Lately, it seems like people have been coming out of the wood works to tell me how excited they are about the Twilight book series. I read a few reviews online, and based on a few very bad ones, I was a little skeptical. If I'm going to read for escape, I like books that either involve time travel, people with magical powers, or time traveling people with magical powers. A series of books about vampire romance seemed to fit my criteria loosely at best.
I went to Barnes & Noble Friday night, resigned to giving the first book a try. It did not help my enthusiasm when I discovered that a) the series is housed in the TEEN FICTION section, and b) a large group of gossipy teen girls was parked in front of the shelf. I had to murmur "excuse me" and snake my hand around the corner to snag the first book.
Before you get to the picture of what happened, let me say that I do still have reservations about this series. The author must have been tortured in high school, because the way she writes teen angst is VERY angst-y. Much of the plot is frustratingly circular - we keep ending up in the same spot over hundreds of pages. And if you're looking for more multi-dimensional romance, I still highly recommend Diana Gabaldon's Outlander series....
Yeah. I had to duck my head in shame on Saturday afternoon and go back to the bookstore for the other three books. The cashier just smiled sympathetically and didn't even make a comment as she popped open "the big bag" to carry them out in. In the picture, they're in order from top to bottom. I know, I know. I'm shocked at myself too. I've read two and 1/2 books in one weekend, and honestly, I'll at least be part way through the fourth one before tomorrow morning.
To my credit, other things HAVE gotten done around the house this weekend. The washer and dryer did two loads of laundry for me, and the dishwasher did two loads of dishes. Andie and I have eaten at regular intervals. There may have even been some tidying up in a few rooms, and I have a craft project 3/4 of the way done (more on that in another post).
I listed a few complaints earlier, so to make this a balanced(ish) review, here are a few of the things I really like about the series. The author is very good about cleaning up loose ends. And OBVIOUSLY she's pretty skilled at writing suspense, or I would have been able to set the books down by now. Sheesh. The War On Drugs people really should be keeping an eye on the author, if only to encourage her to write faster.
