Seriously?

I know you said you only read fluff books, and I hate calling people out over something as subjective as book taste....but you really didn't find them cliché or creepy?

I read the first book, after being advised to by several friends. One in particular said "its dreadful, you'll love it". She was right. On first read, sure, it seems like fluff writing by a not very talented writer, but on the second reading...oh where to start? There is a very creepy undertone to the entire premise of the series, namely the "romance" between Bella and Edward, which reads like an abusive relationship more than anything else.

I could go through the levels of plot creepiness and bad writing in this book, if you wanted, but I don't want to make it seem like I'm slamming on you. Its just the damnable series and how so many of its fans have bought into it being the "perfect romance story" (I never knew so many girls liked being stalked) that winds me up.

Oh, honey, I wasn't really offended :P I just tend more towards deadpan, than obvious sarcasm. I'll try to remember the :p in future *smiles*



[eta] I haven't read the Twilight books; but from the little bits I have heard it sounds quite an unhealthy romance to me. I do wonder, sometimes, at the stuff that is aimed at teenage girls.

The main character was the stalker stalking the vampire teenager. There wasn't any sex, or bloodletting or anything abusive in Twillight. There wasn't any descriptive sex details in the others as far as I can remember.

Oh and it IS an unhealthy relationship. The girl does alot of internal dialouge about why it is and the vampire teenager tries to push her away and avoid her much of the time. I don't think the author protrays it being a 'good thing' They become friends.

For the rest of the series...Let's just say I didn't loan my neighbors teenager the second book in the series. I thought that was better left up to the parent and her conscience. The second does lose it's innocence of the first but I liked them.

I didn't view the first as a romance but then I am quite old. I do see how the others are questionable to some people who aren't into the vampire genre.

I appologize to anyone who is offended by my reading of that damnable series!

I am sure there's more crap than that out there to call out.
thanks

I've just finished a poor book called In This Skin by Simon Clark.
I thought it was a vampire novel from the cover (I'm a library member again now! so I choose by cover if I want to) but it was more a monster book. It had great promise, featuring a spooky run-down dancehall in Chicago, people with mysteriously fast-healing wounds and a terrifyingly disgusting character glimpsed on occasion. But it just because a bit blah, and was actually quite saccharine from about 2/3 in.

Next is Bite Club by Hal Bodner.
This one is definitely a vampite book as it tells me on the cover, "A West-Hollywood Vampire Novel". Might start it tonight.

Just finished The Margarets by Sheri S Tepper.
Not one of her best. Or maybe it's because I've read a couple of hers back to back (I got out two I had already read - I love the luxury a library permits!) The cumulative effect is a bit preachy. Also, a jarring momnet - in this ideal Earth that is being created after all the people who have lots of babies are sorted out (recurring Tepper theme) she reintroduces dairy herds.

*Spang* I immediately question this, which takes me out of the novel.

Now I'm by no means a card carrying member of PETA. I love me some dairy products. But this ideal Earth is being monitored by intergalactic bodies (also recurring theme so not giving away any plot here). I am dubious as to whether they would approve of human dairy consumption, given so many people worldwide are lactose intolerant, that cows suffer in order to supply us with constant milk and that as a lactating species ourself it is not biologically sound for us to drink another animal's lactation, designed to promote growth of a completely different animal.

Anyway. That's just what I thought :)

S.G. The Bite Club is suppose to have alot of humor in it.

and I like your thought spin on the last title The Margarets.

Uh, you may want to re-read it. There are quite clearly several points before their relationship starts where Edward is stalking Bella, including where he breaks into her house to watch her as she sleeps.

Also, you have to factor in he admits to having violent impulses towards her and fantasizes about killing her, and indeed claims to be on the verge of doing it several times before.

True on the sex part, but vamprism is pretty much a metaphor from sex, right from the get go. The whole exchange of bodily fluids etc...even the film makes this pretty explicit after the final fight scene.

Actually, throughout the series, she generally does. Also Word of God (ie author interviews) make it explicit she intended for Edward to be seen as the perfect romantic figure - and many of the fans agree.

Also, I would suggest Bella's internal monologues are just (bad) ways of raising the level of angst and tension into the plot. While she gives reasons, they're not actually the reasons most people would give as to why there might be problems with this relationship. Most of it stems from the fact that Bella is a typical "Anti-Sue", a character who believes they have no redeeming traits, yet the world still, somehow, manages to revolve around them (basically antiheroes and heroines for poor writers, who are unable to plot effectively and/or don't realize an antihero is meant to have flaws, not be made of them).

Personally, I thought the werewolf c-section in one of the later books was hilarious, but I would agree with discretion concerning who reads them, considering their content and the age-group to whom the original book was targeted.

Well, I will admit I'm not massively into the genre (Bram Stoker was good, Terry Pratchett's parodies were better, the Buffy TV series was pretty good mainly because of the genius of Joss Whedon, but that's about it). In fact, the only reason I know as much about this book as I do is because I intend to co-write a subversion of it, where what I consider the creepy subtext to the main plot is made much more explicit.

Satire is hard work, but someone has to do it.

ah

I won't be re -reading it. I don't care that much that Bella was a black hole for the dangerous or that Edward used her for smell-avision. I'll be trading them in for something else to read.

good luck on your pursuits

Nicely put. You really do have a smashing way with words Sky.

aww a best friend uses the word smashing.* sniffle *You made me miss him with your kind word.

I don't know whether to thank you or not. :P * tease*

Hahah. A cruel dilemma indeed. :P

I just finished "The Yiddish Policemen's Union". It's something different in the way of a hard-boiled detective story. Lots of fun if you're familiar with even a little Jewish culture.

At the risk of destroying this thread, since I read about one book every 20 years...I've read two in the past month.

*ducks*

Anyway, they are books by Michael Pollan, who writes for the NY Times magazine: "The Omnivore's Dilemma" and "In Defense of Food." Great books that really make you think about food and how it fits into our culture. I got to meet him at a book signing in St. Louis last week...great speaker. I strongly recommend the books.

I just finished the 3rd book in the Inheritance cycle by Christopher Paolini. It'd been awhile since I had read the first two, Eragon and Eldest. Originally this was supposed to be just a trilogy, so I'm excited its turned into a cycle. I like the characters, so I want more books! I just have to wait for more cuz they aren't written yet. Damnit.

Wishful Drinking - Carrie Fisher. WASTE OF TIME AND $$$$

Best line in the book: If religion is the opiate of the masses, I took masses of opiates religiously. otherwise, lots of Debbie Reynolds worship, not much about Paul Simon (except this little bit of advice: "if you can get Paul Simon to write a song about you, do it!" - gee, Carrie, thanks for THAT; and a bunch of shite you can hear at any AA meeting. Yawn. Give me Augusten Burroughs any day.

Trouble is, much of the humour was slapstick and/ or cliched. And the main protagonist's bf was the most annoyin character I have read in a very, very long time. He minced and screamed and bitched his was through the book and no-one killed him. Missed opportunity. Also the author needs to look up the definition of "quipped" because some of the things that character quipped were neither clever nor witty.
I loved it too! Here is my impression of it.
I nearly picked this up at the library last week. I'll give it a miss I think.