Stephenie Meyer’s second volume in her young adult series of novels, New Moon takes place just a short amount of time after the first volume, Twilight, ends. Through a series of accidental and unfortunate events, Edward and his family leave Forks for a time. After a time of mourning that never completely ends, Bella renews her friendship with Jacob Black, her father’s friend’s son. Jacob has grown taller and has matured quite a bit, which makes him a good friend for Bella, even though he is a bit younger in age.

Bella also tries to renew her friendships with her high school friends, which makes her father happy. But there is always some thing missing for Bella. And with Jacob growing up and going through his own changes, there are more discoveries to be made and secrets to be kept.

I was not as thrilled by New Moon as I was with Twilight, yet it was a captivating story. I look forward to reading the subsequent volumes in the series.

Even more so than with Twilight, I think this story is more appropriate for older teens: high school rather than middle school.

Stephenie Meyer’s world of vampires who live among us is an intoxicating one. She skillfully draws in the reader by making her first-person heroine, Bella Swan, a sympathetic character. Clumsy and accident-prone, she seems a nice, typical teenage girl. The only atypical thing about her is her inexplicable attraction to Edward Cullen, one of Dr. Cullen’s adopted and beautiful teenage children.

While Forks, Washington, is a real town, Meyer has absolutely nailed small-town life. Particularly Bella’s policeman father knowing all the families in town, including their character and family history. Including the Native American intrigue is also a plus to the story.

I read this book at first because my middle-school daughter showed an interest in reading the book, because a few of her friends had begun reading it. After just a couple of chapters, however, I found myself drawn into the story, trying to understand Stephenie Meyers’ more modern view of vampires, so unlike Bram Stoker’s Dracula character of yester-century.

I think women of all ages who enjoy a good star-crossed love story will enjoy this paranormal account of Bella and Edward. With the film adaptation coming out very soon, I know interest in the book will only increase. In fact, when I purchased my copy, the desk clerk noted that “these books are flying off the shelves.” Indeed, they have not been in the library here in my town for a long time; they are constantly checked out.

I look forward to reading the subsequent books in the series (book two sits on my shelf; books three and four are on their way from an online store). I encourage moms (or dads, for that matter) to preview these books for their own children. See for yourself if it is appropriate for your son or daughter. For my own part, I will not let my daughter read the first book yet. It is a bit too intense, especially toward the end of the novel. In a couple of years, with some conversations about appropriate behaviors and love, and keeping lines of communication open between herself and me, I think she will be just fine.