Twilight Saga Book 3

'Sparkle Family Reunion Tour 2020' Reread

Yeaaaahh. My feelings about this series, twinkies, loving the Cullens, the writing playlist, and side-eying a whole lot of SM have pretty much not changed in the past decade.

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(2008 Reviews / Continued Across all four books / all read in less than 53 hours
Just going to copy these over from the lolarious mass-review I did in 2018)

Let me start this out with saying, I'm sure if I tried I could take these books seriously and in doing so I would abhor Stephenie Meyers with the utter damnation burning hate in ground into me by five years of being an English major, but honestly, I'm not sure how anyone could go into these books expecting (or wanting to expect) more than fanfic-esque fourteen-year-old-wish-fulfillment. Which is what I did and likely why I was willing to roll with it, because lets just start with the bare minimum that I knew before I started reading.

We have a protagonist girl, who comes from a broken home, who's paler than anyone else who's human and blushes as often as the wind blows, who's never been interested in a boy seriously before, with extremely low self esteem, who is the worlds biggest cultz, who attracts danger like she's got a beacon on her head saying come and get it, who is all helplessly weak and who can not be touched, read, or effected by any type of mental magic.

She is paralleled by the boy protagonist, who just happens to be a one hundred and eight year old vampire with the most well adjusted family of Brandy-style vampires, who doesn't drink human blood, with the one-way power to listen to other people's thoughts, who looks like a runway model or God, has never considered any other woman seriously before in his life and unlife, and has to be broody/moody/strong enough to resist killing her every moment he's near her because she's the one thing in the world he'd best love to do that to out of no fault of their own but fate.
I mean, c'mon, Anita Blake wasn't even that flagrantly Mary Sue-Fan Fic-ish until she became the Whore of Babylon. Thus I went into it expecting fourteen-year-old-wish fulfillment and lo and behold I was not surprised or disappointed when I found it there.

I think Cleolinda said it best:

A lot of people are really passionate about these books. Some of them love and defend them passionately; others... well. I'm not going to defend them any more than I'm going to defend Twinkies--you go and get yourself a Twinkie when you have a very specific kind of craving. If you want a gourmet pastry or even a homemade cake, you know where to get that. If you're eating a Twinkie, you clearly know what you want and why you're eating it, and you know that it's not good to eat very many of them, but... you know... sometimes you just want one.

Eclipse

When Stephanie plays with intertexuality (like the plot, the book references, the months) it makes me delirious. This time the delirious thing was the Jacob letter at the beginning and the continual reference to Wuthering Heights (like earlier and later Romeo and Juliet, Merchant of Venice, Midsummer Night's Dream, Wuthering Heights, Anne of Green Gables). Also included in this is the note passing about the plane crash and how Edward would save them.

This book is really all about two subjects to me before the plot-- Edward/Bella and Edward/Jacob/Bella.

I have so much sadness where it comes to Jacob and his being entirely out of his depth where it comes to both Bella and Edward/Bella. His actions are always just a notch too high or too grand. I was really not a fan of the rumble scene outside the school or her house or the forced kiss, and yet I didn't hate him. He reminds me of a temper tantrum throwing teenager, which is what a boy his age thrown beyond the point of being able to handle everything might do. There are far worse things I thought he might end up doing while his chain was continually yanked.

Because Bella loves her best friend and is right that she can't reconcile herself to be the person she is with both, because those treatments and characteristics come from two different places and sets of happenstances. And everyone else in the whole world--except Jacob!--gets very clearly that Bella loves him, but doesn't love him nearly as much as either she loves Edward or as Jacob loves her. Which is devastating for Jacob because clearly she does love him and that gives him a reason to fight even when everyone else just looks away because he's running into at a brick wall on purpose.

Yeah. Like where I could understand (and had been) in early New Moon Bella depression, I know and have been in this one too. It makes me cringe hard on this side though.

Rosalie's story didn't interest me at all. The Edward-Alice sibling bond once again raises it's shiny head when he gives his vampy sister a car for watching his girl friend whenever he's out of the country. (Which over-protective of your beloved soap bubble pet much?) The talking about virtue scene in this one made me giggle. Like five year old little girl giggle. I just can't imagine Edward as a virgin. No, really. Though I can imagine why he'd try to hold Bella off for so long easily (See Vicarious Human Living 101).

The Jacob and Edward marking (breathing/licking) Bella part annoys me on principle. They're doing it to annoy each other, and using her as an object in the middle of it. I like that they work together. Also around the middle of the book, with the Wuthering Heights quote, we bring me to the second moment of my love affair with the character of Edward Cullen.

This one:

And there you see the distinction between our feelings: had he been in my place and I in his, though I hated him with a hatred that turned my life to gall, I never would have raised a hand against him. You may look incredulous, if you please! I never would have banished him from her society as long as she desired his. The moment her regard ceased, I would have torn his heart out, and drank his blood! But, till then--if you don't believe me, you don't know me--till then, I would have died by inches before I touched a single hair of his head!

Yep. It's completely melodrama Edward again, but its sensible with his sudden back step during this whole book after being irrational. I wish we knew what was going on in Edwards head in this book, and half of the last one, because he changes so much of how strong or able he is emotionally toward Bella there. He's willing to yell but then lets her do whatever she wants so long as she doesn't leave him and nothing he's doing might convince her to consider that option. There is such a harrowing silent space around this for me, like you can hear him holding his (not-needing-to-breathe) breath for her to just walk out and leave him for Jacob.

But I think not because she loves Jacob, but because he knows/things Jacob can offer her more of what Edward thinks Bella should want from her human life (See that Vicarious Human 101 class again). Marriage, babies, growing old, dying, going to heaven. Which he wants all of this for her because he loves her, but he's already told the whole audience, and Bella, he'll never be strong enough to be the first one to walk away again. This is where I start wanting to hug him like broken puppy should be hugged.

I feel like I should write drastically large and long meta on the confusing triangle that is Edward, Bella, and Jacob and how they I see them all viewing and reacting to each other. Some other time. Mostly this leads to my loving of how Bella handles standing up for herself post the first Jacob kiss, and the sparkle motion conversation between Edward and Jacob while Bella!pretendsleeps and Edwards awesome nonchalance at Bella's near sobbing over the kiss and him being all wow, you believe anyone who lies to you I read his mind. And again later after that big fight.

Umm there was plot in here. About werewolf politics and crazy!Victoria but really it's kind of not important in my memory presently. The good guys win, the bad guys loose, the crazy plot device which effectively moved plot for three books is resolved. I like Seth-Edward bond born from these things. Which leads us to old world Edward inviting Jacob to the wedding and me loving him even more because he's right to do it and it's horrid and its plot device.

Yes. It really is all Edward all the time in my head. And I don't even want him for myself. I just want to spend hours deconstructing him. ( )

I didn't like this book. And not because it wasn't well written or that. It was once again because of the story. But so much worse than New Moon. Edward wedged his way back into Bella's life but it drove me mad how easily she takes him back. And then shoves Jacob away. That frustrated me further. But I also didn't like the new Jacob much either - he was very old and sly.

One thing I really hated was the fact that Edward was so intent on not giving anything to Bella. In particular sex. I was so upset by that. Probably more so than Bella herself because it's like he goes away and comes back and he won't even give her himself. Something I tolerated in Twilight I found really hard to in this one after all he did.

The fact that the werewolves and vampires couldn't think to work together was also pretty stupid. I was just frustrated in general with this. And really upset with the whole situation between Jacob and Edward. It annoys me that Edward can't give her what she needs - i.e. being warm. It annoys me that Jacob doesn't want to be her friend even though that's all she wants.

But Meyer writes well. And once again, I'm drawn into the story. On a positive note, Alice is a wonderful character who's full of life. And so is Emmett and I loved that we got more of an insight to Rosalie and Jasper. Because they're all awesome. And I loved the fight scene with Edward and the werewolf killing Victoria and that. That was cool. So yeah. Top marks for all the good stuff but it's not enough to make up for the rest of it. ( )

I didn't like this book. And not because it wasn't well written or that. It was once again because of the story. But so much worse than New Moon. Edward wedged his way back into Bella's life but it drove me mad how easily she takes him back. And then shoves Jacob away. That frustrated me further. But I also didn't like the new Jacob much either - he was very old and sly.

One thing I really hated was the fact that Edward was so intent on not giving anything to Bella. In particular sex. I was so upset by that. Probably more so than Bella herself because it's like he goes away and comes back and he won't even give her himself. Something I tolerated in Twilight I found really hard to in this one after all he did.

The fact that the werewolves and vampires couldn't think to work together was also pretty stupid. I was just frustrated in general with this. And really upset with the whole situation between Jacob and Edward. It annoys me that Edward can't give her what she needs - i.e. being warm. It annoys me that Jacob doesn't want to be her friend even though that's all she wants.

But Meyer writes well. And once again, I'm drawn into the story. On a positive note, Alice is a wonderful character who's full of life. And so is Emmett and I loved that we got more of an insight to Rosalie and Jasper. Because they're all awesome. And I loved the fight scene with Edward and the werewolf killing Victoria and that. That was cool. So yeah. Top marks for all the good stuff but it's not enough to make up for the rest of it. ( )

I don't know what to say other than this was another wonderful addition to the twilight series! I'm excited to read the next book! ( )