SMeyer's epic and comparative fail...

[dangermousie]

I will never believe SMeyer didn't read L.J. Smith (an author of teen vamp/witch/etc books who wrote decade+ ago) and steal things from her. I am currently reading L.J. Smith's Vampire Diaries and the similarities are uncanny, and I am not just talking about the fact that both are 4-volume series. Let's see: we have a narrator girl in a small town, whom a lot of boys like. We have a mysterious new boy in her school who is a vampire who doesn't eat humans blah blah. I am too lazy to list the similarities but suffice it to say they are ample.

However, LJ Smith >>>>>>> SMeyer. Smith is a fun, pulpy read while SMeyer is that horrible one-night stand which makes you feel unclean afterwards. Shall I count in how many ways Smith's quartet is better?

1. I have no idea if Elena and Stefan engage in sex in any point during the books, but there is no half-vampire baby biting her way out of Elena's womb and named after a Loch Ness monster.

2. Elena is not my favorite heroine in the whole wide world, but I actually like her just fine. She has a personality!. And *gasp* female friendships. And a world that does not revolve 120% around Stefan. She does not get married out of high school, does not desire to be turned into a vamp, and also does not state every ten minutes how gorgeous her boyfriend is.

3. Stefan - a bit of an angsty vamp cliche but he actually has a personality. And I can see why Elena likes him - he is a very good guy. Oh, and he almost rips the necks off a bunch of people and certainly leaves them in need of long-term hospitalization. Plus, I can actually buy the love story. Most importantly, at no point does he sparkle.

4. Vampire Brady Bunch v. sibling vamps who hate each other and have killed each other in the past? I know who I prefer.

5. These books actually have *gasp* a plot and are not solely about marbley, sparkly perfection of vampiredom. In fact, a rather twisty plot. I approve.

6. Aaaaaangst. There are deaths and resurrections and a lot of torture. Yum.

7. Vampire Baseball? What's that?

*uses icon from another retelling of angsty high school vampire cliche that actually works*

Comments

[ladyaeryn.livejournal.com]

*uses icon from another retelling of angsty high school vampire cliche that actually works*

*does the same* :)

I found the Twilight movie pretty thoroughly dull. (Didn't pay for it, thank goodness.) If it's as close to the book as people claim it is? Sure doesn't encourage me to spend my time on the series.

[dangermousie.livejournal.com]

It's very close and slightly better than the book. It is all pretty dreadful!

[plazmah.livejournal.com]

*uses icon from another retelling of angsty high school vampire cliche that actually works*

Me three.

[dangermousie.livejournal.com]

Oh, VK and your emo twistedness!

[bzoppa.livejournal.com]

I really liked LJ Smith in high school. I reread the witch and psychic series a few years ago since they were the only complete ones I had. I loved the Forbidden Game series too, but I lost one of the books. (Makes note to re-buy.)

I didn't like the vampire series as much as I liked the others, but at least I read them and didn't run screaming from the books.

[bzoppa.livejournal.com]

Huh. Looks like she's capitalizing on the resurge in vampire literature: The Vampire Dairies: Return: Nightfall. I'm not necessarily suggesting you read them, just thought it was interesting that she's following up the series, 17 or so years later.

I keep amazon'ing the Forbidden Game series omnibus. I'm so craving a re-read right now.

[dangermousie.livejournal.com]

Hmmmm...I might seek out more of her books, they seem fun in a popcorny kind of way.

[bzoppa.livejournal.com]

I'll give you the lowdown.

The Forbidden Game is really fun, she jumps off some cool mythology to get her story.

I liked The Secret Circle in high school but was less impressed when I re-read it. It's about witches and the main character is kind of a Mary Sue.

The Dark Power or something is okay, psychics at a school.

I didn't like Nightworld at all, and that's when I stopped reading her books. I found them way too predictable.

She also has two modern fantasy deals which were kind of fun.

[ginger001]

Edited to mean what I really wanted to:

I thought there weren't more people who thought more or less the same about Meyer's books. I read the first one and left it before I reached the end. I found them too obvious and there are things that simply are too much for me to find them interesting.

When somebody told me what happened in the last one I was really glad I decided not to give the books a chance.

I enjoyed the movie, though, mainly because I find Robert Pattinson hot and also because I rather watch the movie than read the books... and as it seems the movies are really close to the books, why do I need to read them?

[dangermousie.livejournal.com]

Yeah, the books are awful. I didn't care for the movie but at least it was pretty :)

[shewhohashope.livejournal.com]

LJ Smith >>>>>>>>>>>> than every trashy vamp novel writer out there.

The Vampire Diaries are actually my least favourite books of hers, yet they outshine Twilight in every way.

And now I've read The Host (also by Smeyer - much better than Twilight, btw) and it's been done better before by Octavia Butler in her Xenogenesis series.

If I had a vampire knight icon, it would go here.

[dangermousie.livejournal.com]

SMeyer: ripping people off since 1639.

[syrenstar.livejournal.com]

Mourns her lack of VK icon

I haven't read LJ Smith's earlier stuff so I can't compare, although I'm debating getting Twilight to see if it really as that bad as everyone says. Second hand through Amazon mind you, I'm not paying full price for a book about bloody sparkly vampires.

You're post has reminds me how curious I am about how the Night World series would have ended. L J Smith knew how to write a book with the right amount of cheese.

I wish I hadn't given away all my 'The Teenage Years' books in the great book cull that happened for my last house move, I have to the urge to re-read my favourites.

[ladysaotome.livejournal.com]

I'm planning to check it out from the library for the same reason. It sounds so bad but hubby's aunt (50 year-old) raves about the books & a teen I know who hasn't read the books enjoys the movie so I'm highly curious.

[dangermousie.livejournal.com]

Don't do it! Twilight is horrific!

[dangermousie.livejournal.com]

Oh, VK is such such sweet crack. That is how you do tortured teen vamps, SMeyer!

[wingstodust.livejournal.com]

Smith is a fun, pulpy read while SMeyer is that horrible one-night stand which makes you feel unclean afterwards.

LMAO!! that is exactlyyyy it.

Though I'm afraid I don't agree with you on Vampire Knight though. *gets pelted by rocks and dies*

[dangermousie.livejournal.com]

VK is very emo and melodrama, which is something I like :) Zero is hot.

[wingstodust.livejournal.com]

...Zero's the number one reason why I can't stand VK...

I... may be a dysfunctional female. *goes off to hide*

[artic-fox.livejournal.com]

I remember LJ Smith! I read her Nightworld books when I was younger. They were alright, weren't anything amazing, but they were original enough.

[bzoppa.livejournal.com]

The Forbidden Game series is probably her best. I stopped reading her when she got to Nightworld, I found them too formulaic and predictable. The Forbidden Game is totally cool, though. I've been eying a $30 omnibus of the trilogy ever since I saw this post...

[artic-fox.livejournal.com]

I don't really know her stuff other than the Nightworld series, I admit. They must have been the "cool" thing to read at that time!

[dangermousie.livejournal.com]

Yup...they aren't masterpieces but at least they don't make me want to spork myself.

[sodahands.livejournal.com]

SMeyer is that horrible one-night stand which makes you feel unclean afterwards.

ROLF! Best. Sentence. Ever!

[dangermousie.livejournal.com]

Thank you :)

[outof-focus.livejournal.com]

I want to read LJ Smith's books now. Twilight was a massive failure for me.

(edited to add) Found PDF files of the Vampire Diaries :D

[dangermousie.livejournal.com]

Heee. Have fun!

[moonyka.livejournal.com]

I have read these book and I thought the same, that these book actually have a book. And those two brothers, well, they have the angst that I need. Plus, like you said, Elena does have a brain and, for what I know, boys have a reason to like her. Not like Bella, who is "quite simple" in Meyer's words. Or someone. I don't know.

[dangermousie.livejournal.com]

Yes, exactly.