From Page to Screen in 2013

There are some fantastic young-adult books currently being adapted for the big screen and lots of exciting releases to look forward to next year.  Here are some of the page to screen titles that I'm especially thrilled about with release dates for when the films are due out.

'Beautiful Creatures' is released in the UK on 13th February 2013.

Lena Duchannes is unlike anyone the small Southern town of Gatlin has ever seen, and she's struggling to conceal her power and a curse that has haunted her family for generations. But even within the overgrown gardens, murky swamps and crumbling graveyards of the forgotten South, a secret cannot stay hidden forever.

Ethan Wate, who has been counting the months until he can escape from Gatlin, is haunted by dreams of a beautiful girl he has never met. When Lena moves into the town's oldest and most infamous plantation, Ethan is inexplicably drawn to her and determined to uncover the connection between them.

In a town with no surprises, one secret could change everything.

The Host is released in the UK on 29th March 2013.

Melanie Stryder refuses to fade away. Our world has been invaded by an unseen enemy. Humans become hosts for these invaders, their minds taken over while their bodies remain intact and continue their lives apparently unchanged. Most of humanity has succumbed.

When Melanie, one of the few remaining "wild" humans, is captured, she is certain it is her end. Wanderer, the invading "soul" who has been given Melanie's body, was warned about the challenges of living inside a human: the overwhelming emotions, the glut of senses, the too-vivid memories. But there was one difficulty Wanderer didn't expect: the former tenant of her body refusing to relinquish possession of her mind.

City of Bones is released in the UK on 23rd August 2013.

When fifteen-year-old Clary Fray heads out to the Pandemonium Club in New York City, she hardly expects to witness a murder -- much less a murder committed by three teenagers covered with strange tattoos and brandishing bizarre weapons. Then the body disappears into thin air. It's hard to call the police when the murderers are invisible to everyone else and when there is nothing -- not even a smear of blood -- to show that a boy has died. Or was he a boy?

This is Clary's first meeting with the Shadowhunters, warriors dedicated to ridding the earth of demons. It's also her first encounter with Jace, a Shadowhunter who looks a little like an angel and acts a lot like a jerk. Within twenty-four hours Clary is pulled into Jace's world with a vengeance, when her mother disappears and Clary herself is attacked by a demon. But why would demons be interested in ordinary mundanes like Clary and her mother? And how did Clary suddenly get the Sight? The Shadowhunters would like to know. . . . 

Catching Fire is released in the UK on 22nd November 2013.

Against all odds, Katniss Everdeen and Peeta Mellark are still alive. Katniss should be relieved, but now there are whispers of a rebellion against the Capitol -- a rebellion that Katniss and Peeta may have helped crate.

As the nation watches Katniss and Peeta, the stakes are higher than ever. One false move and the consequences will be unimaginable.

The Forest of Hands and Teeth by Carrie Ryan is also set to hit the big screen in 2013 but there is no release date for it yet. 

There's also the film of Veronica Roth's bestselling novel 'Divergent' to come in 2014, as well as an adaptation of 'Delirium' by Lauren Oliver and 'Fallen' by Lauren Kate!

Comment and let me know which book you would love to see made into a film.

Review: The Twilight Phenomenon - Nicola Bardola

I picked this book up from the library because like millions of others I'm a huge Twilight fan and eagerly awaiting the release of the official guide.

Review:
This is the unofficial companion to Stephenie Meyer's bestselling series.  It looks at the whole phenomenon of the Twilight books and why they've become so popular all over the world.  There are some really interesting segments in this companion including an interview with Stephenie herself, a closer look at 'The Secret of Eternal Love' between Edward and Bella and 'Twilight and Literature' which I found particularly fascinating.  The latter chapter focused on some of the narrative devices employed in the saga and the literary references which have been incorporated to titles such as 'Wuthering Heights', 'Romeo and Juliet' and 'A Midsummer Night's Dream'. 

Interspersed throughout were interviews and quotes from some of the Twilight fans that were intereviewed by the author.  So many of these perfectly summed up the way that I feel about the books.  They produce such an outpouring of feeling and emotion in readers and fans, that I actually felt quite bereft when I'd finished them!

There was an alphabetical list of Twilight keywords in the back of the book and an interesting section dedicated to some of the real-life locations that Stephenie wrote about.  I'd love to visit some of these one day.

Twilight saga

When these books were first published, I have to admit that they kind of passed me by. Then the films were released and I thought it was about time to see what all the fuss was about. I'm so, so glad that I did because I have not enjoyed reading a series of books more than these for a long time. While I was devouring each one, I couldn't sleep properly for thinking about Bella and Edward and worrying about what was going to happen to them. Would Jacob ever find his perfect match? Would Charlie discover Bella's secret? How was it all going to end?

These books completely took over my life. They were all-consuming. I was torn between wanting them to last and last, which resulted in me reading passages really slowly and then dying to find out what was going to happen in the next chapter, so that I ended up not being able to put each one down for hours at a time.

If I had to sum up what I loved about the series the most, it would obviously be the relationship between Bella and Edward. They love they had for each other was pure and true and pretty much unshakeable. Whether they lived forever as immportal beings or only spent a mortal lifetime together, they were always meant for each oter. They would have been prepared to die rather than live on without the other. Bella was selfless and Edward devoted. Their love was everything you'd hope love to be.

I've read some reviews of the books that have criticised Stephenie Meyer's writing for being clumsy and juvenile, but I didn't find that at all. I thought that there was an extraordinary depth and emotion to each story and she'd created an incredible world that when you were reading, you felt totally a part of.

I'd definitely give each one of the books in the series 5 out of 5. I'm desperately hoping that Stephenie Meyer might eventually add to the saga too! I'd love to read the full version of 'Midnight Sun'.