Eclipse (The Twilight Saga, Book 3)
by Stephenie Meyer
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Book Summary Information
Author: Stephenie MeyerBrand: Little, Brown Books for Young Readers
Edition: Paperback
Audio: English (Unknown); English (Original Language); English (Published)
Published: 2009-08-04
ISBN: 0316027650
Number of pages: 640
Publisher: Little, Brown Books for Young Readers
Book Reviews of Eclipse (The Twilight Saga, Book 3)
Book Review: "Fighting with vampires instead of against them!"
Summary: 4 Stars
"Fighting with vampires instead of against them!"
Edward and Bella are back together. Their only problems are Charlie's grounding Bella, graduation, applying to colleges, Edward's marriage proposal to Bella, Jacob, Bella's friend, being left out, and Victoria being on the hunt for Bella. All your typical teenaged problems.
I Liked:
I will never understand these books. They are the fluffiest of fluff and yet so enjoyable to read (even as you are bashing your head against a wall)!
1.Expanding Lore. One of the things I most loved about this book was how it expanded on all the lore that has been set up in the previous novels.
Firstly, Meyer expands on the Quileutes history. Uncle Billy and one of the other village elders gathers the Council together and reveals this story through oral tradition. I loved this story, it felt so organic, so real and it really kept my attention. I didn't want to set the book down at all.
Rosalie proves to be fascinating; she comes to Bella and begs her to reconsider becoming a vampire. Then Rosalie proceeds to tell Bella why: that Rosalie was a socialite, had everything, was doing great, but it was all destroyed when her fiance took advantage of her. It's a griping story, a heartrending story and it makes Bella's choice to leave the mortal world all the more serious.
Jasper's story is almost more fascinating than Rosalie's; he became a vampire to fight in a war of vampire covens. I loved this concept, I absolutely thought it was brilliant and scary all at once.
2.Characters. I found that the characters had even grown more to my liking.
Jacob continues to be one of my favorite characters. Even though at times in this book he comes off as an a-hole, Jacob, I feel, really wants Bella to be her own person, as he tells Edward:"Better frightened than lied to" (Page 81). And isn't it true? What woman cares to be lied to, even if it is to protect her? She isn't a child anymore and is fully capable (uh, maybe not? See next section) of taking care of herself. She deserves to be treated like an adult, not as a pet or a toy.
Charlie gets to call out Bella on her bad behavior last book, which I found absolutely delicious and had to include (Page 12): "I don't think you should dump all your other friends for your boyfriend...what happened in September...if you'd had more of a life outside of Edward Cullen, it might not have been like that."
Bella really grew up in this novel. At times, she seems to have finally developed a partial backbone. When Jacob makes advances on her, she tells him no, very firmly. Also, with Edward, I was pleased to see her reprimanding him vehemently for lying to her on multiple occasions and telling him that he won't lie to her again. Also, and I am not sure how to put this, I also commend Bella for not wanting to bend immediately to Edward's desire to marry her.
Edward got a scene where he was able to reveal more of himself to Bella, and for the first time, I felt I had an idea of who he was and why Bella liked him.
3.Action. There is quite a bit of action in this novel, starting much earlier than usual, around the halfway mark as everyone realizes that Bella is in danger. I enjoyed the battle preparations (if I did get lost sometimes), the actual battle, and how they meet Victoria and Jane from the Volturi.
I Didn't Like:
I have written this section so many times, and each time it grows longer. So I am going to try to truncate it, by using words to describe why I dislike each part and then quotes or a brief explanation.
1.Bella is...
Co-dependent. Her one goal in life is to be with Edward. She has no goals for an occupation, no goals to go to college, no dreams of accomplishing anything beyond becoming a vampire to be forever with her Edward.
"If I had my way, I would spend the majority of my time kissing Edward." Page 43
"I would never admit to him how hard it was for me when he was gone--how it brought back the abandonment nightmares. If he knew that, it would make him feel horrible and he would be afraid to ever leave me." Page 94
"Whats the point in waiting? He's all I want." Page 183
"It wouldn't be much of a life [if I weren't in love with you, Edward]" Page 230
"He wasn't the one who was going to have to sit behind and wonder whether or not the core of his existence was going to come home." Page 312
"I love him, Jacob. He's my whole life." Page 330
"Jacob, I can't be happy without him." Page 333
"As long as I got to be with Edward, what else could I ask for?" Page 345
"You're in every thought I have." Page 413
"And I can't stand it if you leave me again." Page 419
"There was no question that he was fundamental to my survival." Page 420
"Because right now, physically, there's nothing I want more than you." Page 446
"I have to be with you. It's the only way I can live." Page 610
"Everything in my world was about him." Page619
Yes, ladies and gents, there is no life unless you have a man.
Boring. If Bella is not cooking, cleaning, dropping things, tripping at convenient plot points or nuzzling Edward...she must be dead. Bella has absolutely no hobbies and is never once shown doing anything by herself for herself. Apparently, she's supposed to be smart and interested in literature, but throwing in a random comment about Wuthering Heights absolutely does not a hobby make.
A complainer. If it can be complained about (even if it is for no reason), Bella will do it. Things she has complained about (that normal people actually look forward to) include: graduation, commencement, parties, marriage, and going to college.
Is overdramatic. She blames herself for everything, even things that she had no control over...and never stops.
Inconsistent. Its obvious that Meyer tried to write Bella one way, and yet she comes off completely different. Let me count the ways:
Meyer: Bella is mature. The reader: Bella is immature, ready to run out and harm herself instead of standing behind people who can't be easily destroyed. Best example is from Rosalie: "In some ways, you are much more mature than I was at eighteen. But in other ways....there are many things you've probably never though about seriously...you don't want to be rash about permanent things, Bella" (page 167).
Meyer: Bella is selfless. The reader: Bella is selfish, not thinking about her parents, her friends, or anyone but herself when considering becoming a vampire. She also whines until Edward backs out of the big fight, just so he can canoodle her.
Meyer: Bella is giving. The reader: Bella uses people. She uses Angela's friendship to get out of being with Edward and "getting in trouble" with him. She uses Jacob to get her away from Edward.
Meyer: Bella is considerate. The reader: Bella is inconsiderate. When people give her things, she whines and complains about it. She ripped out the stereo Emmet gave her, almost let her tickets from Carlisle and Esme expire, won't let Edward give her anything for graduation, and only consents reluctantly to Alice planning parties for her.
Meyer: Bella is thoughtful. The reader: Bella is not thoughtful. As Rosalie tells Bella how Rosalie was gang raped, Bella is wangsting about Edward being with other women in Tanya's coven. She doesn't care about hurting Jacob's feelings by dragging him along and then telling him "No" at his weakest moment.
2.Other Characters:
Edward is so...boring. He's always polite, always overprotective, knows every subject, can get admitted into Dartmouth on a sneeze, and is a virgin. He has absolutely no conflict whatsoever and is boring because of it.
"There was no end to his generosity" Page 521
Jacob is a would-be rapist. Now, I love this guy...mostly. But halfway through this book, he takes a turn into territory I loathe when he admits his love for Bella (not bad) and forces a kiss on her (VERY BAD). As Bella herself says (page 478): "You're an enormous monster who refuses to respect anyone else's personal space." And he doesn't get any punishment. In fact, he gets congratulated by...
Charlie is an idiot father. Number one, he is totally oblivious to his daughter. Number two, there is absolutely no subtlety to his hatred (justified--remember, it was Edward who made his daughter a zombie) to Edward. Number three (and most important), Charlie practically givaes Jacob a pat on the back for forcibly kissing Bella and then laughing about it. If that was my dad, I would have hit him so hard it would have made his head spin. Then, I would promptly have moved out.
3.Bad Romance. Edward is a control freak. He dictates whether Bella can visit Jacob, he lies to Bella about Alice's vision, he lies to Bella about why they went to Florida, he has Alice watch her, ruining Bella's plans with Jacob just so Bella "would be safe", he stalks her, he chooses what Bella should do without asking her permission...in short, theirs is the epitome of an unhealthy relationship:
"I sign your name better than you do yourself." Edward, talking about how he is going to forge Bella's name on an application to Dartmouth (page 23)
"There's really no point in discussing the matter further." Edward closing off a discussion about if Bella can visit Jacob (page 28)
"It wasn't so bad, except for the fact that I was being held against my will." Bella, about how Edward conned Alice into having a sleepover at the Cullens (pages 146--147)
This doesn't even include the scene where Edward removes Bella's spark plugs so she can't drive to La Push to see Jacob.
4.Inconsistencies. This book is riddled with them. Here are a few I spotted:
Jacob mentions Quil being on a scouting mission with the wolf pack, yet Bella is surprised to learn he is a werewolf now.
Bella asks Jacob about Sam's history, which she had already learned in New Moon.
Bella asks Edward why he doesn't want her to be a vampire. He already answered that it was because he didn't want her to lose her soul.
Bella loves Edward so much...yet doesn't want to marry him?
Bella doesn't care what people think about her (hence her 3 month catatonia) yet does care if people talk about her marrying right out of college (page 275)?
Bella's mother pushed Bella not to marry young (shouldn't this have been seen earlier)?
When did Edward develop the immunity to Bella's blood (page 471)?
The mountains near Forks have near-blizzard weather...in June?
Edward is able to start a fire with dry pine needles...when just the night before there was a massive snowstorm (page 555)?
5.Other.
What is up with the heavy-handed references to Wuthering Heights (page 517 and 611)? Did Meyer just finish reading the Cliff Notes version? Talk about no subtlety.
I understand this is a young adult novel, but I couldn't help but feel I was being talked down to.
Meyer has a tendency to set up an interesting scene then totally cut away from it and focus on Edward and Bella snuggling (for instance, the day before the Big Fight).
Meyer is hereby banned from using any of the following words or any of their forms: grimace, chuckle, flinch, wince, mumble, mutter, growl, moan, snort...I could go on.
Dialogue/Sexual Situations/Violence:
There is some swearing, but nothing beyond a few d***, h***, and p***ed.
There is enormous sexual tension between Bella and Edward and Bella and Jacob. Between Bella and Edward, Bella is constantly trying to get Edward to sleep with her, and Edward is always holding back. Jacob and Bella kiss twice: once, Jacob forces kisses her, the second, he tricks her into kissing him.
Seattle has been plagued with numerous murders. Rosalie reveals that she was gang raped before she became a vampire. Jasper was brutally attacked as a young vampire. Bella is in constant danger. The last 100 pages is rife with rather brutal bluntness about decapitations, ripping body parts, and other ways to maim vampires.
Overall:
This book is very hard to rate. It was sometimes just as enjoyable as the previous books, and yet there were aspects that bugged me (namely, Bella).
The story progresses well, even if there was an unnecessary romantic triangle and sudden revulsion to marriage thrown in. The aspect I loved was the vampire battle, but found myself also growing closer to Edward, Jacob, and even Bella.
I know when the next book comes out on paperback, I'll buy it and read it. And I'm going to see the Eclipse movie in theaters when it comes out. So I'll give this four stars. It's good, but definitely not for everyone.
Brought to you by:
*C.S. Light*
Summary of Eclipse (The Twilight Saga, Book 3)
Readers captivated by Twilight and New Moon will eagerly devour the paperback edition Eclipse, the third book in Stephenie Meyer's riveting vampire love saga. As Seattle is ravaged by a string of mysterious killings and a malicious vampire continues her quest for revenge, Bella once again finds herself surrounded by danger. 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 has one more decision to make: life or death. But which is which?Horror Books
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