REVIEW: 'The Vampire Diaries: 'The Fury' and 'Dark Reunion' by L.J. Smith

 Let's jump right into it.

I did not move through the next two books in Smith's series as quickly.  The torrid teenage love junk was pretty much over, and in came the creepiness.

Well.  As creepy as you can get for a young adult vampire series.  Still, the books didn't land my dreams in fields of roses.

The fourth book was especially unique in that it was told from a different perspective -- a refreshing break from Elena's bratty narration.  Even though Elena's Ice Princess personality begins to melt by the end of the third book, she didn't make a large enough transformation for me to completely redeem her.  Stefan's personality also changed, as he went from mysteriously brooding in the second book to downright lovesick and self-deprecating in the third and fourth.

And can someone tell me where the heck Damon was in all this?  I never found him to be much of a threat, as he only made occasional appearances throughout all four books.  The love triangle described in the plot summary was absent from most of the story.

The next book in the series (The Return: Nightfall, published years after the first four), supposedly plucks this fading love game back from the edge...but, as always, once I begin a series in paperback, I must finish it in paperback.  As much as I'd like to be done with this series, and revert back to the more thrilling, less obvious TV show, there was one GIANT question Smith left unanswered at the end of Dark Reunion.  Sigh.  At least she's guaranteed the sales.





NEXT UP:  Little Women by Louisa May Alcott.  I read most of this book when I was in gradeschool, but towards the end got bored and put it down.  This time, I intend to finish it!