Twilight has become one of the largest literary successes in the last decade. Like the age old question, "What to read after Harry Potter?" the conclusion of Twilight poses the same question. For Twilight fans there are other books and series that will not only satisfy, but make you want to read more.
(Mortal Instruments Trilogy) by: Cassandra Clare, Margaret K. McElderry, 2007
City of Bones
City of Bones is the first book in the Mortal Instruments Trilogy. The main characters Clary Fray and Simon Lewis are thrown into a world of supernatural creatures that range from vampires to demons. It begins with Clary witnessing the murder of a demon disguised as a boy when no one else around her can see it. Clary is confronted by Jace, the one who killed the demon, and takes her to "the Institute" to try and discover how she came to see what not even her friend Simon could see. Quickly, Clary finds that her mother has been kidnapped and she is being tracked by "Downworlders".
With supernatural fights, elements of a classic mystery tale, and a tinge of forbidden romance the City of Bones is an excellent start to a Trilogy that any Twilight fan can admire.
Marked (House of Night Series) by: P.C. Cast & Kristin Cast, St. Martin's Press, 2007
Marked is the first book in the House of Night Series by the Cast mother-daughter team. Marked begins with its main character Zoey Redbird being Marked as a Vampyre by a mysterious tracker. Immediately Zoey is forced to leave her friends and family in order to travel to the House of Night, which turns out to be a school for young Vampyres. The key to the House of Night series is that either the young fledgling Vampyre turns into a full Vampyre or will die trying. Without the House of Night Zoey would die due to her distance from adult Vampyres.
Marked is an excellent addition to vampire mythology with a strong teen narrative. It is very original at times and goes well with the ideas the Twilight series puts forward. Don’t miss out on a very good series.
The Summoning (Darkest Powers Trilogy) by: Kelley Armstrong, HarperCollins, 2008
The Summoning follows its main character, Chloe Saunders, as she tries to understand if she has the ability to talk with ghosts or if she is schizophrenic as the people at Lyle House, a group home for troubled teens, try to tell her. Chloe, along with a other “troubled” teens, start to understand that they are all different in one way or another. Some discover that they have telepathic abilities and other determine that they are sorcerers or werewolves. What they need to find out the head of Lyle House, Dr. Davidoff, won’t tell them. This teen novel draws the reader in making them want to know more. The Summoning’s multifaceted supernatural plot is diverse and engrossing making its sequel, the Awakening, a must.
Night World Series by: L.J. Smith, Simon & Schuster, 1996
Night World is a series made up of nine volumes with one more to be published in 2010. The series centers around a supernatural subsect of society called Night World that contains vampires, werewolves, and even witches. Unlike Twilight and the other books mentioned above, Night World is a series of stand alone books that has no character transition between volumes. Only the alternate world where supernatural creatures live among regular humans and certain general themes are continuous.
For example, the first book in the series, Secret Vampire, the laws of Night World are laid out in order for the reader to understand the overall themes: keep Night World hidden from humans and never fall in love with one. Secret Vampire follows the termincal cancer patient, Poppy, as she delves into Night World with the help of a friend, James, who she finds out is a vampire. James loves Poppy and is willing to break principle laws of Night World by falling in love with her and opening her up to his world. Sound vaguely familiar to Twilight? This is an excellent series for those willing to go outside a normal supernatural series, but not far from the themes of Twilight.
All of these books are excellent additions to a Twilight fan's library. Between City of Bones, Marked, The Summoning, and the Night World series, fans and admirers of the Twilight saga have more choices than rereading the series over and over.
For further book suggestions the author of Twilight, Stephanie Meyer, often posts book suggestions on her offical website.
