Breaking Dawn — Stephenie Meyer
Happy Halloween! I think it’s only fitting I review a book about monsters :)
Meyer’s Twilight saga ends with Breaking Dawn, the best of the 4 novels she’s written about the mortal Bella Swan and her vampire boyfriend, Edward Cullen. I was pleased with this novel, as I didn’t particularly think the first three (Twilight, New Moon and Eclipse) were anything special in terms of writing talent. But Meyer surprised me with the last novel of this saga. It was unpredictable (in some ways), enjoyable and well-written.
The novel opens where the last one ended, as Bella and Edward get ready for their nuptials. This was the first surprise of the novel. I expected Meyer to take her time getting these two married, but it comes quickly. It is then followed just as quickly with surprise number two: Bella’s transformation. Probably the greatest source of unpredictability in this novel comes from how it happened and why: Bella’s pregnancy. Meyer really didn’t hold back with it. The pregnancy was brutal, the birth was even more brutal, and then Bella’s transformation into a vampire was extremely unpleasant. Just the way a novel about monsters should be. I am impressed that Meyer didn’t sugar coat it.
I was also happy with the way the novel wrapped up the loose threads — the Volturi coming to make sure Bella has been transformed, and the twist in Jacob’s love life (though, can I just say that I saw that one coming the moment Bella became pregnant?). I thought the novel was a fitting ending to the saga, though it’s clearly left open to the possibility of more to come in the future should Meyer decide she wants to revisit Bella and Edward (and considering how successful her novels are and how popular they’ve become, particularly now with the first movie about to be released, why wouldn’t she want to? Cha-ching!).
At some point I will read the second, which I already bought. I read the first and wasn’t awed by it, as some of my online friends raved. They are completely obsessed, so I bought it to see what the fuss was about. It was OK. Could have been MUCH better. Like Outlander better. But then I have to remember the group it was written for eh?
Comment by Jennifer — November 1, 2008 @ 5:37 am
Thanks for the review. I just finished this book too, and I was surprised everyone thought it was the worst of the four. I agree with you that it was the best. I didn’t find the first 3 particularly impressive either, mostly because I thought the 2nd and 3rd were identical to the 1st. Love your reviews!
Comment by Sadie — November 1, 2008 @ 8:30 pm
Hey Jennifer… yes, there are definitely many people out there in the blogosphere that are obsessed with Twilight. My old blog site still gets many teens coming to it to post “OMG! I LOVE YOU STEPHENIE MEYER” and “BELLA AND EDWARD 4EVER!!!!!!” comments. Makes me laugh a lot over how devoted they are to these books.
Hi Sadie… thanks for the nice comment about my reviews. Good to see someone agrees with me on these books :)
Comment by Kristina — November 2, 2008 @ 9:33 pm
I agree this one wrapped up a lot of the threads but I have to say I’m one of those that didn’t care for it as much as the first book. They are all kind of blending together but I hated the one that had part of it written from Jacob’s POV. Granted I don’t really look at writing style but more of whether or not the story grabs me. I kind of wish the end had a battle rather than everyone just going home. Seemed like she did a lot of build up on their allies individual talents and then didn’t really do much with them.
Comment by Debbie — December 2, 2008 @ 11:00 pm