Goodreads Description:
A regular on national bestseller lists, having sold well over three million copies, The Vampire Diaries series is a classic of thrilling paranormal romance. The Vampire Diaries series has captured the hearts and imaginations of readers—and the CW network TV show that it inspired has introduced millions more to the chills, thrills, and heart-stopping romance.
Thoughts..
These books were just OK to me. I was never overly enthralled by these books. They kept my attention, but they aren't a "can't put this book down / sleep is overrated" kind of book. I have said this with another series, but I will continue to read these books as long as they keep publishing them though. I guess I am a glutton for punishment. A series would have to be downright horrible for me to stop reading before I am finished. I have a need to know what happens!
I only started reading the series when I saw the previews for the show Vampire Diaries. Now, the previews got my attention. So off I went to the store and picked up the books. I believe I got to read most of them back to back which was nice. I only had to wait for the last two. That probably helped me getting through the series.
My biggest problem with the series: I can't get used to L.J. Smith's writing style. I have such a hard time picturing / understanding what she is trying to portray. Stuff will just happen out of nowhere and I have to jump back up 3 paragraphs and reread just to figure out what the hell is going on.
The series has SO MUCH POTENTIAL. I loved the premise...Humans, Vampires, Werewolves, Witches, and even Angels (?). There was a fair amount of suspense in the books. I found that the first set of books flowed nicely for me. But, by the time I got to The Returned Series, they were dragging just a bit. We dealt with the damn kitsune for what like 3 books? I was so over it! How much trouble can a little half fox creature cause? Well, apparrently a whole hell of a lot.
I got so frustrated with the love triangle in this story! Elena and Stephan were just TOO sappy. I didn't feel that the characters were written with teenagers (or real people) in mind. I guess it goes by to the whole otherwordly love they share with one another. But, dang it, sometimes I wanted to gag at how overly sweet they were with each other. And then don't get me started with Elena! She LOVES Stephan, but is OK with having all these conflicting feelings (and actions) with Damon.
Honestly, I am Team Damon!! I want Elena to end up with Damon so bad, but I don't think that is ever going to happen. There is no way that Elena could redeem herself after choosing Damon. That would be ruthless. However, I still want L.J. to make that happen for me. Damon may be a bit selfish at times, a jerk most of the time, and evil the rest of time, but you have to love the dark and mysterious character!
I don't want to give too many spoilers away around here, but I thought that the last published book was the last book forever. Some sad shit went down that I will even admit that I might have had a tear. I was so not OK with what happened at first. I was looking for L.J. to pull some of her crazy ideas out and fix that for me. Alas, she did not, so during the last chapter I dealt with it and accepted it. Now, I was fine with the ending of this book until she wrote ONE word and stirred the whole crazy pot back up. Everything I thought I had dealt with well now I have no idea what to think!
There are talks of another trilogy, but L.J. Smith might not be writing them....we will see my friends, we will see. It's like I said, if they publish it, I will read it.
Update, I read the newest book in the series / trilogy...Phantom. My thoughts and feelings were pretty much the same as above. They were "OK". Enough said...
NOW, onto the TV show....
I love me some Vampire Diaries on the CW. The credits on the show should say "inspired by" the novels as a disclaimer because they are loosely based on the books (which is probably good for me). They have added so many new things to the show that I forget what even really happened in the books. The characters are way better on the show. Elena is sassier, Stefan has a back bone, Damon is even hotter (lol), Bonnie is not a fainter, and Alaric isn't a teacher that dates a student. I definitely recommend this show. Every Friday morning, Sassy and I spend at least 30 minutes discussing what happened the night before on TVD. Half of our time might be spend talking about Damon (Ian Somerhalder). If you have read any previous posts, you know we are fans of his. He plays a perfect Damon.
So did I completely turn you off from these books? I didn't mean to, but apparently I have some pretty strong feelings about them. I do recommend them, just don't expect an epic experience.
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