If there’s one show that I love to rewatch every autumn, it’s The Vampire Diaries but sometimes it’s not enough. So, here are a bunch of books that I think you’d like if you enjoyed The Vampire Diaries.
Crave – Tracy Wolff
Grace’s parents have just died so she’s being forced to move to a boarding school that her uncle owns in Alaska. As soon as she arrives she realises there’s something a little … off about all of the students there and a lot of them seem to hate her for some reason.
Soon, she finds out that every student there is a supernatural creature and she ends up falling for Jaxon, a mysterious royal vampire.
Why you might like it: Crave seems like it will be all about vampires but it focuses on a lot of different supernatural creatures just like The Vampire Diaries. It also has a lot of romance and drama and even has a love triangle between 2 brothers just like in The Vampire Diaries.
Fallen – Lauren Kate
Luce is forced to attend Sword & Cross Academy, a boarding school for troubled teens, where she meets the mysterious, Daniel Grigori. Luce finds herself drawn to him but Daniel wants absolutely nothing to do with her. But, there’s something about him and she’ll do whatever it takes to figure out his secrets.
Why you might like it: This book has mysterious characters with back stories that the main character has to figure out. It has a lot of drama and the first book even has a love triangle for the main character between two different mysterious boys.
The Luminaries – Susan Dennard
Hemlock Falls is a town unlike any other: you won’t find it on a map, cell phones don’t work, and the forest outside town might kill you.
Winnie wants nothing more than to join the Luminaries, an ancient order that protects the town from monsters, but ever since her dad was exposed as a witch and a traitor, her family have been shunned. Determined to become a hunter, she takes party in the deadly Luminary trials to prove herself and restore her family’s good name
Why you might like it: The Luminaries is set in a spooky small town that has a history with supernatural creatures and hunters. I think you’ll like this if you’d prefer something that’s more about a myserious town and less about the romance.
Southern Vampire Mysteries/Sookie Stackhouse – Charlaine Harris
Set in a world where vampires have ‘come out,’ Sookie is a small town cocktail waitress who can read minds. She has always wanted to meet a vampire and gets her wish when a tall, dark and handsome vampire walks right into his bar – and she can’t read his thoughts like she can everyone else.
Why you might like it: If you’re looking for something a little bit older than you might like this series. It focuses on a couple different supernatural creatures and has a lot of romantic drama. This series is what the TV show True Blood is based on so if you’ve ever enjoyed that you should try the books!
Marked – P. C. Cast + Kristin Cast
16-year-old Zoey Redbird has just been Marked by a Vampire Tracker which means she has to enter the House of Night – school for vampires.
When she arrives, she finds out that she’s been Marked as special by the vampyre Goddess Nyx and has affinities for all five elements: air, fire, water, earth and spirit.
Why you might like it: It’s a high school drama about vampires. It has a lot of romance and it’s a coming-of-age story about a girl who has just been turned into a vampire.
The Coldest Touch – Isabel Sterling
Elise is cursed. Everytime she touches someone, she can see how they die and since she predicted and was unable to stop her brother’s death, she’s been desperate to find a way to escape this terrible gift.
She meets Claire, a vampire who’s tasked with helping Elise master her powers and recruits her into the Veil, a secret organisation determined to protect the paranormal world at all cost.
Why you might like it: The Coldest Touch features a paranormal romance and I think you’ll like this one if you enjoyed Bonnie Bennett on The Vampire Diaries. A girl with supernatural powers falls for a vampire – I would’ve liked if it was Damon but Enzo was a great romance too. The book has a sapphic romance, though!
Vampire Academy – Richelle Mead
After 2 years of freedom, Lissa, a vampire princess, and Rose, her dhampir protector, are caught and dragged back to St. Vladimir’s Academy, a school for vampire royalty and their guardian-to-be.
Why you might like it: This is set in high school, has lots of drama-filled vampire romances and it has a lot of action. It’s a pretty long series with a spin-off that you can binge!
The Mortal Instruments – Cassandra Clare
When 15-year-old Clary witnesses a murder by 3 teenagers brandishing bizarre weapons at a New York City club that only she can see, she’s dragged into a world of demons and demon hunters.
Why you might like it: This is the start to a long series about lots of different characters in a bunch of different time periods. It has a lot of different romances, friendships and supernatural creatures. This series got 2 different adaptations: a movie and a tv series, and both are enjoyable enough.
The Infernal Devices – Cassandra Clare
16-year-old Tessa travels from the US to London to find her brother. But, when she arrives, she’s kidnapped by the Dark Sisters and learns that she might have special powers.
Tessa takes refuge with the Shadowhunters – a group of people who protect the world from demons – where she finds herself falling for 2 different boys whilst in the middle of a deadly plot.
Why you might like it: If you like the idea of The Mortal Instruments but didnt’ really enjoy it, then I’d really recommend the prequel series! In my opinion, it’s a lot better written and has better characters, plot and relationships. It has a variety of supernatural creatures and a love triangle where I actually found myself rooting for both love interests!
The Secret Circle – L. J. Smith
Cassie moves from sunny California to the gloomy New Salem where she quickly becomes involved with the Secret Circle, a coven of witches that have controlled the town for hundreds of years.
Why you might like it: It’s a small town paranormal series written by the same author as The Vampire Diaries but this one is about witches rather than vampires! This series has everything you love about the vampire diaries: romance, friendship, magic and love triangles.
This book series also got a TV adaptation by the same creators as The Vampire Diaries starring Britt Robertson, Shelley Hennig and Phoebe Tonkin. It was great but, unfortunately, it got cancelled after only one season. It’s definitely worth a watch though!
Night World – L. J. Smith
The Night World is a secret society of vampires, werewolves, witches and other creatures of darkness that live among us.
The Night World laws say it’s okay to hunt humans, to toy with their hearts and even kill them. There are only 2 things you can’t do:
- Let them find out that the Night World Exists
- Never fall in love with them.
These are stories about what happens when the rules get broken.
Why you might like it: This series is also written by the author of The Vampire Diaries and it features 9 books with interconnected stories about lots of different characters where every single main character falls in love with someone that they shouldn’t.
The Vampire Diaries – L. J. Smith
Elena is a popular and pretty teenager who is trying to come to terms with the death of her parents. She’s kind of used to always getting what she wants and what she wants right now is Stefan Salvatore, the mysterious new student but he wants nothing to do with her.
Why you might like it: If you loved the show then I think it’s worth giving the books a chance. They’re very different, from characters to plot, but I think if you’re looking for a small town, vampire romance series then it’s worth a try. You just have to take into account that it was written in the 90s because it does very much feel like a series that was written 30 years ago.
