Sunday, September 07, 2008 Cruz Review: Twilight, true Love at 17? POST A COMMENT 'Doubtful Teen-lit author Meyer needs any help pushing her Twilight book series, but as promised here's my perspective: Book Genre: Teen Vamps -- 'Propelled by suspense and romance in equal parts,' offers Publishers Weekly. Story Blurb: A perfect male-model-type Vampire falls for your ordinary girl next door -- (or what coulda been subtitled, finding your soul mate at age 17...'subtracting of course anything to do with sex), so it's a big time fantasy. Page-turner meter, (or the can't-put-it-down factor): I gotta be honest, I was not hooked from page one, but I ending up reading the entire book in under four days...'in large part my I'm-not-buying-this meter got in the way of fully enjoying the suspense. Could also have something to do with the fact that I'm not the intended female teen audience; but, the good news is that regardless of your age (or gender), the story kicks into high gear after about page 90. So, on a scale of 1-10, it gets a shaky 8. What I really liked: I do get it; 'and especially understand why girls really love it. The protagonist, Bella, is your average teen girl and after spending so much time in her head we see a modern day Prince Charming story (or in this case, add a touch of the Prince of Darkness danger factor to the mix). What I least liked: I got it down to two things that really bite at me... (1) In Meyers world nobody has, or talks sex...'I'm sure, if memory serves correctly, that your average 16 or 17 year old might have at least thought about it once. One of the most seductive things in Vamp-lore is the erotic nature, so to cut that out completely feels very Sarah Palin-ish. (2) A few critics have accused Meyer of 'peddling saccharine melodrama,' I think that's in part to do with the dialogue. The characters in this book don't sound like your average teens...unless they all live on a Amish farm. 'That being said, there's a part of me (like any screeching teen girl) that also yearns for eternal love and finding my soul mate...'so, I'm eagerly looking forward to seeing the movie, and reading more from Meyer. Labels: Books, Cruz book reviews, Film, Stephenie Meyer, Twilight Saga, what I'm reading posted by Henry Cruz at 7:09 PM Thursday, September 04, 2008 Twilight-mania: Playing catch up! POST A COMMENT 'late-to-lunch on that Vamp-Twilight-saga (by Stephenie Meyer)...'but, my hunger for pop culture, cool Vamps, and a writing-success story got me reading. Both on the Meyers back-story and the 1st Twilight book: 'bout the sappy-relations between a abercrombie-looking-vamp and an semi-average teenage girl -- (I'm on the final few pages of the book, and I'll post a review later in the week)... 'Lets get into how-Meyers-did-it-story. Those big sales -- 'isn't due simply to her vivid imagination for vampire romance,' as Business Week points out. They called it -- 'the first social networking best seller.' 'Meyer, a 34-year-old mother of three from Phoenix, went well beyond standard marketing. She engaged with online readers to answer their most detailed questions about the star-crossed lovers, Edward Cullen and Bella Swan. She put up her own Web site, in addition to the one by her publisher, Little, Brown Books for Young Readers, posting her personal e-mail address and family photos...' In turn, 'Meyer's readers have responded by creating an entire world of Twilight on the Web.' While the web -- (and the rabid-fans-need-to-know) is the best way to connect with other fans...it's not without pitfalls. 'Just yesterday: Meyers punished fans after a partial (rough) draft of the next book was leaked on the web. As Meyer wrote on her website, "I'd rather my fans not read this version of Midnight Sun...'My first feeling was that there was no way to continue. Writing isn't like math; in math, two plus two always equals four no matter what your mood is like. With writing, the way you feel changes everything. If I tried to write Midnight Sun now, in my current frame of mind, James would probably win and all the Cullens would die..." Source: Business Week Labels: Books, Can Writing be Taught, Stephenie Meyer, Twilight Saga, Vampires, web trends, what I'm reading posted by Henry Cruz at 4:33 PM     ARCHIVES October 2005 . November 2005 . December 2005 . August 2007 . September 2007 . October 2007 . November 2007 . December 2007 . March 2008 . April 2008 . May 2008 . June 2008 . July 2008 . August 2008 . September 2008 .