Twilight (The Twilight Saga, Book 1)
by Stephenie Meyer
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Book Reviews of Twilight (The Twilight Saga, Book 1)
Book Review: Good for a rainy day fantasy...
Summary: 3 Stars
It seems this book has received massive amounts of acclaim, but I never heard of it until I decided to watch The Dark Knight. A preview for the movie Twilight came on and mentioned that it was based on the best-selling novel by Stephenie Meyer. Since the preview looked good and I prefer to read books before seeing the movie, I picked up a copy.
Now that you know why I purchased the book, I should also mention that I'm not necessarily the target demographic and haven't been for a few years. But that doesn't mean I don't enjoy the good YA fantasy fiction book every now and again. (I've been called a perpetual teenager on more than one occasion.)
I'm going to try and keep this review as spoiler-free as possible. In case you haven't already gathered it from other reviews, or the book description itself, Twilight is about a young girl named Bella Swan who moves to Forks, Washington and finds herself in love with a vampire named Edward Cullen. The climax of the story happens when a vampire who doesn't abstain from feasting on humans, as the Cullen coven does, decides he wants Bella. Up until this point (first three quarters), the novel progresses at a moderate, but not lagging pace and then instantly picks up.
The book itself is a rather easy read, however, the characters seem somewhat shallow. Bella is supposed to be an honour student, but behaves exactly the opposite. Edward, who has been in existence for more than a hundred years, should be more intelligent and far wiser than is portrayed in his character. Armed with this tidbit about him, Meyer had plenty of room to play around and mold him into so much more, but never truly took that opportunity.
In fact, after finishing the first book (I've read both Twilight and New Moon), I wondered what a century old vampire might find utterly attractive in a seemingly average 17 year old girl, besides the fact that she smelled delectable, could pick out a common tune by Debussy, and had a penchant for identifying the mitotic phases of an onion. Even Bella herself wonders the same thing and makes it plainly obvious by asking almost every other page what this magnificent Adonis can possibly see in her, which became rather tiring.
(On another note, I'm still trying to figure out how any person with dark circles under his eyes and lavender eyelids can be likened to Adonis. It could just be me, but the way Meyer described their features, I couldn't help imagining a well-fed crack fiend half the time.)
While I don't understand how the love between Bella and Edward can be so true and deep as made out in the book, considering they only knew each other for a few months, I can understand how Bella formed such a strong attachment to Edward: he saved her life on more than one occasion and, in a sense, has become her personal Superman. Is this right thinking? Dunno, but I guess constantly saving a girl who can barely walk without tripping does equate to being inexplicably lovable.
By the end of the novel, I realized that Bella's character, though stubborn, was unbelievably insecure--more so than one would expect from the typical teenage girl--and Edward, arrogant as he can be, used this insecurity to his benefit (whether consciously or not), thus causing multiple crises of conscience for "putting [her] in harm's way".
When one really steps back from this novel and looks at the entire scope of it, the true dysfunction of their unhealthy relationship is obviously apparent.
Plus, Meyer's overuse of the word incredulous began grating on my senses, not to mention all the glaring, whining, cringing, grimacing, and her overwhelming need to append a "he said" or "she said" to almost every bit of dialog that transpired. (Surely, even truly young minds are able to keep up with the general flow of dialog). And let's not get started on the editing: You know the editor was asleep at the wheel, or either non-existent, when there's a glaring grammatical error within the first ten pages.
But, despite all of that, I enjoyed the book. Meyer is a wonderful storyteller. There was a cliffhanger at the end of each bite-sized chapter pressing the reader to continue on, if for no other reason than to see who else is glaring or grimacing at whom. The story also had a light-hearted comedic edge which played in its favor.
Rather than feeling as though I were trudging through a heavy piece of fantasy fiction, I was able to let my mind relax and float into the story as if I were watching some strangely intoxicating reality show about a clumsy teenage girl and a thoroughly confused vampire. In the end, despite their flaws and not fully understanding their logic or reasoning, I even enjoyed the characters Meyer created.
This is a novel you should pick up when you just want to shut off your brain for a little while and escape reality. Basically, you shouldn't try to read this novel with too serious an eye. Ideally, it should be read while curled up in your most comfortable outfit eating your favorite snack with the lights dimmed, and television and phone turned off.
Book Review: Putting my foot down on this one
Summary: 1 Stars
Let's talk about the biggest flaw of this "would-be" saga: Bella Swan. First off, I would think any intelligent writer would know how dangerous it is to un-ironically name your character Beautiful Swan. Bella herself makes a very unbelievable transition from Phoenix to Forks, where she is already hounded by at least three boys within her first two days. Eric, Tyler, and some other what's-his-face, who Bella avoids just because they don't live up to her shallow beliefs in what a boy must look like before she gives him any time of day. Basically, whenever a NICE guy tries to be FRIENDLY to her, her reaction is, "Ew, you look like a nerd, get away from me." It's sad, and sends a terrible message to the young readers everywhere. Even the random girls who add no plot to the story and invite Bella to sit with them at lunch are sadly over-looked by our egotistical protagonist, especially when she sees the Cullens. Here's the pathetic thing: when Bella spots people who are more beautiful and mysterious than oh-so-special her, she's infatuated by them, and wants to find out more about them. Bella, Bella, Bella. Oh, how I wish Edward had just killed you on that first day.
Bella, in every sense, is a typical Mary Sue/self-insertion character. Although we don't get a glimpse of what Bella looks like until later in the book, all we readers have to do is flip back to the picture of the author and imagine her as a seventeen year old girl. Done. This book is everything Meyer wished high school was like for her: the beautiful, self-proclaimed clumsy, ordinary girl, who has half the male-population besotted with her but ends up with the most gorgeous of them all. Can we say cliché?! I don't know how many bad fan fictions I've read about the new girl in school who is oh-so-mysterious-and-special with the estranged parent thing going on and a totally unbelievable reason for moving in the first place.
Girls, do NOT look up to Swan as a role model. She's clingy, whiney, and stupid. She's giving up school and is ready to leave her family for some abusive narcissist, she complains about something every two seconds, and everything she says validates the fact that she's just a little brat. Half the book, my God, is nothing but, "Edward is so foine; look at those eyes, lips, skin - squee, yummy breath!" My eyes glance over those long, repetitive paragraphs about how amazing that Immortal Jerk is, grimacing each time as Bella does so often in the books. It's like, please, Bella. Get a real hobby. Absolutely nothing, NOTHING, important happens in the midst of all this gushy, cheesy, stupid, lusty, infatuation. Nothing happens until the near end. And even this part seems rushed and squished into the end of the book. Poor plot, how I grieve at your lack of existence here. The book is flat and pointless, much like Bella. The ending was so predictable, it was painful.
Bella and Edward's love, if we MUST call it that, falls out of the sky. No build-up or escalation.
Jacob's the only redeeming character, but his sad love for Bella (join the fan club, geez), is making me lose my interest. Why, why do you do this Meyer! MUST you throw the only decent character to the "rejected" dump? Gr. This is a further fault for small-minded Bella, who chooses the sexy man over the loyal one. Sigh.
This did not have to become four books. It is not necessary to stretch a silly plot so thinly over four books, when all the content (yes, in all four books), is perfectly condensable into one book. Twilight even could have been just a stand-alone, as much as I am disgusted by it.
Yes, yes, yes, people love to make the famous argument that kids are finally reading. But how would you feel if kids were loading themselves on McDonald's, and all their parents would say is, "Whatev, dude, at least they're eating." I fear terribly for the state of the next generation of readers if we've been reduced to having this kind of insubstantial stuff on best seller lists.
I know Meyer has read more than one critical review of her series, and I am also aware that she has tried to smooth over disputes about Edward and Bella's shallow relationship, along with the complaints about Bella being so whiney. The first issue, she attempted to cover with an outburst from Bella to Jacob about how she loves Edward because he's the most decent, blah blah blah, that she's ever met. The second, Meyer has Charlie let Bella off the hook of the "grounding" in Eclipse because she's "amazingly non-whiney for a teenager." But I find these corrections to be forced, as if Meyer wants to trick us into believing that Bella is nothing but amazing and more. Instead of correcting her mistakes, she only managed to make Bella more Mary Sue-ish, a possibility that I thought was utterly impossible for Bella... until Meyer tried to make her even MORE perfect.
In short, I do not recommend this book. Ever. To anyone. No matter how bored you are. Take my advice to heart, so you don't have to learn the hard way as I did. Only pick it up if you're not in the mood for using your noggin.
Book Review: aromatic airhead meets vacuous vampire
Summary: 1 Stars
I wanted to like this book. For one thing, it came highly recommended by reputable reader-friends (sorry guys, nothing personal). It took me a good 200 pages to even realize that I didn't like it, but as the pages slipped by, so did this book's potential to tell a convincing, complex and emotionally-gripping story.
I didn't mind the slow start. Bella Swan's teenage over-reaction that "the world is going to end, or at least suck for a while" when she moves from Phoenix to Forks, WA was a familiar yet believable theme for a young adult book. I forgave her silly name and her paralyzing (literally) clumsiness. For a while.
Then Bella discovers the attractive, standoffish, teenage vampire clique. Don't get me wrong, I knew there would be vampires. I had hoped they would bring some intrigue, interesting character interaction, and a few creative supernatural twists to the mix. I was wrong: Edward, the main vampire/love interest must be the most blatant example of author-male fantasy insertion in a story I have ever read--the way his beauty is praised ad-nauseum, as is his ability to out-play/perform/karate/run etc. every mortal/immortal on the planet in any game/sport/musical instrument/hand-to-hand combat/race etc. certainly attests to that. Edward and his (almost) equally Hollywood Hot family are less creatures of the night, and more a blend of Greek god and barbie doll whose baseball games are confused for thunderstorms by us mortals. They are also apparently perpetual high school students, moving to schools every few years to keep anyone from catching on. Is this consistent with Meyer's view of noble "vegetarian" vampires who only want to alleviate the mortal misery of their weak human neighbors? With Dr. Carlisle the one notable exception, I can't quite suspend my disbelief that a hundred years would NOT be enough time to fake your age, get into law school, med school, the foreign service branch of the state department...(or at least use certain inherent skills to become pool boys or tennis instructors).
All this was mildly irritating, but what really brought the star-count down for me was that this book had so much potential to challenge my perception of the world, to make me think. I kept reading because I expected there to be a twist...not a "gotcha" moment, but one where the characters grow too big for the box they've been placed in, where they become bold and try to deal with their issues. I wanted to Bella to challenge the emotionally manipulative hold Edward has on her. I wanted Edward to fail at something and discover humility, and even have to rely on Bella for a change. I wanted Bella and Edward to discover that there are consequences for misinterpreting an attraction based scent/beauty for one based on communication, compromise, and time. I kept reading, sure that something complex and meaningful would happen...
I hope I don't spoil anything when I say that the characters start off in the shallow end, and end up in the pool parking lot. When the action finally started at around pg 400, all I could think of was what one of the robots on Mystery Science Theater 3000 sarcastically remarked during a B-movie that was being thoroughly panned: "And the reason this part works so well is that we care about the characters!" If a random "bad guy" is suddenly going to appear at the end of a book and try to kill one of the main characters for no apparent reason, I want to at least care about them!
Finally, a brief note on the writing itself. I thought some of the mood-setting description was pretty well done, and honestly didn't notice anything truly jarring until after the appearance of Edward. Suddenly, cliches like "a carved statue", "an Adonis", "his angel face" surface at least every page or so, as do numerous purple descriptions of eye color meant to substitute for character depth. Over-dramatic facial expressions abound, especially in the more intimate moments: grimaced, shuddered, gaped, glared. And finally, the awkward dialog tags. Characters "demand", "chuckle", "mutter bleakly", but never "say" anything unless they say it "harshly", "quietly" or "tenderly". The line '"Yes", she agreed' made me laugh out loud. All these "little" things, once I started noticing them, made the character's actions seem even more inconsequential and ridiculous.
Bottom line: obviously this isn't literature, but neither is it a thought-provoking or even "fun" frivolous read. There just isn't any substance there to care about, no challenge, just a pretty boy and a "good-smelling" girl who needs to be rescued half a dozen times. Some other reviews have compared this book to fan-fiction, and I think that's a fair assessment. I've written overwrought fan-fiction in my time, complete with the "seagreen eyes" and "nymphlike shoulders" but that doesn't mean everyone's wish-fullfillment fantasy needs to blow into a doorstop of a book.
For a more convincing and complex approach to the violence and passion inflicted by one man's uncanny sense of smell, try Patrick Suskind's book Perfume.
Book Review: sensational
Summary: 5 Stars
Twilight by Stephanie Meyer is a captivating love story unlike any other. Stephanie describes a forbidden love, one greater even than Romeo and Juliet. This forbidden love not only goes against moral values, but nature itself.
In this story Bella, a young rebellious and headstrong girl, moves from her sunny and hot home in Arizona, to live with her father in the dreary and rainy town of Forks. It is here in forks that Bella finds something she never expected. Love.
Bella's father is police Chief Charlie Swan, who to her dismay has been spreading the news of her arrival to town. Everyone is anticipating her first day at the Forks High School. To welcome her home, Charlie buys her an old Chevy truck. To her surprise she loves the car, despite the tattered and worn body. Bella is sure she will not fit in and will easily be picked out as one not to mingle with. Bella is taken by surprise when she realizes she fits in perfectly. Her unusually pale skin is not unusual in Forks, her clothes are among other non-flashy outfits, and her car is not the only old car. The only nice car is a silver Volvo.
At lunch on her first day Bella sees five students sitting alone across the room from her. They all are exactly the same but very different. One of the girls is thin to the extreme with short spiky hair, while the other girl had blonde hair and the curves of a supermodel. The boys were also different. The one who appeared to be the oldest was stocky and very muscular. The other boy had blonde wavy hair and was also well built. And the last boy with the bronze colored hair was lean and lanky, also muscular but scrawny compared to the other two. Yet they were all exactly alike. All were very pale, paler even than Bella who is part albino. They all had topaz colored eyes and purple circles underneath them, and they were all inhumanly beautiful.
Bella becomes fascinated with the bronze haired boy, who she learns is named Edward Cullen. As time goes on Edward and Bella form an unusual friendship. A friendship in which awkward conversations take place, Edward saves Bella's life frequently, and this friendship escalates. Soon they both find themselves irrevocably and unconditionally in love with each other. Bella is walking around an empty street one night when she is assaulted. Out of the blue a shiny Volvo pulls up beside her. The door swings open and a familiar voice calls her to get inside. Edward speeds off after saving Bella.
Bella later learns that night of Edward's true nature. He is a vampire. After accepting and actually liking this trait of his, they begin to date. A few months go by and their relationship grows impossibly strong. Regardless of Edward's constant longing for Bella's blood, the Cullens resentment of Bella, and their obvious differences; their love remains strong. Visions of spending the rest of eternity together are present in both their minds. These visions come closer to coming true everyday, until one fateful night. While playing baseball in a clearing unwelcome visitors arrive. Vicious and uncivilized vampires arrive in Forks simply wanting to join in the game. Carlisle, Edwards "father" lies and leads the three vampires to believe Bella is a member of the family. But their cover is blown due to a gust of wind. A simple breeze blows Bella's human scent to the three rabid vampires and the hunt begins.
James, one of the three becomes obsessed with her, vowing to drain her blood. Thus a "war" is sparked among the vampires. Edward forces Bella to leave forks along with the rest of the Cullen family. James deceives the Cullens and Bella; tricking her into thinking he has her mother hostage. Bella sneaks away from the Cullens to set off to fine her mother alone. While on the search for her mother, James' carefully laid out clues lead her to an old ballet studio. It is here that Bella experiences fear and pain like never before. Bella realizes it was all a trick and that her mother was perfectly safe all too late. James sends her flying into a wall of glass mirrors, breaking her ribs, arms, and cutting her severely. Before the Cullens get to Bella James bites her. The venom that turns humans into vampires is slowly seeping through Bella's veins. Carlisle knows the only way to prevent her from turning is to get the venom extracted. With utmost reluctance Edward is forced to suck out Bella's blood, tasting for any traces of venom. Edward sucks out all of the venom and saves her. It is at this moment that Edward learns that his love for Bella is stronger than any other desires he has for her. For Edward was able to suck the venom out, without loosing control and killing her, this strength driven by his unconditional love for her.
This provocative and compelling love story is one that will have you reading for days on end. Stephanie Meyer has written a phenomenal story which balances love, science-fiction, and action in a way never done before. Twilight is a sensational hit which has changed the vampire world forever.
Book Review: SMeyer, I'm not impressed
Summary: 1 Stars
Alright, I'll be the first to admit that I'm not a fan of vampires. Or romance.
However, this isn't even a vampire novel. The vampires don't drink human blood, they drink ANIMAL blood. They don't turn to dust or incinerate in the sun - they SPARKLE like diamonds. And, according to the author, they don't even have FANGS. I ask you, what sort of vampire novel is that?
I know I'm going to get lynched by a bunch of fangirls for saying that SMeyer didn't write "teh best book EVAR!!1!!1!" Honestly, I'm all for creativity in your stories. However, one thing I'd rather you do first, before you set pen to paper (or fingers to keyboard as it were) is RESEARCH. Research might be a pain sometimes, but it'll make your book all that much better. SMeyer hardly did any research on anything that's in her novel...vampires, Forks weather, how new kids are treated in school, biology, *anything*. She didn't learn how to write convincing characters either, and the ones that actually had potential (Jacob, Alice, Victoria, James) were promptly killed off or given complete personality workovers in the following books to make them rapists/pedophiles and stereotypical ditzes, respectively.
Another problem I have with this novel is that it is written in the most cliche purple prose I have ever read. (No, really. I've read Eragon. This is worse. Eragon at least has a plot, kind of. All this book is about is Bella drooling over her darling Eddie-poo.) SMeyer doesn't understand the concept of "show not tell" and feels it necessary to describe Edward's "inhuman beauty" so many times that you start going "Oh, yeah RIGHT" about 50 pages in. She tells us that Bella is "selfless" and "kind", but all I see is Bella acting like a spoiled brat to her friends and family and refusing to talk to anyone who isn't beautiful enough (basically, no one but Edward). And she has a bad habit of overusing words like "murmured" and "chagrin." Someone ran a reading-level test on this book, and it came back as second-grade level reading. I'm quite serious. And this is being marketed to teenagers because why?
The author is also, quite simply, one of the most naive or stupid people I have ever encountered. She says, first of all, that her books have no message in them. Any small child will tell you that every story has a message if you look deep enough into it. And, folks, I've found the messages in Twilight. They aren't good ones.
1. Only beautiful people are worth your time. Ugly people can just be ignored, even if they're nice.
2. If a guy likes you, you can ignore the fact that he's manipulating you, emotionally abusing you, stalking you, and destroying your property because "he loves you" and "it's for your own good."
3. Necrophilia is okay as long as he's "OMG HAWT."
4. It's okay to give up all your ambitions for life once you have a boyfriend. It's completely normal for the two of you to take up all each other's time and become the center of each other's lives. Especially in high school.
Another thing. SMeyer says, and I quote, "And stalking doesn't scare me. I've never stalked anyone (yet) but I think I would be AWESOME at it."
Yes. This woman made #5 on Time's Entertainer of the Year List. This woman is writing the drivel that girls across America are eating up. Really. If that doesn't scare you just a little bit, I don't think you can be fully human. Stalking isn't cool, fangirls, and it isn't fun, no matter what SMeyer says. It's disgusting behavior and terrifying for the victim and if this woman is condoning it then I fear for the future.
Finally, SMeyer sent this book off to publishers after she finished the first draft. Not the second or third or fiftieth draft, but the FIRST. She didn't even edit or revise it at all! Now, if that doesn't say "bad fanfic writer" I don't know what does... She's also arrogant enough to say that she's going to finish 5 books in 2009. As an aspiring writer, that's an insult, because even I (a 17-year-old) know that you need a good 2 or 3 years for each book. Working on multiple books at one time is one thing - finishing them all within a year is quite another. That's not a compliment, by the way, that's me shaking my head in disgust.
I leave you with this, reader, as a final proof of just how bad this book is and how messed up this poor woman must be. She has said in interviews that when she was writing this book, she felt annoyed when she had to stop when her kids needed something. Now, I'm not a parent myself, but I've been around long enough to know that when you have kids they're supposed to pretty much take precedence over everything else in your life. What kind of mother is this woman?! Oh, and she's been quoted multiple times as saying "I am anti-human." Great example there, SMeyer. You fail multiple times. (If you absolutely must check out how awful this book is, then get it from the library or borrow a copy from a friend. Don't give her any more money, I beseech you.)