The fine folks at The Chop Shop are holding a special giveaway just for us! One winner will receive

1. a weBite letterpress print (retail value $35) and  
2. any t-shirt from their extensive selection   

Plus all of us can get 15% off by using the code “urbnfntsy”

I took the liberty of breaking in the discount code and buying my own weBite tee (which arrived a couple days ago and looks great). I don’t know if you can tell on the screenshot of the tee (see below), but I started looking for a few of my favorite vamps and I spotted Edward Cullen and Spike, to name a few.  Check out the details about the tee and print below and how to enter.

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weBite letterpress print:

You can now get our best-selling 35 vampires on something other than a tshirt. Details in the original artwork are now visible that are simply not reproducible on a tshirt and have never been seen on any previous incarnation. A limited run of 200 copies are now available and will be numbered as they go out the door. Printed silver & grey ink on 22x14 Strathmore 90lb black and is acid free. There are only 200 copies of this series so get it before they are gone.

The only thing that survives longer than a vampire, is the popularity of vampires. in 1922, Nosferatu practically introduced the genre of horror to film and almost 90 years later vampires are sucking now more than ever. “weBite” is the second in our series of horror/fantasy designs, following “weScare” (a collection of 59 monsters). It features variations on the vampire ranging from multiple sources: film, sitcoms, anime, cartoons, children’s entertainment, video games, comics, comedy and even the breakfast table. All arranged into the form of a bat.

The winner can pick any tee, but my favorites are the weScare tee (featuring 58 different monsters), the weBite tee (featuring 35 different vampires), and the undeadWe tee (featuring 51 undead icons):

 

Giveaway Guidelines

(1) weBite letterpress print & (1) tee shirt of any design

1. Open to U.S. residents only
2. Must be a follower with Google Friend Connect (right sidebar) or Subscribe via Email
3. Include your email only if it is not listed in your profile
4. Leave a comment of a famous vampire you hope is on the tee.
5. +1 entry for anywhere you share this giveaway (leave link)
6. Entries must be received by Midnight MST on Saturday March 13th

EW.com just exclusively announced Twilight: The Graphic Novel, Vol. 1!

I’m delighted to announce, exclusively, that Yen Press will publish Twilight: The Graphic Novel, Vol. 1 on March 16, with a first printing of 350,000 copies.  Here’s a first glimpse at the book’s cover, as well as an exclusive peek at one of its panels (for a full ten-page excerpt, and the entire Q&A with Stephenie Meyer, see the issue of EW that goes on sale this Friday). –EW.com

Stephenie Meyer also talked about her involvement in the graphic novel:

I was definitely involved.  I didn’t do the original “script” for the book, so to speak.  But when I got the dialogue with the images, I did a lot of tinkering. In a couple of places, I asked for missing scenes to be inserted.  For example, the conversation in the car that Bella and Edward have after she faints in Biology.

Stephenie also talked about the possibility of more Twilight books:

I can’t say that I am done with Twilight forever.  I’m not working on anything new Twilight-related now, and probably not for a while.  But there’s still a possibility that I’ll go back and close some of the open doors.

Check out the whole announcement HERE and be sure to pick up this week’s edition of Entertainment Weekly.

“…With werewolves this time!”  My favorite quote about the New Moon movie by a non-Twilight fan.  He’s probably less than thrilled by the impressive box office take New Moon made in it’s opening weekend (scroll down to see the two records it already broke). I, on the other hand, am thrilled.  You can weigh in your opinion and read my comparison of the movie & book HERE and check out the poster mash up below.

“New Moon box office records break all those set before. New Moon broke the midnight showing box office record set by Harry Potter… New Moon box office sales for the midnight showing totaled a whopping $26.3 million…” -Associated Content 

“The Twilight Saga: New Moon grossed $72.7 million on Friday, according to estimates from Summit Entertainment, shattering The Dark Knight’s previous opening-day record of $67.2 million. The astronomic figure puts Bella, Edward, and Jacob on a clear path to possibly the biggest opening weekend ever, all the more impressive considering New Moon is opening in 342 fewer theaters than The Dark Knight did last year.”-EW.com

THE TWILIGHT SAGA:
NEW MOON

Domestic Total to date: $72,700,000 (Estimate)

Distributor: Summit Entertainment
Release Date: November 20, 2009

Genre: Romance
Running Time: 2 hrs. 10 min.

MPAA Rating: PG-13

 

 

Here are some of the best and worst fan made movie posters. I’ll leave it up to you to decide which is which:

 

 

 

Yep.  I was one of those people who went to the midnight opening of The Twilight Saga: New Moon on last night (or technically this morning) and I even took my teenage sister and a carload of her friends (all clad in T-shirts and other Twilight paraphernalia plastered with Robert Pattinson’s face and one lone Jacob holdout) with me.  Yes, there was a lot of screaming. 

I finished re-reading the book the night before(I wanted all the details as fresh as possible prior to seeing the movie. The basic story is the same in both the movie and the book:

The Twilight Saga: New Moon Book 

Reading level: Young Adult

Hardcover: 608 pages

Publisher: Little, Brown Books

Language: English

ISBN-10: 0316160199

ISBN-13: 978-0316160193

"Shoot," I muttered when the paper sliced my finger; I pulled it out to examine the damage. A single drop of blood oozed from the tiny cut. It all happened very quickly then. Edward threw himself at me, flinging me back across the table... I tumbled down to the floor by the piano, with my arms thrown out instinctively to catch my fall, into the jagged shards of glass. I felt the searing, stinging pain that ran from my wrist to the crease inside my elbow. Dazed and disoriented, I looked up from the bright red blood pulsing out of my arm-into the fevered eyes of the six suddenly ravenous vampires. Legions of readers entranced by Twilight are hungry for more and they won't be disappointed. In New Moon, Stephenie Meyer delivers another irresistible combination of romance and suspense with a supernatural twist. The "star-crossed" lovers theme continues as Bella and Edward find themselves facing new obstacles, including a devastating separation, the mysterious appearance of dangerous wolves roaming the forest in Forks, a terrifying threat of revenge from a female vampire and a deliciously sinister encounter with Italy's reigning royal family of vampires, the Volturi. Passionate, riveting, and full of surprising twists and turns, this vampire love saga is well on its way to literary immortality.

The Twilight Saga: New Moon Film

Opens Friday, November 20, 2009

Runtime:2 hr. 1 min.

PG-13 some violence and action

The supernatural tale of star-crossed lovers continues as the Cullen family flees Forks in order to protect Bella (Kristen Stewart), and the heartbroken high-school senior discovers that vampires aren't the only creatures in town. Realizing that Bella will never be safe as long as he's around, Edward (Robert Pattinson) makes the difficult decision to leave his beloved behind shortly after her 18th birthday. Reeling from her loss, Bella embraces self-destruction after being comforted by Edward's image during a moment of mortal peril. But as heavy-hearted as Bella may be, her old friend Jacob (Taylor Lautner) distracts her from her sorrows by helping her renovate a weather-beaten motorbike. When Bella encounters a former adversary with a sizable grudge, she's rescued from harm at the last second by pack of enormous, ferocious wolves. Subsequently delving into the history of the Quileutes, Bella discovers the secrets of Jacob's tribe while looking forward to a reunion with Edward that may have deadly consequences. ~ Jason Buchanan, All Movie Guide

I was late in jumping on the Twilight phenomenon, I read Twilight only after seeing the trailer for the movie version.  But I made short work of the series and have been eagerly awaiting New Moon ever since. And overall, I think director Chris Weitz did a wonderful job.  The effects are beautiful without screaming, ‘hey look at me I’m a special effect!’  I’m a huge werewolf snob when it comes to movies (the weres from Dog Soldiers are my favorite from recent years, whereas the Van Helising were was horrendous),  so I’m relieved to report that the wolves in New Moon look particularly stunning in a way the previews didn’t quite capture. Another bonus: There isn’t the sweat/glitter this time out either.  When the vampires are in the sun they look much more like I imagined they would from reading the books: like their skin was diamonds.

The actors have all settled into their roles (specifically Michael Sheen who plays the Volturi vamp Aro with a delightful abandon).  Even Taylor Lautner who I had misgivings about has grown-not just physically- into a more than credible Jacob Black.  He doesn’t quite portray the simmering anger that Jacob battles throughout the book, but he does bring the humor and devotion that is so vital to his character to the big screen.

The differences between book and movie are for the most part minor; a compressed scene here and there, some liberty taken with dialogue etc. Certain characters are given smaller/larger roles than in the book (Charlie has some great not-in-the-book scenes).  All of which serve to tell the story better given the film medium.  The biggest difference is Edward.  He is absent for most of the book, but in the movie Bella’s hallucinations are not just audible, they are visible too.  Again, I think this was a good decision that worked to better communicate the story on screen.

If the consensus between the teenagers I brought with me is any indication (not to mention the applauding audience when the credits rolled), you won’t be disappointed.  Our whole pack agreed that New Moon was a better movie than Twilight.  As for me,  I got home at 3 am and had to start re-reading the beginning of Eclipse before I could go to sleep.  So, yeah, I’m tired today, but really, really happy.

Throwdown Thursday is a weekly thing [hosted by The Neverending Shelf] where we tackle books with similar characters, covers, themes, etc. to determine which one rocks more. And it is up to YOU to determine the winner!

Last weeks Throwdown asked Which do you like more: Blue Diablo by Ann Aguirre US vs UK cover? The winner by split decision was: The UK cover.

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In honor of The Twilight Saga: New Moon movie premiere tonight at midnight (I’ve got my ticket, do you have yours?) I’m going to start the war again: 

 

I’ll gladly admit that I’ve been firmly in the Edward camp throughout all four books (and Midnight Sun) and definitely after seeing the Twilight film.  I’ve been going back and re-reading New Moon before seeing the film adaptation so I can make a fair comparison, and guess what?  Jacob is not as easily dismissed this time.  Oh don’t get me wrong, Edward is still first in my heart, but Jacob (and I don’t mean the actor because I don’t think Taylor quite embodies the character as Stephenie wrote him) is worthy of his leading man status.  How did I miss that the first time through?  Was I so dazzled by Edward that, like Bella, I couldn’t even see what was right in front of me?  Maybe.  I can’t help but wonder if I would have realized this sooner if Jacob had been in a different world, one where he wasn’t constantly compared to the incomparable Edward (again the character not the actor, although I agree with Stephenie that Rob is the Edward she envisioned).  Either way, I’m reading him differently now.  And Bella too for that matter.  I never understood before how she could even try to love Jacob after Edward.  The whole Team Edward vs Team Jacob seemed like a moot debate before.  But I think I’m ready now to look at the question from a more objective place now.  So what are you?

Team Edward or Team Jacob?

                   

So I know The Host isn’t an exactly an urban fantasy, but if you haven’t read it yet, go, right now.  I picked up The Host the same day as Breaking Dawn, but after being somewhat disappointed by the latter I wasn't exactly eager to read the former.  The description of The Host sounded like a very hardcore science fiction effort, one that I was afraid would not be able to support a credible love story.  I am more delighted than I can say that I was wrong.  This book has one of the most gut wrenching love stories ever put to paper.  The sci-fi elements (despite being among my least favorite genres) didn't bother me in the slightest .  On the contrary, I found them to be provocative and deeply emotional.  And, I think this will appeal to urban fantasy lovers which is why I’m sharing the movie news with all of you. from Stephenie herself:

“Hey guys, great news! The Host is on its way to the big screen: I'm so excited to be working with Nick Weschler, and Steve and Paula Mae Schwartz to bring The Host to a visual format. They've all been a dream to work with, so lovely and collaborative, and I feel like we're in a really good place to make a great movie together. And then to have Andrew Niccol writing and directing? Truly awesome. If you've never seen Gattaca, go watch it now. One of my favorite movies of all time. It's such a great example of character driven science fiction, which is ideal for The Host, no? I'm having an absolute blast imagining different dream casts, which I would post if people didn't take my silly blogs so seriously these days. I'm looking forward to seeing the cast lists you come up with in the fansite forums, and if any of them match mine. So, very exciting. Yay Host!XO-Steph”

From Variety: Producers Nick Wechsler, Steve and Paula Mae Schwartz have used their own money to acquire screen rights to “The Host,” the first adult novel written by Stephenie Meyer, author of the “Twilight” series. 

Andrew Niccol will write the script and direct.

Meyer’s novel is a love story set in the near future on Earth, which has been assimilated by an alien species that call themselves “Souls.” They are benevolent parasites that subsume the conscious of humans and take possession of their bodies. One such soul, The Wanderer (so named because she has wandered among so many different worlds) is fused with a dying human named Melanie Stryder, in an attempt to locate the last pocket of surviving humans on Earth. The Wanderer cannot subsume the forceful Melanie, and they battle for the girl’s memories and her spirit.

Wechsler and the Schwartz’ are separately teamed on “The Road,” the John Hillcoat-directed adaptation of the Cormac McCarthy novel that will be released November 25 by The Weinstein Company. They are also producing the Paul Schrader-scripted “The Dying of the Light,” and an adaptation of the Pete Takada book “An Eye at the Top of the World,” which is being adapted by Ryne Douglas Pearson.

They will develop the project independently.

The trio wanted to make a science fiction film and fixed on “The Host.” In addition to writing four volumes of the “Twilight” series, Meyer has been heavily involved in the blockbuster screen transfers, and she spurned several overtures for “The Host.” The producers continued lobbying the author and her reps at UTA and The Writers House with a significant offer, a strong vision for the project, and a collaborative spirit. Meyer eventually said yes.

In fact, Niccol first came under consideration after Wechsler and the Schwartz’ asked Meyer her favorite science fiction films, and “Gattaca” and “The Truman Show” were in her top five. Niccol wrote and directed “Gattaca” and scripted the Peter Weir-directed “The Truman Show.”

Niccol read the book, met the producers and author, and the New Zealand-born writer/director sparked to the assignment. 

“We wanted Stephenie to be involved in the adaptation, and have her endorse and be part of the creative decisions,” Wechsler said. “`Twilight’ has proven she more more about what works than most.”

Summit releases the second installment of Meyers’s vampire series, “The Twilight Saga: New Moon,” on November 20.