Reelz Channel has tracked down admins from some of the top Twilight fan sites around, and gotten their opinions on the latest New Moon trailer/featurette. And yours truly is among them! Most of the reactions were positive, though it I appears I was in the minority with my critical approach. Remember, this is only my personal opinion — and not the opinion of the entire Novel Novice staff (and I did still have a couple squealy moments over certain brief clips). Anyway, here’s what I had to say at Reelz:

To see all of the fan site reactions, click here.

And in case you missed the trailer, here it is again … then stop by our comments section and tell us what YOU think!

Yahoo! and Access Hollywood are reporting on the latest casting news for The Twilight Saga: Eclipse – most notably, the parts of Leah & Seth Clearwater:

Xavier Samuel as Riley
Catalina Sandino Moreno as Maria
Jack Huston as Royce King
Julia Jones as Leah Clearwater
BooBoo Stewart as Seth Clearwater
Jodelle Ferland as Bree

See Yahoo!’s entire cast list here.

UPDATE: Add’l reporting at Reelz Channel]

UPDATE #2: Here’s the OFFICIAL word from Summit Entertainment:

SUMMIT ENTERTAINMENT STARTS PRODUCTION ON
THE TWILIGHT SAGA: ECLIPSE

Vancouver, BC – August 18, 2009 – Summit Entertainment announced today that it has commenced principal photography on THE TWILIGHT SAGA: ECLIPSE directed by David Slade (30 DAYS OF NIGHT, HARD CANDY) from a screenplay by Melissa Rosenberg. Kristen Stewart, Robert Pattinson and Taylor Lautner will reprise their roles as Bella Swan, Edward Cullen and Jacob Black. The third film in the studio’s TWILIGHT film franchise based on Stephenie Meyer’s blockbuster book series, will be released theatrically in North America on Wednesday, June 30, 2010.

Along with director David Slade, several new actors are joining the TWILIGHT family including Bryce Dallas Howard as Victoria, Xavier Samuel as Riley, Catalina Sandino Moreno as Maria, Jack Huston as Royce King, Julia Jones as Leah, BooBoo Stewart as Seth, and Jodelle Ferland as Bree.

Also continuing in the saga as The Cullen Family are Ashley Greene as Alice, Peter Facinelli as Carlisle, Elizabeth Reaser as Esme, Kellan Lutz as Emmett, Nikki Reed as Rosalie, and Jackson Rathbone as Jasper. Billy Burke also returns as Charlie Swan. THE TWILIGHT SAGA: ECLIPSE is filming on location in Vancouver, BC.

THE TWILIGHT SAGA: ECLIPSE brings back members of the Quileute Indian Nation; the classmates of Bella and Edward; and the legendary Volturi, a venerable coven of vampires who weigh and impose the laws of the vampire world. A cast list for THE TWILIGHT SAGA: ECLIPSE appears at the end of this document.

In THE TWILIGHT SAGA: ECLIPSE, Bella once again finds herself surrounded by danger as Seattle is ravaged by a string of mysterious killings and a malicious vampire continues her quest for revenge. In the midst of it all, she is forced to choose between her love for Edward and her friendship with Jacob — knowing that her decision has the potential to ignite the ageless struggle between vampire and werewolf. With her graduation quickly approaching, Bella is confronted with the most important decision of her life.

About the TWILIGHT film series
The TWILIGHT film series stars Kristen Stewart and Robert Pattinson and tells the story of 17-year-old Bella Swan who moves to the small town of Forks, Washington to live with her father, and becomes drawn to Edward Cullen, a pale, mysterious classmate who seems determined to push her away. But neither can deny the attraction that pulls them together…even when Edward confides that he and his family are vampires.

The action-packed, modern day vampire love story and blockbuster success TWILIGHT was released in theatres on November 21, 2008. The second installment of the film franchise, THE TWILIGHT SAGA: NEW MOON directed by Chris Weitz and starring Kristen Stewart, Robert Pattinson and Taylor Lautner, will be released November 20, 2009.

Melissa Rosenberg wrote the scripts for all three films in The TWILIGHT film series.

THE TWILIGHT SAGA: ECLIPSE Cast List

Kristen Stewart as Bella Swan
Robert Pattinson as Edward Cullen
Taylor Lautner as Jacob Black

Cullen Family
Ashley Greene as Alice Cullen
Peter Facinelli as Dr. Carlisle
Elizabeth Reaser as Esme Cullen
Kellan Lutz as Emmett Cullen
Nikki Reed as Rosalie Hale
Jackson Rathbone as Jasper Hale

Wolf Pack
Chaske Spencer as Sam Uley
Bronson Pelletier as Jared
Alex Meraz as Paul
Kiowa Gordon as Embry Call
Tyson Houseman as Quil Ateara

Other Quileutes
Gil Birmingham as Billy Black
Tinsel Korey as Emily

Nomad Vampires
Bryce Dallas Howard as Victoria

Volturi
Cameron Bright as Alec
Charlie Bewley as Demetri
Daniel Cudmore as Felix
Dakota Fanning as Jane

Additional Returning Cast Members
Billy Burke as Charlie Swan
Sarah Clarke as Renee Dwyer
Anna Kendrick as Jessica
Michael Welch as Mike
Christian Serratos as Angela
Justin Chon as Eric

New Cast Members
Xavier Samuel as Riley
Catalina Sandino Moreno as Maria
Jack Huston as Royce King
Julia Jones as Leah Clearwater
BooBoo Stewart as Seth Clearwater
Jodelle Ferland as Bree

What do you think of the casting? Like? Dislike? Tell us in the comments!

You’ve heard us talk about Brian Leaf’s Defining Twilight here at Novel Novice all summer long. In fact, Defining Twilight is sponsoring our July-August Fan Fiction Challenge by offering some really cool prizes! (And you can see our other cool features with Defining Twilight HERE.)

But there’s another way to study vocabulary and prepare for the SAT/ACT with your favorite book series … with Brian Leaf’s Defining New Moon.

Following the same format as his previous book, Defining New Moon uses vocabulary plucked right from the pages of Stephenie Meyer’s New Moon to help you learn new words and prepare for standardized tests like the SAT and ACT. Brian Leaf incorporates the words into exercises designed to help you learn the words meanings and better understand the context in which they are used.

Defining New Moon is due in bookstores this fall. Click HERE to learn more and preorder your copy today!

Still wondering what Defining Twilight and Defining New Moon are all about? Check out our trailer below:

Have you picked up Defining Twilight? Did you find it useful? What did you like about it? Tell us in the comments!

* First things first … in case you missed it, here is the official new New Moon trailer from Summit:

* Now, here’s a round-up of the latest articles looking at reaction to the trailer:

• MTV asks: What’s missing from the New Moon trailer?
• MTV also has freeze frames
• Yahoo! discusses the strong presence of Jacob Black in the trailer

What are your thoughts on the trailer? Tell us in the comments below!

* Our friends at Twilighters Anonymous have also created a gallery of high-res screencaps from the trailer/featurette

* And just for laughs … the Lex has uncovered a 2007 Mountain Dew commercial featuring Kellan Lutz, being chased by a chainsaw-weilding ferret:

Once again … dish your thoughts on the trailer-featurette in the comments!

* The latest New Moon trailer (the one that debuted with “Bandslam” this weekend) is now OFFICIALLY online. And this one shouldn’t disappear on us:

* In case you’re still trying to wrap your brain around everything that appears in the clip: the Examiner looks at what we learned from the new New Moon trailer/video

* Also, this just into our inbox: Summit Entertainment & Creation Entertainment have teamed up to present the official Twilight conventions over the next three years:

Los Angeles, CA  August 17, 2009 – Summit Entertainment and Creation Entertainment today announced a partnership to produce a series of Official TWILIGHT Fan Conventions over the next three years.

The unprecedented success of both the Twilight novels by Stephenie Meyer and the feature film adaptation of the first book has created a worldwide following of passionate fans who are eagerly awaiting the release of THE TWILIGHT SAGA: NEW MOON, the second movie in Summit’s TWILIGHT film franchise, which will be released theatrically in North America on November 20, 2009.
  
The Official TWILIGHT Fan Conventions will offer attendees the unique opportunity to involve themselves in all aspects of THE TWILIGHT SAGA.  The weekend gatherings will feature on-stage appearances by TWILIGHT celebrities, exclusive footage screenings, panel discussions, TWILIGHT themed parties, musical performances, costume and trivia competitions, auctions, autographing, merchandising, and photo opportunities.  The major online TWILIGHT fan websites, including www.twilightlexicon.com and www.twilightMOMS.com, will be participating with special presentations at stops on the convention tour.

Erin Ferries, VP of Creation Entertainment, said, “It is a delight to be involved with the tremendous excitement that surrounds THE TWILIGHT SAGA.  The fans are incredibly knowledgeable about the property and have used the story as a springboard for their own creativity.  The Official TWILIGHT Fan Conventions will allow attendees the chance to show off their TWILIGHT inspired artwork, writing, costumes, filmmaking, and music with thousands of their fellow fans.  While the conventions will offer fans the chance to cheer for their favorite actors they are equally about gathering with like-minded folks and forming friendships based on a common devotion.  We can’t wait to bring some of the magic of TWILIGHT live to cities around the United States, Canada and the United Kingdom!”

“The fans of THE TWILIGHT SAGA continue to be incredibly supportive of the film franchise and we wanted to find a way to allow them to immerse themselves in the films and the characters in a much more interactive setting,” said Nancy Kirkpatrick, President of Worldwide Marketing of Summit Entertainment.  “The Official TWILIGHT Fan Conventions will offer incredible opportunities to get up close to the characters which they have grown to love.”

Official TWILIGHT Fan Conventions around the country with more then 20 stops have already been announced including New Jersey, Chicago, Miami, Seattle, Nashville, San Francisco, Atlanta, Los Angeles, Arlington, Charlotte, Minneapolis, Phoenix, Boston, Toronto and Portland.

More information on any of these weekend events can be found at www.twilightconvention.com.

* Rotten Tomatoes provides us an in-depth look at the career of New Moon director Chris Weitz

* BuddyTV looks at how Taylor Lautner is holding up under the pressure from the Twilight fandom, as the focus shifts from Rob Pattinson to him with the upcoming release of New Moon

* Stephenie Meyer has updated her website – with news about her summer, books she’s reading, music she’s listening to and the movies she’s seen

* MTV has a nice article about how Twilight stars are using their fame for good causes

Now that you can OFFICIALLY (and in good quality!) watch the latest New Moon pseudo-trailer … tell us your thoughts in the comments!