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Set during the Civil War, against a backdrop of grand estates, unimaginable riches, and deadly secrets, three teenagers in Mystic Falls, Virginia enter a torrid love triangle that will span eternity. Brothers Stefan and Damon Salvatore are inseparable until they meet Katherine, a stunning, mysterious woman who turns their world upside down. Siblings turned rivals, the Salvatores compete for Katherine's affection, only to discover that her sumptuous silk dresses and glittering gems hide a terrible secret: Katherine is a vampire. And she is intent on turning them into vampires so they can live together-forever. Based on the popular CW TV show inspired by the bestselling novels, Stefan's Diaries reveals the truth about what really happened between Stefan, Damon, and Katherine—and how the Vampire Diaries love triangle began.
Paperback: 256 pages
Publisher: HarperTeen; 1 edition (November 2, 2010)
Language: English
ISBN-10: 0062003933
ISBN-13: 978-0062003935
Product Dimensions: 5.3 x 0.6 x 8 inches
Shipping Weight: 6.4 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
Average Customer Review: 4.1 out of 5 stars See all reviews (122 customer reviews)
Best Sellers Rank: #310,184 in Books (See Top 100 in Books) #25 in Books > Teens > Historical Fiction > United States > Civil War Period #194 in Books > Teens > Literature & Fiction > TV, Movie, Video Game Adaptations #345 in Books > Teens > Romance > Historical
Don't get me wrong, I love Vampire Diaries--both the tv show and the books by L.J. Smith--but this book wasn't quite as good as I was expecting. There's nothing new here--the story parallels the flashbacks from the tv show. I didn't really gain any new understanding of Stefan from reading this like I hoped I would. That being said it's an entertaining read and if you're a fan of Vampire Diaries you'll enjoy it, but if you watch the tv series you already know how it ends so there's no suspense here.Pros:-Damon. He's not in the book much but his brief appearances make the read worthwhile. We actually get to see how his and Stefan's relationship was before they were vampires. It was interesting seeing this side of him.Cons:-The details in this book follow the tv series rather than L.J. Smith's other books, which means they contradict her other books. This threw me off a bit at first. For example, characters who were introduced in the tv show such as Pearl & Anna but were non-existent in the books show up here. This may annoy detail-oriented readers.-I love Stefan to death but in this book I'm sad to say he got on my nerves. He came across as so wimpy and depressing, letting his father walk all over him. I just wanted to smack him and say speak up for once already! Maybe that was the point but this side of his character still irritated me.Also, his 'love' for Katherine bothered me. It felt more like lust to me, because he kept going on about how beautiful she was, but he only mentioned what qualities he liked in her I think once. And the smallest things would come up and in an instant he'd jump to conclusions be like "oh she's a monster how could I have ever thought I loved her?
This book has me torn on what to think of it. The big thing I noticed and DID NOT LIKE was that this book does NOT follow the books. If you read the first couple vampire diary books and read this hoping for a better understanding of the famous rift, forget it. Apparently this book follows only the televised version. I have not yet seen the show so I cannot say for sure, but the scenario of this book has turned me even further off the show. However, if you like the show, then you may like this.Heading off that rant for the time being...This book is written from the perspective of our vampire hero, Stephen Salvatore. Although, to start with, he is not yet a vampire in this book, but a young man set to marry a woman he does not love. Enter Katherine, a beauty to whom he is instantly drawn to. This book covers his relation to he, the vampire hunt in his town and a bit of Damon too.SPOILER WARNING FROM THIS POINT IF YOU HAVE NOT READ THE BOOKS OR SEEN THE SERIES!!!So in the books, both Damon and Stephen fall in love with Katherine and literally fight to the death over her and since she had been feeding off them, the both turned to vampires.Not quite so here, while they do both fall for her, as Stephen sees her true nature he is horrified and turns away from her while Damon accepts her. When the hunt is on, he helps Damon free her. Yet they fail, Katherine is apparently 'killed' as are Damon and Stephan by their own father. They aren't yet dead though, and are instead something between vampire and human. Stephen hunts down a young girl, feeds as he finishes the turn and giddily gives the same girl to his brother so they can be vampires forever together.So stopping there for a second...that does not even make much sense to me.
Being a huge fan of all of L.J. Smith's books, including The Vampire Diaries series, I was eager to discover how another writer would interpret the world she inspired. If you think this will be just like the other Vampire Diaries books, know that it is one hundred percent based off of the television show. The only similarity to the books are the names, as it is with the show. That said, I still enjoyed it tremendously.Stefan is telling the story in this series, and I enjoyed hearing his voice retell the story of his past. I easily fell into the story he was narrating, and enjoyed seeing the world through his eyes. He does counter himself a bit, which got to me after a while, however. The rest of the characters were very well written, and I felt as though they were taken from screen to page perfectly.Though we do not know who actually wrote this book, they did a great job. Unlike Smith's writing, this story wasn't bogged down with description and detail, which I quite liked. I do adore L.J. Smith's writing style, but she can load on a bit too much description at times. With this book, you get just enough description and feel as though you are living the story.I had the unique experience of someone who doesn't watch the show. Sure, I've seen a few episodes, but I don't tune in every week, eyes bulging at the screen with every twist and turn the story creates. That said, I didn't know too much about how this book differentiates from the show's plot.I really enjoyed reading this book, as it takes you into the past of Stefan, Damon, and Katherine. While it is nothing like the books I adore, I know that fans of the television show and book series alike should take a chance on this book, even if it does deter from the story we have become so accustomed to.
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