Another awesome book review from Shira (@shirarose1). Stefan’s Diaries: Vol. 3 The Craving. And as always I will caution those who have not read the book yet and also that the book may lead to possible spoilers within the TV series….SPOILER ALERT.

The Craving

So… we made it…. to the end of the Stefan’s Diaries trilogy…or not. Funny thing happened on the way to what was supposed to be the end of Stefan’s Diaries – rumors turned out to be true and another book in the series has been announced: The Ripper. (Available for pre-order on Amazon, due out November 8, 2011).  For anyone who read The Craving, this development makes total sense. The Craving reads like the beginning of a story, not the end, and that’s probably because it is – the beginning of Vampire Stefan’s new life. In Origins, we met human Stefan and Damon and saw two boys coming of age, falling in love and ultimately experiencing their first betrayal. In Bloodlust, we saw Stefan running rampant as a newbie vampire like a kid in a (very bloody) candy store until he ultimately realized (with Lexi’s help) that he had to fight his vampire impulses and embrace what was left of his humanity. Simultaneously, his vengeful, betrayed brother Damon was learning to embrace his vampire nature and bury his humanity. And now, in the Craving, we see Stefan and Damon as we first saw them in Season 1 of TVD: a brooding loner on the outside of humanity trying to fit in without harming humans and his impulsive, charming, older brother who treats humans like used tissues and is bent on revenge against the little brother who turned him and sent his lover to her death.

The Craving felt like current Stefan and Damon’s first of many dances that go something like this: Stefan moves to a new city to start over where no one knows who or what he is; he starts to make friends just in time for Damon to show up and wreak havoc; people die; Damon smirks; guilt ridden Stefan broods; an outside danger threatens one or both of the brothers; and they work together to save each other despite their stated hatred for each other. Sound familiar? The Craving was TVD Season 1 de ja vu. And, just like in Season 1, despite Damon’s purported hatred for Stefan and despite the havoc and pain Damon brings into Stefan’s life, neither brother Is capable of (or really wants to) kill the other one. Because ultimately, as we have seen over and over again, the Vampire Diaries (and in turn Stefan’s Diaries) is all about family.

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