Sunday, July 20, 2008

I LOVE Vampires.

I've jumped on the teenage bandwagon and started reading the Twilight Saga. That's right...it is called the Twilight Saga. I'll give you all a moment to laugh out loud.

Are you finished?

I'm sure everyone remembers the hullabaloo that surrounded the Harry Potter books. It was quite the craze. I did read the first five HP books but that was it. I recently found myself with extra time on my hands (oh, today marks 13 days!) since I've quit smoking and I wanted to start reading again. I researched online and found that the new craze was these books on teenage vampires and werewolves. The artwork was strikingly dark and the reviews were intelligent and, mostly, positive. I started to research some more and determined that I would, indeed, buy the first book.

Well, I went to Borders and was welcomed with a whole TABLE full of Twilight Saga books. (There have been three written so far and another one is due out on August 2nd.) After multiple conversations with strangers (all of whom had read the books already - some twice) I decided that I would buy the first three books. And then came the fun:

Apparently there are stores across the country that will hold midnight release parties for the fourth, and purportedly final, book. It will involve costumes, trivia, and other juvenile things. Well, I signed up to go - and I hadn't even read the first book! It just consumed me so much that I was certain I'd WANT to go.

Needless to say, I am nearly 1/2 way through book one and I am hooked. The writing is seductive and evokes such a sense of mystery that it's difficult to put the book down. Here, instead of my poor description, let me copy and paste what the publisher has to say about TWILIGHT:

Isabella Swan's move to Forks, a small, perpetually rainy town in Washington, could have been the most boring move she ever made. But once she meets the mysterious and alluring Edward Cullen, Isabella's life takes a thrilling and terrifying turn. Up until now, Edward has managed to keep his vampire identity a secret in the small community he lives in, but now nobody is safe, especially Isabella, the person Edward holds most dear. The lovers find themselves balanced precariously on the point of a knife -- between desire and danger.

Deeply romantic and extraordinarily suspenseful, Twilight captures the struggle between defying our instincts and satisfying our desires. This is a love story with bite.
OK, I have to say that I don't necessarily consider it a "love story". This teenage girl falls in love with the vampire boy...that's all I know so far. But it is extraordinarily intriguing and I encourage all of you "reading for pleasure" people to go out and buy the first book.

Enough rambling, Bella and Edward are calling me.


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