"The Short Second Life of Bree Tanner" poised for release tomorrow

Quick: What's the big event set to rock the book world tomorrow? If you don't know, you're obviously not a Twihard (i.e., hard-core, obsessive fan of Stephenie Meyer's "Twilight" series.) June 5 will mark the release in bookstores of "The Short Second Life of Bree Tanner: An Eclipse Novella."

Meyer has explained to fans that she originally envisioned "The Short Second Life of Bree Tanner" – which deals with a character introduced in "Eclipse," the third book of the "Twilight" series – as part of "The Twilight Saga: The Official Guide." But eventually the 192-page book developed a life of its own.

The marketing of the new book will be interesting. Hardcover copies will go on sale at 12:01 a.m. on Saturday, June 5 – with e-book sales beginning a few hours later at 6 a.m. But as a gift to her fans, Meyer is also making "Bree" available free of charge at breetanner.com, from June 7 to July 5.

At the same time, however, PC Tools has issued a "malware warning." According to the Examiner, "PC Tools predicts that once the novella is available, cybercriminals will distribute it through Twilight fan sites and searches as a 'Poisoned PDF.' They will exploit the online searches to find ways to infect computers with malware and new threats. Eager fans searching for early sneak peeks will also be targeted."

For protection, fans are advised to "beware and just use the legitimate tools provided by BreeTanner.com."

On the brighter side: One dollar from each copy of "Bree Tanner" sold will be donated to the American Red Cross.

Marjorie Kehe is the Monitor's book editor.

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