I hope you're all staying safe and warm while it continues to snow. I'm personally staying in pajamas for the day and curling up with a book on the couch. I don't know about everyone else but I'm really ready for spring to be here. I would love to be able to sit outside and feel a nice breeze, but enough about the weather.
Last week I wrote a post about the obsession with futuristic/dystopian novels and this week I want to talk about the obsession with vampire novels. I think society as a whole has always been fascinated by vampires. Bram Stoker's "Dracula" continues to be a classic favorite with many film adaptations. A few years ago vampire books became more popular than ever when the "Twilight" series was adapted for the big screen. While I was disappointed in the movies I know many people that enjoyed them immensely. However, "Twilight" was just the start of the vampire trend.
There are so many other vampire novels that are slowly becoming more popular because "Twilight" opened the way for them. Young adult authors are writing more vampire series than ever. Many of these series have been made into television shows or movies. Adult authors have been writing about vampires for years and continue to do so because of the level of popularity. Many adult series have been made into television shows or movies as well.
I have to wonder what makes vampires so fascinating. Here's a few reasons I've come up with myself.
Why Vampires Are So Fascinating
-They're immortal creatures, while we can't live forever and are easily killed.
-Many books and movies have made them out to be very mysterious and sexy, making them appealing to us.
-They survive by drinking blood. Even though this might disgust some of us it still holds our attention.
-They have heightened senses (smell, sight, sound) as well as extra strength.
-They're a supernatural creature that is likely a myth but there's a part of us that wants to believe these things are real.
I will admit that these reasons all apply to me although I've read books that portray vampires as good and bad. I have a fascination of all things supernatural (ghosts, werewolves, witches, etc.) and I'll continue to search for books that appeal to that. Here are some popular vampire books to check out if you haven't read them. I haven't read all of them but I find these to be some of the most popular.
Popular Young Adult Series
-Vampire Academy series by Richelle Mead: the movie will be in theaters on February 7th and there is a spin-off series called Bloodlines.
-Vampire Diaries series by L.J. Smith: there's a popular television show on the CW network and a spin-off show called "The Originals."
-Blue Bloods series by Melissa de la Cruz: set in New York City with the vampires as Manhattan's upper elite class.
-Twilight series by Stephanie Meyer: there are 5 movies; I'm assuming you all know about these so I'll just leave it at that.
-House of Night series by P.C. Cast: this series is on my to-read list.
-The Morganville Vampire series by Rachel Caine: I keep stumbling across this series so I might read it eventually.
Popular Adult Series/Novels
-Dracula by Bram Stoker: probably the most popular vampire book of all time. There are multiple movies and books inspired by the story. Supposedly based on the historic figure Vlad Tepes a.k.a. Vlad the Impaler.
-The Historian by Elizabeth Kostova: a favorite book of mine. It's a historical fiction story about a descendent of Vlad the Impaler. There's a movie in the works.
-Sookie Stackhouse series by Charlaine Harris: now a popular television show called "True Blood" on the HBO channel. Harris has also written other books about vampires.
-The Vampire Chronicles by Anne Rice: the first Vampire Chronicles book, 'Interview With The Vampire' was made into a movie starring Tom Cruise and Brad Pitt. Rice has written other vampire books as well.
Sorry for the long post, I guess I got a little carried away. I hope you enjoyed it. Thanks for reading!
Sincerely,
Erin a.k.a. Bookworm
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