second’s blog: http://www.firstsecondbooks.typepad.com/mainblog/

There are many novels featuring vampires starting with Bram Stoker’s Dracula all the way up to Laurell K. Hamilton’s Anita Blake series.

First Second publishes Little Vampire and Life Sucks. Both are vampire-themed graphic novels. (I’m eagerly awaiting both from the library.)

There must be something in the air or this idea is really catching on because the Seattle Public Library’s blog is doing a series of posts on vampire fiction.

The Vampire List, Part 1: Love Bites - http://shelftalk.spl.org/2008/05/14/the-vampire-list-part-1-love-bites/

I noticed another reader pointed out the absence of Charlaine Harris’ Sookie Stackhouse books; apparently they’ll be included in later posts. Regular readers are aware I’m a big Charlaine Harris fan.

Update: Shelf Talk's has another vampire post -

http://shelftalk.spl.org/2008/05/21/the-vampire-list-part-2-urban-vamps/

I tried reading the Turning and just couldn't seem to get into it.

Some other vampire reading I’ve enjoyed includes Anita Blake – although I have to admit I lost steam. The earlier books are better. There are many fans who think this series went off the rails.

Mary Janice Davidson, who’s mentioned in Shelf Talk’s list. The first book in this series is Undead and Unwed. I really like these novels. It’s sort of like vampire chick lit. They’re fun, quick reads.

Another series I enjoy is Tanya Huff’s Blood Ties series that revolve around Vicki Nelson, who becomes a private detective after a degenerative eye disease forces her to retire. I would definitely check out Lifetime’s Blood Ties series. I think this really captures the essence of the books, but also stands on their own.

Ack! I didn’t realize this might not be coming back on the air. Really Lifetime you have a great show and you don’t renew it. Grhh. If anyone has positive news to share on this, please do so.

(Side note: Dear Lifetime, I’m watching you! Do NOT mess with my beloved Project Runway. Just DON’T).

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Speaking of vampires – Stephenie Meyer is currently making the rounds for her latest novel, Host. Meyer is best known for her Twilight series – a vampire series geared towards young adults.

Stephenie Meyer By the Numbers - http://www.publishersweekly.com/article/CA6559505.html?q=Stephenie+Meyer+

Meyer is also featured in Book Page, “Words to live by: there are no children’s books or adult books – there are only good books & bad boos. Everyone should read the good ones.”

Amen!