by Serena on December 30, 2010
OK, here comes the truth. I signed up for 12 reading challenges this year, knowing full well that I would be unable to finish them all. But it was meant to challenge me, right? I was challenged and finished 9 out of 12 challenges. Not a bad record, so I’m not going to feel too bad about it.
My biggest failure was the 2010 All About the Brontes Challenge for which I read ZERO books by the June 30th deadline.
However, I gave myself an extension through the end of the year, and I still only read 1 book of poetry.
My second failure is the Vampire Series Challenge. I read 4 books for this challenge, though most of them were in the Sookie Stackhouse Series. I did read the short novella from the Twilight series and the latest Christopher Moore book in his vampire series. I only missed completing this one by 2 books.
My third failure is the Sookie Stackhouse Reading Challenge, though for this one, I actually read 4 out of 10 books in the series.
I’m likely to finish reading all of these books at some point, so I’m sure you’ll see reviews of these in the new year.
What challenges did you finish? Which challenges did you fail to finish?
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by Serena on August 19, 2010
Stephenie Meyer‘s The Short Second Life of Bree Tanner is a short novella that takes a glimpse at the other side of vampirism . . . the darker side. Written as a companion to the Eclipse novel and the release of the movie, readers will experience what it truly is to be a newborn vampire, to crave the blood, and to think of nothing else.
“She opened her mouth to scream, but my teeth crushed her windpipe before a sound could come out. There was just the gurgle of air and blood in her lungs, and the low moans I could not control.” (Page 10)
Bree Tanner is a young teen turned vampire thrust into a vicious world of vampire gangs, who hides behind Fred, a young vampire with the power to repel others. She’s timid and fearful of the new world she’s in, but she cannot control her thirst any more than her other counterparts. Bree meets an older vampire teen, Diego who takes her under his wing and allows her to find comfort with her new life.
Overall, the novella is a quick read and helps shed light on the vampire world not seen in the Twilight series, but it lacked the gruesome and detailed slashing that one would expect from newborn vampires. Much of The Short Second Life of Bree Tanner focuses on teen angst about fitting in and finding one’s way in the world, and naturally about a budding love. Meyer is a gifted storyteller, but her timidity with regard to the vicious nature of vampires will leave many fans feeling flat.
***I borrowed my copy of Meyer’s novella from the local library. I’d also like to thank Not Enough Books for the recommendation.***
This is my 4th book for the 2010 Vampire Series Challenge.
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