Paul Wesley as Stefan, Nina Dobrev as Elena. Quantrell Colbert / The CW © 2009

“Without such a talisman, we die in sunlight as if in a fire,” Stefan tells Elena in The Awakening.

L.J. Smith introduces a lot of unusual things in her Vampire Diaries books—and the stone Stefan and Damon’s rings are crafted from, “lapis lazuli,” is one of our favorites.  We know that lapis lazuli protects vampires from sunlight, but we wanted to find out where it comes from and figure out why L.J. chose this particular kind of stone.

In our research, we found out that lapis lazuli is a real semi-precious stone that has been mined for over 6,000 years.  It’s also fairly rare and often used in jewelry because of its beautiful blue color.  We still aren’t exactly sure why L.J. Smith chose lapis lazuli … we think the fact that it’s rare, ancient, and beautiful—kind of like the Salvatore boys themselves—is reason enough.

Find out more about lapis lazuli here and tell us why you think L.J. Smith chose this stone for her vamps’ rings in TVD!

What could possibly make us more excited for the second season of TVD than we already are?  The CW’s SEXY new promotional poster ads for The Vampire Diaries! Elena is pictured with both Salvatore brothers by her side—as usual.  And she’s clearly connected to both Stefan and Damon—which is slightly scandalous but not too surprising.

Tell us what you think of TVD’s season two look!

There are countless moments in the TVD book series that we love–like the first time Stefan and Elena kiss in The Awakening or the epic cat fight between Katherine and Elena in The Fury. So it’s hard for us to choose just one favorite moment  . . . but we want you to try!

Whether you’ve read all of L.J. Smith’s books, or you’re just getting started, is it the moments of suspense that you love? The romance? Or do the all out battles between good and evil keep you coming back for more? Pick YOUR favorite moment from The Vampire Diaries book series, and tell us why you love it.

Don’t have the books? Find them here!

Nina Dobrev as Elena, Paul Wesley as Stefan. Andrew Eccles / The CW © 2009

“When it came to Stefan and Elena’s relationship, Elena was definitely in control.  As humans said: She wore the trousers in the family.” –Damon, The Return: Shadow Souls,

As you can see from the quote above, Damon thinks Elena is the one with the upper hand in her relationship with Stefan.  But, while it’s very apparent that Stefan is obsessed with Elena, we think Elena is pretty obsessed with Stefan too.

We know what Damon thinks, but we want your opinion.  Do you agree with Damon?  Or do you think that Stefan has just as much power over Elena as Elena has over him?

Nina Dobrev as Elena. Photo by Alan Markfield / The CW ©2009

Bonnie is described as a little bit too naïve at times … Meredith a little bit too serious …and Matt, well, sometimes he’s just a little bit too nice.  All of Elena’s friends have their flaws just like anyone else … but what about Elena?

Elena is known for faultless good looks and a personality that almost everyone seems to like.  In the beginning, Elena is even described as the “Queen Bee” of her high school that can get any guy she wants.

Sometimes Elena seems almost … perfect.  Don’t get us wrong, we LOVE Elena, but we don’t think anybody is truly perfect.  What do you think?  Are there things about Elena that you don’t like?