Twilight - The Graphic Novel - Volume # 1

Pages: 224

Author: Stephenie Meyer - Adaptation : Young Kim

Published: March 16th 2010 by Yen Press

Format: Hardback

Genre: Y.A/ Graphic Novel

Date Finished: 5^th March 2012

Acquired: Local library Loan

Synopsis:

When Isabella Swan moves to the gloomy town of Forks and meets the mysterious, alluring Edward Cullen, her life takes a thrilling and terrifying turn. With his porcelain skin, golden eyes, mesmerizing voice, and supernatural gifts, Edward is both irresistible and impenetrable. Up until now, he has managed to keep his true identity hidden, but Bella is determined to uncover his dark secret...


Thoughts:

I loved Twilight the book and the movie. It was not my favorite or the best book in my collection, but it was my gateway book and for that I will be respectful. However did I enjoy the Twilight Graphic novel? No, I did not and I won’t spend too much time telling you why. However here are the important things for me that stood out.

I liked the artwork, it was stunning I really enjoyed every minute of it, but for me personally did it depict the characters as they were in my mind? No. I love the initial story of Twilight, but for me the adaptation was all over the place and untrue to the characters in some respects. It all happened to fast and bits and pieces of the story were cut and pasted into other scenes to save time, so the story did not have a great flow and it honestly made the reading experience stilted.

With that being said I didn’t totally hate the experience and as stated it is to the vision of Stephanie Meyer so in her mind and creation these are her characters. In mine, and the portrayal of the series so far including the movie adaptations I couldn’t make the connection and I didn’t enjoy it. If you are a fan however by all means check it out and if you have let me know what you thought of it.

★★

Living Dead Girl - Elizabeth Scott

Pages: 170

Published: September 8th 2009 by Simon Pulse

Genre: Realistic Contemporary Fiction/ Y.A

Format: Paperback

Date Finished: 20^th February 2012

Synopsis:

The thing is, you can get used to anything. You think you can't, you want to die, but you don't. You won't. You just are.

This is Alice.
She was taken by Ray five years ago.
She thought she knew how her story would end.
She was wrong.

Review/ Thoughts:

I actually forgot that I had purchased this novel until this weekend when I got an invoice telling me it had nearly arrived. Rekindled with interest, I re-read the synopsis and some recommended reviews by both friends and random reviewers and grew really excited to read Living Dead Girl. I haven’t read a dark contemporary read in such a long time I was worried that the subject matter [that hit close to home] would leave me feeling to tormented to read, but in fact it had the opposite affect and I could not stop reading it. The proof- I finished it in a few hours.

This book was amazing. Just pure sickness and turmoil that had my stomach in knots and tears swelling in my eyes and yet I could feel all of Alice’s pain, being subjected to abuse firsthand myself and as a sideliner. In fact I don’t know one person in my family who was not abused. Alice’s story felt so real and raw and ugly and yet powerful and heart wrenching. It is very rare that I read a book and think – fuck I want to just devour every dark piece of fiction I can. Because the honest truth is it is hard to find fiction now days that cuts deep into the marrow and severs every nerve, leaving you feeling gutted and yet emancipated.

This happens, you hear about kidnapping everyday but you do not get to read about what is like during. There are variants of the same hideous story. Some survive and others don’t. Some watch silently when they know and can hear everything while others cannot see. It saddens me that someone could cause Ray to do these things and I actually did feel some semblance of emotion towards him which scares the fuck out of me. I think it’s because we do see Alice’s side of her truth and her story but looking deeper into the novel you can see where history repeats itself and that adds another level to it.

Thank you Elizabeth, this is stunning fiction at its best. I recommend it to everyone no matter what your preference this is a story that needs to be read. I hate the suffering, it eats me inside but people need to wake up and do something and so many people do nothing and watch, too scared to get involved until some poor child’s life gets stripped apart from the inside until they are nothing but bones and ashes. Only then does it peak some people’s interest. Living Dead Girl is disgusting, disturbing but so wonderfully written. Get your hands on it now and if you own it, read it NOW.

★★★★★

Sense and Sexuality – You Higashino

Pages: 168

Published: May 6th 2009 by Media Blasters

Genre: Yaio/ Sequential Art

Format: Manga/ Paperback Graphic Novel

Date Finished: 18^th February 2012

Synopsis:

Masatsugu Hanamura and Kuniomi Takakura are both Japanese nobility and heirs to two separate Marquis families. As childhood friends and rivals, they live hedonistic lifestyles. Their pastime is a friendly competition where they place bets to see who can win their target's affection first. Then one day, Kuniomi makes a passionate confession of love to Masatsugu and... ? What will become of their life altering bet between these two beautiful men... ? A Taisho era love story

Review:

I don’t know what it is but lately I have been in the mood for some same sex sexy times and what better way to fuel the desire then to crack open some Manga that has been sitting on my shelf waiting to be devoured for months. Let me start off with a warning, which would probably come as a no brainer to most people, but to me I thought it would be fine to read on the public bus on my journey home. Warning, do not read this in public if you are easily influenced by beautiful pictures and erotic plots- and ladies this one is a scorcher.

I really enjoyed the banter between the two main characters and the ongoing bet that they had between them. Granted that each conquest was different I did however feel that they started to mold into the same thing. But it added to that fantastic build up of friendship and lust that lingered until the confession is made and their lives change forever.

The artwork in black and white was beautiful, not my favorite but still fantastic and had this almost magical feel to it. It wasn’t to graphically details in the sexual department, but it wasn’t one of those stories that you have to conjure up your own images; it was enough to make me want to jump somebody and anxiously flip the pages.

I also love the time era of the novel, one my favorites being 1912, around the time of the Titanic and I believe that it ends of with them being on it which makes me love it even more. Sense and Sexuality is said to have a flair to Jane Austen’s Sense and Sensibility that I have not read, but the era that this story takes place in has me even more intrigued in reading the original classic and I have to say that I really enjoyed it. I am slowly starting to get used to the terms used when it comes to era fiction and I would definitely recommend it to fans of Yaio and Historical influenced romance.

★★★★