3.5 stars; it was okay
Book 2 of the Twilight Saga. This copy is a hardcover, and I also brought it along to Mexico on my vacation.
Read: September 25 – September 29, 2023
Genre: Fantasy, Supernatural, Romance
Audience: Teen/Young Adult
Book contains: kissing, non-graphic attack, mentions of killing
Purchase a copy from Amazon.ca
After her near-death experience at the hands of James, Bella Swan realizes the true dangers of being in love with a vampire. However, there is nothing more important to her than Edward, so she will do whatever it takes to be with him, even at the risk of her own life.
As a preferred reader of action with romance as a side plot, I didn’t enjoy the first book as much as I’d hoped, so I was a bit wary coming into this one. I don’t mind romance, but only if it’s part of the background. We already know that Edward is a vampire before even cracking the book (it’s on the back cover) so Twilight wasn’t much of a mystery, and the plot revolved around the relationship, which I found boring. I hoped this book would have other things going on, and it sure did!
This book is also one I had along on vacation in Mexico, but since I didn’t want to trudge through it, I chose to find a readalong, just to ensure it didn’t drag on. Sometimes, the narrator’s energy is enough to make me enjoy a book more. I found Julia Reads Out Loud who’s done all four of the Twilight books, and though I didn’t listen along with her on the first one, I’ll definitely keep with her for the rest. Her reading was enjoyable.
Like the first book, this one is told from Bella’s perspective in first person. Only her thoughts and feelings are made clear to the reader—which are quite melodramatic, in my opinion. However, we get an excellent understanding of her character, and she’s relatable, to a point. A good narrator, though unreliable at times.
Edward takes a bit of a backseat in this book as Jacob becomes more prominent, and I’m now understanding the love triangle here. I knew about the triangle from spoilers, but I really didn’t see it in the first book, even though Jacob was introduced back then. In this book, it’s starting to make sense to me. Bella has also settled into town a bit more, so she’s no longer the “new girl,” which is a relief. People are finally treating her like a regular old human being.
Despite Jacob’s enlarged presence, Edward plays a vital role in Bella’s mood throughout the book. A big theme of the beginning is about her age, as she turns eighteen and mourns the fact that Edward never will. If things progress as they have been, I’m certain she’ll turn into a vampire at some point or another (though whether she actually does hasn’t been spoiled for me yet).
There was less “unnecessary” writing in this story than the last one, mainly because, in my opinion, it’s following a plot. Yes, there were a lot of bonding scenes between her and Jacob, like there were between her and Edward in Twilight, but it really seems to be leading to something, a sense I never got with the first book. I never felt like the plot was building to anything, but in this one, it was much clearer. There were also more scenes that had a clear payoff; the author planted clues that came back around.
This book is great in terms of romance, so I recommend it to fans of the first book, but the action definitely gives it a win for me.
Vampires in Fiction
Vampires in Fiction II
Werewolves in Fiction
The Twilight Saga Book 1: Twilight by Stephenie Meyer
The Twilight Saga Book 3: Eclipse by Stephenie Meyer
The Twilight Saga Eclipse Novella: The Short Second Life of Bree Tanner by Stephenie Meyer
The Twilight Saga Book 4: Breaking Dawn by Stephenie Meyer
The Twilight Saga Companion Novel: Midnight Sun by Stephenie Meyer
The Mortal Instruments Book 1: City of Bones by Cassandra Clare
*Dawned by Michelle Areaux*
Tigerpetal Press is a small book press dedicated to publishing local authors and poets.