The Vampire Diaries is one of the most popular vampire YA fiction series of all time, predating even the Twilight Saga fandom! The first book made its debut in 1991 and was quickly followed by three sequels. After a decade-long hiatus, author L.J. Smith revived the series with more volumes that explored the characters and world she introduced 30 years ago, buoyed to new heights by the popularity of the television adaptation. The Vampire Diaries premiered on the CW in 2009 and ran for eight seasons, attracting new and old fans alike.
If you're new to The Vampire Diaries or have recently started streaming the TV show, this is an essential guide to the central plot points, characters, and overarching story that you need to know. Because so many years separate the novels, and there are trilogies within the overarching Vampire Diaries series, it can be confusing to know where to start. We'll demystify it all, so you can dive right in.
Warning: The following article contains spoilers for The Vampire Diaries series.
What is The Vampire Diaries about?
The Vampire Diaries follows three central characters: Elena Gilbert, Stefan Salvatore, and Damon Salvatore. Elena is a human teenage girl living in Fells Church, Virginia, in the 1990s. She's pretty, popular, and sometimes petty. After her parents die in a car crash, she's also an orphan. Elena is able to date any boy she likes—until Stefan Salvatore shows up. Stefan is new to town, and Elena is immediately attracted to him. Although he seems to avoid her at first, they eventually begin to date. And that's when Damon Salvatore shows up, wreaking havoc and trying to steal Elena from his brother. It's not long before Elena learns the truth: the Salvatore brothers are centuries-old vampires. Along with her best friends Bonnie McCullough, a witch; Meredith Sulez, a vampire hunter; and Matt Honeycutt, her ex-boyfriend, Elena is drawn into the supernatural drama that plays out in Fells Church.
What happens in the original The Vampire Diaries series?
The Vampire Diaries initially consisted of four books—The Awakening, The Struggle, The Fury, and Dark Reunion—published from 1991 to 1992. In addition to being available as four standalone novels, they've been sold in two omnibus editions, with The Awakening and The Struggle bundled in one and The Fury and Dark Reunion in another.
In The Awakening, Stefan Salvatore moves to Fells Church and meets Elena Gilbert. As they confront their mutual attraction, a series of brutal attacks has Stefan questioning whether he's losing control, just as he discovers his brother, Damon, has arrived in town. In The Struggle, Stefan is accused of carrying out a brutal attack on the history teacher. Shortly after, a teacher named Alaric K. Saltzman shows up to replace him, raising Damon's suspicions.
In The Fury, Elena is recovering from the catastrophic incident at the end of The Struggle that turned her into a vampire. Damon and Stefan are trying to discover who is responsible for turning Elena when they get a visitor from their past: their lover. Katherine von Swartzchild, the vampire who turned the brothers, has come to Fells Church—and she bears a striking resemblance to Elena. In Dark Reunion, Elena's death has the Salvatore brothers distraught. They leave town, only to be drawn back by Bonnie, who has visions of Elena being tortured by Klaus, the Original vampire. As the town suffers under Klaus's attacks, the Salvatores try to come up with a plan to defeat him—even if it takes someone who is already dead.
What happens in The Return trilogy?
Following the release of Dark Reunion, author L.J. Smith took a 10-year hiatus from the series, so The Return trilogy wasn't published until 2008. In the first book, Nightfall, Elena has returned from the land of the dead and is human once more—but it's an adjustment. Evil forces possess Damon, and Elena and Matt find themselves in danger when Damon captures Stefan and uses him to lure Elena into a trap. Elena and Matt are successful in saving Damon, but they must rescue Stefan from the Dark Dimension. In Shadow Souls, the relationship between Damon and Elena heats up on the road to saving Stefan, and Bonnie and Meredith fight to protect Fells Church from a new evil that has descended. The characters face shape-shifters and other dimensions. Elena eventually manages to save Stefan—but Damon is turned human in the process. Midnight sees Damon desperate to regain his vampire status and bringing Bonnie along for the journey. Meredith comes into her own as a vampire hunter, and Elena finds herself working with Stefan to fight against the evil that has been plaguing their town. Ultimately, Elena makes a drastic choice to save Stefan from permanent death.
What happens in The Hunters trilogy?
The Hunters trilogy marks a shift in the series: it is the first arc in The Vampire Diaries story written by a ghostwriter (whose identity remains largely unknown). In Phantom, Elena's life is mostly back to what was normal before she died, thanks to the wish she made. But trouble is brewing when Alaric Saltzman returns from Japan and notices that someone has been writing the names of Elena, Meredith, Damon, Bonnie, and Matt in blood. The characters learn a phantom is plaguing them all, and the Salvatore brothers must confront their animosity in order to defeat it. In Moonsong, the characters head to college, where they make new friends and new enemies. Elena breaks up with both Stefan and Damon, and Matt gets inducted into a secret society whose true purpose is to raise Klaus from the dead. In Destiny Rising, Klaus is successfully resurrected, and the characters must work to try and stop him. But Klaus has compelled Caroline Forbes and Tyler Lockwood to burn down the only thing capable of killing him. As they fight against Klaus's evil plan, which includes resurrecting Katherine, Klaus captures Elena and drinks her blood. He intends to kill her, but the tables are turned when Elena's blood kills him. In the aftermath, Elena chooses Stefan once and forever, and Damon and Katherine leave the country.
What happens in The Salvation trilogy?
The Salvation trilogy, written by ghostwriter Aubrey Clark, sees the characters somewhat happy for the first time in a long time. In Unseen, Elena, Bonnie, Meredith, and Matt are continuing their studies at Dalcrest. Elena and Stefan's relationship is going strong. And Damon and Katherine are traveling through Europe together. But then a new threat arrives in town—another Original vampire—while abroad, Katherine and Damon find themselves hunted by another enemy. They rush home, only to face the ultimate test. In Unspoken, Elena is bereft after a race of scientifically created vampires, immune to all of the weapons at her disposal, kills Stefan. Elena and Damon must work together to bring them down—and it's not long before she finds herself falling for her dead lover's brother. In Unmasked, Elena is struggling to keep the promise to the Guardians that Damon wouldn't hurt anyone. Finally, they offer her one last chance to prove that she can exist alongside them without a human dying: Elena must go back to her senior year of high school, when she first met the Salvatore brothers, and keep everyone safe.
How do The Vampire Diaries books compare with the television adaptation?
The Vampire Diaries series is rich with characters, conflict, and supernatural intrigue. Although it's impossible for any TV adaptation to capture everything the books cover, the CW series does a great job incorporating many of the characters and plot twists over eight seasons. Still, there are some notable differences: Elena is more of a girl next door than a queen bee, Meredith Sulez wasn't included in the show, and Alaric Saltzman is older and the love interest of Elena's aunt. Elena also has a brother only a few years younger, rather than a sister, in the show. But there is still plenty of drama and excitement, and book characters often pop up in surprising or exciting new ways.
