Marked ~ P.C. Cast and Kristin Cast

Publisher: St. Martin’s Griffin (2007)
ISBN: 978-0-312-36026-9
306 pgs

Classification: YA Fiction
Genre: Fantasy, vampires
Age Level: 14+

Reader’s Annotation: Newly Marked vampire Zoey Redbird copes with friends and rivals in her new school, the House of Night.

Summary: Zoey,16, is Marked by a vampire Tracker and leaves her home and high school to attend the House of Night, a boarding school for fledgling vampires undergoing the Change from human to adult vampire. Once at the House of Night, Zoey finds both unfortunate similarities and startling differences between her new school and her old: a Queen Bee named Aphrodite and her sycophants, hot guys like drama buff Erik, classes in fencing and vampire sociology. With the help of new friends, Zoey discovers her powers—gifts from the vampire goddess Nyx—and struggles to follow her grandmother’s advice to balance her unique abilities with responsible behavior.

Notes: Book one of a series. This series is engaging even for those readers who are not especially interested in vampires. Content to be aware of—language, sexuality
Flags: 4

Twilight (Movie)

Based on Twilight by Stephanie Meyer
Studio: Summit Entertainment (2008)
Rating: PG-13

Genre: Fantasy
Director: Catherine Hardwicke
Main Cast: Kristen Stewart, Robert Pattinson

Viewer’s Annotation: In this adaptation of the Stephanie Meyer novel, a human teenager falls in love with a vampire.

Summary: Upon transferring to Forks High School in her dad’s small Pacific Northwest town, Bella Swan meets enigmatic Edward Cullen and promptly falls in love. The budding romance is complicated by Edward’s inhuman nature, but Bella refuses to be put off by even an entire family of vampires. But just how long can a human endure amid vampires before someone is unable to resist the lure of red hot blood?

Notes: The movie magnifies all that is wrong with the novel, namely Bella’s obsession with the good-looking vampire she just met. Lush landscape and attractive teenagers make it a very pretty movie and a great adaptation of the novel.
Flags: 4