WATERLOO - For the most rabid "Twilight" fans, the journey is finally over.

Stephenie Meyer's fourth and final book, following Bella Swan, her vampire boy toy and werewolf best friend, was released at 12:01 a.m. Saturday. The final installment ended a year of book club and chat room speculation as to whether Bella would chose eternity with boyfriend Edward or make a life with magical, but mortal, Jacob.

Hachette Book Group, publisher of the hefty 754-page finale, estimates 1.3 million copies were sold on the first day. Most of those customers - teen girls - pledged to finish the fantasy romance within 48 hours.

But for other young adults, the adventure has likely just begun. With four volumes of the Bella Swan saga now stocked on bookstore and library shelves, local fans of the series expect their ranks to swell. And in December, a movie based on Meyer's first book will hit theaters across the country, presumably further heightening the books' appeal.

"The supernatural genre is so popular right now, and in that teenage girl demographic, anything with a romantic story is really appealing," said Steve Olsson, an assistant store manager at Waterloo's Barnes & Noble. "In recent times we've mythologized vampires to be very sexy."

On Friday, the store hosted a "Breaking Dawn" release party with a prom theme, playing off a scene at the end of the series' first installment. About 150 readers, mostly girls, came dressed in formal gowns. They added fake vampire bite tattoos and plastic fangs to their ensembles at the book outlet.

"It's kind of sad to see it coming to an end," said attendee Moe Hines of Waterloo. "I love reading them, and just seeing what's going on in Bella's head. The way she thinks is really cool."

The 14-year-old expects other teens will get hooked on the story now that Meyer's creation has gained so much attention from the media. The story follows "average Jane" Bella as she falls in love with a vampire classmate and wrestles to join the supernatural while keeping ties to her human friends and family.

Hines started reading the series after repeated recommendations from friends. Now she talks about the main characters like old pals.

The Waterloo teen's brow furrows when she considers how Jacob, who is head-over-heels for Bella, could ever be a part of the protagonist's life while she's still with Edward. Her eyes dance when she describes what it would be like to be a "vegetarian" vampire in rainy Forks, Wash. And Hines comes close to swooning when she breathes, "I want Edward Cullen to crawl through my window."

"Everything about Stephenie Meyer's books are so realistic," explains Hines' friend, Tessa Michaelsen, a 14-year-old from Cedar Falls. "It's hard to put them down, and it's hard not to feel like you really know the characters."

The series began in 2005, with the publication of "Twilight." Other volumes in the saga are "New Moon," "Eclipse" and the recently released "Breaking Dawn." As of Monday, the top five best-sellers on Amazon.com were either original or special editions of the novels.

"Girls love them because the author knows the characters so well," said Kristi Anhalt, teen services librarian at the Waterloo Public Library. "(Meyer) actually knows what kind of music they'd listen to, and if you go to her Web site she even has pictures of their cars and the dresses that the girls wore to the prom."

Some book industry analysts have compared the series' feverish fandom with that of Harry Potter-philes. Anhalt won't go that far, but she is happy to see the excitement created by the "Twilight" series.

"Whenever you can get people passionate about reading, that's a great thing," she said. "Girls have latched on to this story. Hopefully, that'll keep them reading."

Contact Mary Stegmeir at (319) 291-1482 or mary.stegmeir@wcfcourier.com.