Damon has turned into a human and he’s struggling to cope. Stephan is trying his best to recuperate after his ordeal in the Dark Dimension and Shinichi and Misao are planning some big things for Fell’s Church, which leaves Elena and Stephan in a rather bad position. Damon wants his immortality back and couldn’t care less though, Bonnie on the other hand gets pulled along on his trip to the Dark Dimension on this quest, whereas the town being in an especially dire position as the kitsune possess the children and make them do crazy things, can rot for all Damon cares. Our heroes need to sort things out soon, because hell is upon them and right now that’s not a good thing.
As a fan of the whole Vampire Diaries series, on TV and in literature, I found this novel to drag on a bit, which was especially sad seeing as I stopped reading the series for a while, only to pick it back up when there were enough books to keep me occupied with again. Yes, the story isn’t especially horrid, but it was so slow in some instances. There are certain things that made the story just a little too jumpy as we are taken from one point of view to the next and if you don’t keep your head in the book, you’ll quickly lose the whole story. Seeing as L.J. Smith wrote this in third-person, this is to be expected, however as thrilling as the first three books in the series was, The Return’s three novels lacked the similar style. One can almost see under what pressure she was to produce them as the popularity in the series intensified with the show’s popularity… The editing lacked and to be honest, this was hardly the type of quality novel one would expect from this wildly popular series.
All those things aside though, The Return: Midnight do have some exceptional twists and turns in its plot and with Damon and Elena’s secret love for one another growing and becoming common knowledge to Stephan and all of her friends, it’s definitely still a page turner. There’s also an emotional roller coaster for the reader as L.J. Smith throws her characters in the most horrific scenarios to please the reader’s imagination.
One thing I do enjoy about The Return: Midnight is the creatures and mythology that comes into play. We first learn of the kitsune in The Return: Nightfall, after Stephan’s captured and taken to the Dark Dimensions and this Japanese influence definitely brings something extra to the table. L.J. Smith has a knack for taking things and throwing them all together to come up with an addictive plot, so kudos to that.
I may not have enjoyed The Return: Midnight as much as the other novels in the Vampire Diaries series, but I won’t stop reading the books. There’s something magical about it and as a keen fantasy reader and vampire enthusiast, this is still one of the best young adult vampire series’ out there. Anyone who’s into the show or the genre can pick up these books and see what I mean. For those of you who want to get your hands on it, you can do so by simply clicking the image and you’ll immediately be taken to Amazon. Now, time to get on with the series… Enjoy it!
