Junior human development major Amanda Kinser was supposed to be studying for a class on family relationships when she started reading the first book of the "Twilight" series. Kinser learned more about family relationships, just in a different way.
Her sister, mother and grandmother have read the books and have become enthralled with the international saga.
The "Twilight" series focuses on the relationship between vampire Edward Cullen and teenager Bella Swan. Edward is one of the "good vampires" who only drink animal blood, never imbibing the human variety.
"I never thought I would like a book about vampires," Kinser said. "I found out that I love vampires."
She is not alone. About 17 million copies of the books have been sold worldwide.
Kinser was perusing through Facebook bumper sticker's last spring, when she stumbled upon sticker that read, "Cedric Diggory died and came back as Edward Cullen." The sticker refers to actor Robert Pattison who portrayed Cedric in the Harry Potter films and is now taking on the role of the lead male character in the "Twilight" movie, Edward Cullen.
Kinser said Edward is one of the characters who made her love the series.
"You fall in love with Edward Cullen. You really do," she said.
Kinser said "Twilight" author Stephenie Meyer writes Edward "with a lot of passion."
Besides the romance between Edward and Bella, Kinser said she likes the humor in the books -- which Kinser sees in Bella's sarcasm and one-liners -- as well as the depth of Meyer's characters.
Kinser said she thought the fourth book in the series, "Breaking Dawn," was bizarre at times and hard to get through.
While on their honeymoon, Bella becomes pregnant with a baby who is half human and half vampire.
"Oh my God, Stephenie Meyer, what are you thinking?" Kinser said of how she reacted when she reached that part in the novel.
The film "Twilight" opened today at midnight and while Kinser is anticipating the film, she said she realizes it will probably not be as good as the book.
Kinser said if the movie turns out to be not what she expected, "I'll be OK. I'll just re-read the books a few times and everything will be fine."
Freshman history major Hunter Davis was the first one to introduce the "Twilight" series to his family. His mother, sister and aunt have all read them.
Davis is a self-described "Twihard" or a die-hard fan of the fantasy novels.
He was looking at movie Web site imdb.com and found something about the "Twilight" film. After he saw that, he put the books on reserve at his local public library. After waiting five weeks for the novel, he read "Twilight" in two days.
"I was shocked at how good it was," Davis said. "Each chapter has its own climax -- a profound moment of suspense that always provides enjoyment."
While some of the novels' critics say that author Meyer's writing style is too simple, Davis likes Meyer's conversational approach.
"You feel like you're in the conversation itself," Davis said.
Meyer's style sometime hides things about the characters, and sometimes brings out unknown facts, he said.
Davis said he liked reading about Edward and Bella's relationship and appreciates the complexity of Edward's character.
"He has a lust for Bella's blood, but he loves her," Davis said.
For Davis, the relationships the characters have mirror real-life pairings.
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