These books were not my favourites. I read them because of the new TV series that is out but I have to say I like the TV series way more. The books tend to drag things out. I give these books 2 out of 5 ( )

The first two volumes of this series is about a girl named Elena. Elena falls in love with the seemingly mysterious Stefan. Of course, he has every reason to shroud himself in mystery. He is a vampire, one who loathes himself more than everything else. Well, almost everything; if you count out his brother Damon. They hate each other more than anything, because of a girl they had both lost. They point the finger at one another and promise to kill each other. Now-to make things even more refreshing- Elena looks startlingly like the deceased girl. Elena will do whatever it takes to have Stefan. Damon will do anything to get Elena. See a pattern here? Elena will soon find herself in more of a "pinch" than she ever imagined. I recommend this book to anyone who loves reading a complex and tragic love story that's stained with blood. ^.^ ( )

Anyone reading this book would be forgiven for thinking that it was rather derivative of a certain other one, (Twilight that is!). It even has an apple on the black cover ... Amazingly, it was published over ten years before Stephanie Meyer had even started hers. Understandingly, the publishers have jumped on the bandwagon with a new edition. I didn't discover it until I had already read Twilight though, so my thoughts about Smith's book can't help but but be influenced by the other.

The Vampire Diaries was originally written as a trilogy in 1991, and extended to 4 parts a year later. This edition contains parts 1 & 2. Smith is now adding another new trilogy to the series, and inbetween also created the 'Night World' series of novels featuring many different supernatural races.

Smith's heroine is beautiful and popular, and when a new boy Stefan comes to school, she just has to have him. Sure enough he's a vampire with an evil older brother Damon. Back in the Renaissance they both loved the same woman, who became vampire and then when they forced her to choose between them, she took both, but Stefan still thinks she really loved him before she died. Elena reminds him of her - so they're made for each other. Then nasty things start to happen in this little town - there's a big black crow always around, then people get scared in the old ruined church, and an old guy is killed under bridge over the river. Then at the school's Halloween Haunted House party, someone dies - all fingers point to Stefan, but we know that Damon lives and he wants what his brother wants ...

Arguably, more happens than in Twilight, however I found the Vampire Diaries rather ordinary and humourless, somewhat full of stereotypes and also lacking the former's subtlety. Also, for a book with the word 'Diaries' in the title, the few diary pages included were strangely uninvolving to me. I would describe the book(s) as competent, and fans of her Night World series will surely enjoy these vampires. ( )

Why didn't I read this series when I was 12? I’m 31 now and enjoyed it, but I think this would have been much more magical at 12.

Elena comes off on the pretentious and shallow side at first - the self-titled “queen of the school”. But she slowly blossoms throughout the book and you eventually start to like her. Her obsession turns to devotion, and her conceited demeanor transforms into a single-minded determination to become someone worthy.

Stefan is handsome, brooding and your typical tortured vampire. He's haunted by his past love who he and his evil brother Damon dueled over, and centuries later he's still not over it all-until of course, he meets Elena.

Damon although evil - I found to be a very captivating character. Even in the first installment of this series, it is difficult to dislike him. He is the embodiment of sexuality and temptation that I can assume will only become more appetizing as the series enfolds.

My only gripe would be that I found Elena and Stefan's relationship to be slightly rushed and not very credible. One moment he’s avoiding her like the plague - the next moment she’s telling him she loves him. I just don’t think that’s a positive note for kids to read about when they’re young and impressionable. I feel that the “love” word should have a bit more substance than that.

With that said, I can definitely see why this series is popular - especially with the tween crowd. There were foggy cemeteries, dead teachers, dark and stormy nights, girls being held in thrall, you know, all that great classic stuff. Ms. Smith’s writing is succinct and to the point - but you can still enjoy all the details that are necessary to create the dark atmosphere surrounding Elena and Stefan. I will forewarn, the ending is a cliffhanger, so there is no doubt that I will be picking up the next book in the series.

This is a story of love, betrayal, revenge, second chances... but also so much more. Although it is geared for a teen/young adult crowd - I think adult readers will find it a fun, enjoyable read. ( )

This book is another high school vampire/human romance that was originally published in the '90s. This is actually the first two books of the series published in one volume. I liked the overall story but the romance between vampire Stefan and human Elena was seriously lacking in chemistry and development. For one thing, they spend almost no time together because they are always being attacked, avoiding being attacked or recovering from being attacked. Secondly, Stefan is the wimpiest vampire ever! Most of the time Elena is rescuing and taking care of him. I'm all for girl power but he's a vampire for Pete's sake - he needs to buck up.

The book ended with a doozy of a cliff-hanger so I'll definitely read next installment of the series. ( )