Twilight VS City of Bones - Books/movies review

I have to start this review by asking a question: "What would've happened had the 'Mortal Instruments' come before 'The Twilight Saga'?" Well, let's start with the books and then move on to the movies, shall we? To answer this question (spoiler alert) if you're a "Twihard" you might not want to read this post, your bible of teenage romantic fantasy is about to get trashed!

"Twilight" written by: Stephanie Meyers, published October 5th 2005: I only read the first book because my sister wouldn't stop going on and on about it and she let me read her copy. What did I think of the book? It was badly written with some good characters, not including the lead lady Bella, who lacked personality, gumption and any real appeal. Despite this somehow Edward, one of the more interesting characters, still found her irresistible. The only thing remarkable that Stephanie Meyers did was write a story where an exceptional man falls in love with a non- consequential woman. The kind of thing that only happens in a cheesy romance. Also, she watered down Vampires till they were barely recognizable of their Dracula ancestry so she could sell them to a YA audience which isn't remarkable in the least. Not to mention that Meyers can't write an ending to save her life. Every single one of the books ended with an anti-climax. That's bad writing, people, not worthy of world-wide aclaime.

Mortal Instruments, "City of Bones" written by: Cassandra Clare, published March 27th 2007: I wish I had read this book a long time ago. Why? Because it's unbelievably good! Cassandra Clare is an exceptional writer. She develops three dimensional characters, all with their own strengths and weaknesses. Builds worlds of fantasy that are so detailed and rich they seem almost real. Also, she can write a great plot, and a fantastic ending! Obviously I loved this book. Grant it, I was a little angry with the author for how she ended book one, but not enough not to keep reading the series. I loved Clary Fray who was realistic and worth cheering for. Also, I found her relationship with the two male love interests believable, and her allure wasn't written or forced  but deserved. Honestly, I couldn't say more good things about this book and its author!

The Movies:

Twilight: bad, bad, bad. I remember seeing a preview for "Twilight" before it came out and it looked like a really lame music video from the 80's. Sadly when I actually watched the movie it wasn't much better than the preview. Bella who was terrible in print was even worse on film because of the stale performance of Kristen Stewart. Not to mention that the script was cheesy and the plot paper thin to begin with. Robert Patterson's not bad, but even he had some awful moments in the film. I've enjoyed him in other movies since, so I'm glad this catapulted his career and all, but his portrayal of Edward was stiff in the first movie and only got slightly better throughout the series (books and movies). This movie tried too hard to be hip and just comes off as comical. Bad, very bad!

City of Bones: I had just started reading this book when I heard they were making it into a movie. I was really excited for this film. Naturally I was really sad to hear it was getting such bad reviews when it finally came out. Then I saw the movie last night. Yes, the first half of the movie is a little slow, despite the script's aggressive attempt to condense a complex plot and making it work for a film. The second half, however, was very entertaining. They did some very clever things with the book, and adapted it into something of their own. So even if you've read the book, the ending will pleasantly surprise you. The actors were all fantastic. I'll admit I had my doubts about Jamie Campbell Bower who portrayed "Jace Wayland" but by the end of the film I was sold on him. I thought he and Lilly Collins (Clary Fray) had great on-screen chemistry. Simon, Clary's best friend, was just as good in the movie as he was in the books. I came out of the movie wondering what on earth all those critics were thinking. I thought it was terrific. A great adaptation of a fantastic book!

So now that I've shared my thoughts on the books and the movies, let's answer that question now. "What would've happened had 'Mortal Instruments' come before 'Twilight'?" The world of Urban Fantasy as we know it would be a better place! Vampires wouldn't have become watered down, poorly-written characters like Bella who fall in love with a guy whose basically a stalker, wouldn't be idealized by teenage girls everywhere (honestly what message is that sending to young girls?). None of the terrible "Twilight" fan fiction would be out there to plague the world such as "Fifty Shades of Grey". Instead, young girls would be idealizing Clary, a strong, independent, clever, and sweet teenage heroine who fights for a greater cause and doesn't just fall all over the first guy to show up in her bedroom in the middle of the night.

In conclusion: "Twilight" didn't invent the Vampire, it didn't invent star-crossed lovers. I'm saying that just because "Twilight" came first doesn't mean it's superior, in fact, it isn't. Cassandra Clare is an original and she borrowed nothing from Stephanie Meyers. "City of Bones" stands on its own and needs not be compared to "Twilight" or any other.  I'm saying that everyone ought to give the movie "City of Bones" a chance. Forget what the critics say. If you loved the books chances are you'll enjoy the movie. But hey, don't take my word for it. Go forth, read the books and see the movies, make up your own mind and share your thoughts here with us.

Some say that Vampires and magic has all been over done. For the die hard Fantasy/Paranormal enthusiast the genre never dies or gets old, it just takes on new shapes and new faces. Until next time...

R.J. Craddock

Who Wants To Live Forever?

I've read a lot of books, quite a few of them featuring characters with blood-sucking, night-walking, never-aging immortal tendencies. Currently I am reading the fourth book in the “Mortal Instruments” series by Cassandra Clare. One of the characters is a teenage boy who has been turned into a Vampire, then, through drinking the blood of a remarkable personage, now has the ability to walk in the sun. They call him "daylighter" because of it. He can only live on blood now but isn't the homicidal type, so he's sneaking animal blood to get by. He's in denial, trying to live his life as much like a normal teenager as possible, including living with his mom who has no clue what’s going on with him, except the maternal instinct that keeps nagging at her that something ain't right with her baby boy. No, I'm not doing a book review. I just wanted to talk about this because as I was reading it, I started thinking of all the Vampires I've read about over the years.

Vampires have been portrayed a variety of ways in books and film. From Nosferatu (creepy as all get out, not sexy at all) to Victorian Vampire Lestat (sexy, in a refined kind of way) to Twilight's Edward Cullen (brooding, teenage, glittering, stalker’ish dream boat) to True Blood's Eric Northam (sexy, hunky, dark, dangerous and hilarious). By the way the last one is my favorite Vampire of all time! Partially because i love the character from the books and how they brought him to life on the TV show, and because the actor (Alexander Skarsgard) reminds me of my husband. Anyhow, in all these stories, Vampires--whether sexy or creepy--have held some kind of allure for the readers/viewers. When I was reading this book earlier I suddenly thought "Why? Why are we drawn to this mythical creature? What is the allure?" 

So I want to pose the question to you, my readers, "Who wants to live forever?" Really let’s think about it. "What are the pros and cons of being a Vampire?" Here's a few I came up with:


Pro:                                                                  Cons:
Immortality                                                        Everyone you know will die long before you.
Eternal Youth (they're not the same thing)           The not aging thing will freak people out!
Strength,                                                            Not knowing your own strength could be hazardous.
Agility                                                                Not so perfect sight, smell and hearing helps you zone out!
Heightened senses                                              Special powers can be more a nuisance than a gift.
Special powers (in some cases)                          Living eternally at night could get boring after a while.
"Sexy Vampire Mojo" (quote from the book :)    Being sexy all the time just seems like to much work!

Personally, I don't think living alone forever on the blood of others sounds like a whole lot of fun, it sounds downright depressing! I'd much rather be a Fairy. Give me some awesome wings, sprite-like powers, and mythical enchanting beauty; that's all I need. But I want to hear what you all think. So let’s hear you sound off below. To be a Vampire… Yay or Nay?

Well, I'm off to write more of "The Offspring" book two of the "Children of Cain" series. In case you didn't know, book one "The Forsaken" is now available in print and Kindle form at www.rjcraddock.com

You can also find it on Amazon and Barnes & Noble. Below I've added a video of the song "Who Wants to Live Forever" and "Princes of the Universe" by Queen. Yes, I know they were both on the soundtrack for "The Highlander" film, which does involve immortals, but who are not Vampires. Now go forth and enjoy the video, enjoy my book, or just enjoy your life!

R.J. Craddock

   

Night World - Book Review

Vampires, Werewolves, Witches, and Shape-shifters; they live among us without our knowledge. Night World is their secret society, a secret society with very strict rules, and falling in love breaks all the laws of the Night World. A good comparison to Adrian Monson's Vampire novel "Dissension" is L.J. Smith's "Night World" published by Simon Pulse.

A young adult series that also features Vampires and other supernatural beings; the author also has a similar tone of voice to Monson's. You might know L.J. Smith better for her bestselling series "The Vampire Diaries", the books that inspired the popular TV show.

"Night World" is comprised of four volumes; each volume includes three separate tales. These stories at first seem to have nothing in common, other than the fact that a human(s) comes into contact with a member of the Night World, the encounter changing the course of their lives forever. However, each tale intertwines into a rich tapestry of death, magic, danger, mystery, ancient civilizations, blood, and forbidden love.
In Volume One of this Saga the three tales are: Secret Vampire, Daughters of Darkness, and Spellbinder.
Secret Vampire: fun-loving Poppy discovers two startling truths: first, she's dying of terminal cancer. Second, her best friend, and secret crush, James, is actually a born Vampire (she explains this concept in the book; you'd have to read it to understand). James could save Poppy by making her immortal, but it's against the Night World's law to make new Vampires. The punishment for breaking this law is death.

Daughters of Darkness: when three Vampire sisters are on the run from The Night World they hope to take refuge with their estranged aunt who lives in a small human town, only to find out that their aunt has been murdered. With the help of siblings, Mary-Lynnette and Mark (humans), they set out to solve this mystery, all the while trying not to get caught by their own kind.

Spellbinder: After being expelled yet again, high school seniors, Thea and Blaise; two Witch cousins find themselves starting a new school in the middle of the school year. If they get into any more trouble they'll be sent to stay with Aunt Ursula at her place nicknamed "The Convent." Everything would have been fine if Thea hadn't met her true love on the very first day of school. Blaise whose use to getting all the attention from the opposite sex can't stand that there's a guy in school who is resistant to her charm. It's dark magic verses white magic as the cousins battle over Eric. But neither realizes that far more is at risk than just a broken heart.

"Night World" Volume 1 is a great read. It's fast-paced, yet descriptive, with interesting characters and plots that grab your attention from the first page and never loses it. L.J. Smith's writing is so well done that even someone like me (who's picky about YA books) could enjoy it. Over all I would give this book four stars! It's a great escape from our mundane human reality.

No go forth and give it a read. Each book in the series is even better than the last. You won't regret starting this series.

R.J. Craddock

www.rjcraddock.com

The Host - Movie Review

While out on a movie night with my mom I saw "The Host", a film based off of the novel by Stephanie Meyer. After reading the "Twilight" saga I was all Stephanie- Meyered-out, so when "The Host" came out I couldn't have cared less. However, seeing the film has changed my mind. Perhaps Meyer's talent lies with Science Fiction instead of YA Paranormal Romance.

The movie begins with a voice over of Uncle Jeb (William Hurt) telling how wonderful the world is now that the human race has been taken over by alien parasites. Yeah, sure the world finally has peace but it's no longer our world. The Seekers of this Alien Race seek out the last of the Human resistance. Amongst these last remaining few is Melanie Stryder, played by (Saoirse Ronan) of course; she gets nabbed by The Seekers at the very beginning of the film. In her attempt to get away from them she tries to kill herself. However, The Seekers just take her near-lifeless-body and heal it with their advanced alien medicine. Now her body can play Host to another alien soul, called Wanderer or Wanda for short. But unlike other humans who give in to the invading souls and lose control of their bodies, Melanie refuses to give in and fights Wanda for control of herself. Especially, when Wanda is asked by The Seeker (Diane Kruger) to access Melanie's memories and finds the rest of the human resistance. Melanie will do anything to protect her boyfriend Jared Howe (Max Irons) and her little brother Jamie (Chandler Canterbury). Melanie plays on Wanda's sympathy and convinces her to help her protect the ones she loves.

Wanda escapes The Seekers at Melanie's directions and goes in search of Melanie's uncle Jeb, the one place she knows Jared and Jamie would go to be safe. What proceeds is an emotional journey for both alien and host. Wanda learns to care for humans and their spirits and Melanie learns to Love Wanda. I can't tell you how the rest of the movie goes, of course, but it is an interesting tale of survival and the human spirit. Also, this story has the classic YA love triangle but with a twist. Melanie still loves Jared who she met while she was on the run. On the other hand Wanda begins to have feelings for Ian O'Shea, (Jake Abel) one of the humans living in the cave-like refuge on Uncle Jeb's property in the desert. This is a conflict since Melanie won't let Wanda do anything about her feelings, but also can't stand to let Jared kiss her because he's also kissing Wanda. Confused yet?

Overall I was pleasantly surprised by this movie. I enjoyed all the casts' performances, even Saoirse Ronan whom I'm not particularly a fan. However, she felt like a good fit for this role of dual personages trapped in one body. I loved the location of the Human's cave hideout, not a bad place to live in a time of peace let alone during a global takeover. The ending was a little corny but not so much as to turn me off. Anyway, they kind of leave it open at the end for a sequel. I didn't know the book was part of a series but now that I do, I might end up reading this one after all. I'm still not a Stephanie Meyer enthusiast, and I'm most definitely not a Twihard (someone who is a die-hard "Twilight" fan). Still, I found this storyline far more to my liking than the melodrama that is "Twilight".

I'd give this film a three and a half star rating. Below you'll find "The Host" trailer and the cover art from the book. Now go forth and read the book or go see the film if you're interested. I thought it was fun. You might, too.

R.J. Craddock