A Brief Summary
This book is basically an introductory one. You meet the characters and get the plot jist. The main ones are Elena and Stefan. They are sort of doomed lovers. Elena is the pretty and popular blonde bomb-shell who feels like she is out of place in her hometown of Fell's Church, Virginia. She meets Stefan, the dark and handsome Italian exchange student who of course has a long, long, long, past. 500 years to be exact. You see, he's a vampire. Elena has three friends who are important to the story: Bonnie, Matt, and Meredith. Bonnie is espically important because she has psychic powers. Anyway, Stefan's brother Damon shows up, who also has a long past, and ALSO is a vampire (surprise surprise). He wants Elena too. Here's were the plot thickens. But I'm not going to get into to it..if you don't know what happens..READ IT! You won't regret it!!
Comments
I personally loved all 4 of the Vampire Diaries. They are my favorite LJ books to date. They hold a special place in my heart because they were the first LJ's I had read. My favorite character was Damon Salvitore...he was something else. Definately scarey and dangerous. To be quite honest with you I didn't like Elena very much. I thought she was slightly shallow and snobby. The theme of gorgeous girl gets gorgeaous guys was kinda droll. But still I loved these books and I have them practically memorized. I felt that the character of Stefan was in DIRE need of Prozac...he had such a guilt complex and severe depression. You'd think that after 500 years he would have learned to like himself...even just a little. But I must admit...he was such a sweetie and a gentleman. He was even a bit prudish...in a 500 year old kinda way. Bonnie was a character I loved. She was so scared to do things, but she did them anyway. And her thing she did with Honoria Fell...woo hoo, gives me the chills. I liked Meredith too because she was so successful in resisting Damon. She was a very strong character. Matt had just a small part in The Awakening, he was Elena's boyfriend before she met Stefan. Matt and Stefan became friends in this one though. I'll get into Matt later. There are two other main characters that were introduced in The Awakening, but I'm gonna talk about them later on. They were Caroline Forbes, B***H extrodinaire, and Tyler Smallwood...can we say woof woof??
Why I liked The Awakening
I have no clue why I liked The Awakening. I guess it just simply had to do with the romantic themes of the book. LJ has a way of writing that can simply enrapture you and pull you into the novel. She makes the characters so appealing. Take Damon for instance...he was absolutely wonderful! She really made you want him to be real in a way. That's her allure...she makes you want her characters to be real. I know any diehard LJ fan would agree. This book completely introduced me into the world of LJ Smith, and in a way it changed my life. Or at least set it on the course it is now. If I had never read this book..I would have been a compeltely different person...this may sound crazy, but it's completely true.
Why I didn't like The Awakening
I have only two problems with this particular book. The first was that Elena seemed to fall in love a little too quickly with Stefan. I mean, for crying out loud..she said "I love you" with their first kiss I think. It seemed like what she was feeling was the other "L" word...and I'm not talking Love here. The other is a quirk that I have with all LJ books...and that is that her characters...all of them, including Damon are above sexuality, like it's a dirty word. I'm not talking sex here...maybe I am. But they all seem to be these squeeky clean teenagers who are so morally sound. I don't know...it's just a little beyond humanity or something. I'd really like to hear from you if you agree with me on this one...or even disagree. Also, one more point...I don't understand why Stefan didn't just go to college. I mean, you learn so much more there, so much offered there. Why bother starting as a high school senior? Makes no sense.
Favorite scene
Okay, my favorite scene in The Awakening was the part where Stefan beats up Tyler Smallwood. This was just a classic example of his gentlemanlyness. I mean like...he basically saved her from being raped. Of course, LJ would never actually say the word in her books...too much of an adult theme and all.
Favorite quote
"When I first met you, I knew you'd never learned any manners. But I had no idea that your character was quite so underdeveloped. Agentleman doesn't force his company on anyone. He doesn't insult a woman, And, above all he does not hurt her..."
-Stefan Salvatore commenting to Tyler Smallwood on his attempted rape of Elena (page 117-118)
Mistakes
There is one small mistake that occured in the The Awakening, and it was one of only two mistakes that I have ever caught in all of LJ's books.
It occurs on page 43. Elena fails to see Stefan walking down the hall because she is looking through her mirror...yet she has a full view of the hall. This shows that because Stefan is a vampire, he can't be seen in a mirror at all, but in fact in the second book he shows Elena that he can be seen in a mirror, that it's all a myth. So at first, LJ wanted Stefan not to be able to see himself in a mirror...then decided against it in the second book. Weird.
Final Notes
As if right now, this book is no longer in print. It is very hard to get hold of. On my main book page I gave two links to on line book stores where you may find them. Also I suggest that you look in used book stores or ask around in local libraries. I HIGHLY suggest that you read this book if you have not already, espically for you die hard LJers!!!
[Go Back!]
