Å·±¦ÓéÀÖ

Elena is the most popular girl in school, her boyfriend Matt a classic all-American sporty, nice boy. Then she sees the new boy, Stefan, dark, sensual, and totally oblivious to her. She determines to have him, and promptly gets rid of Matt. There are a few complications, though: one, Stefan is a vampire from the Italian renaissance period; two, she looks a lot like Katherine, the girl he was in love with who made him a vampire before killing herself, thinking he and his brother Damon, whom she also converted, would then stop fighting over her; and three, Damon is also in the city, and he has his sights set on Elena.

These teen vampire books have been out for more than a decade, but have only recently been merged into two single volumes, rather than the original four.

It's a familiar-enough story, a little similar to Stephenie Meyer's Twilight books but not (note that it was published in 1991, more than 10 years before Twilight - still, comparisons crop up, though if anything, this could have been inspiration for Meyer).

This is a much darker story than the Twilight books - people actually die in The Vampire Diaries, and Damon is a truly malevolent character. There are the usual elements of "normal" teenager life: home troubles, back-stabbing friends, parties and lusty teenage boys who drink too much. The writing style is succinct and to-the-point, but the details necessary for a dark atmosphere strumming with tension are all there.

I would recommend this double volume, for the first book, The Awakening, ends on a bit of a cliff-hanger, while the end of The Struggle is not quite so bad (though very exciting!). I can wait to read the second volume. I certainly want to find out how it is resolved, since what happens to Elena at the end is a bit frightening, and I was surprised at my sympathy for Stefan, whose pain is very real.