Author: Stephenie Meyer
Published in 2007
Thickness: 629 pages
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? (http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/428263.Eclipse_Twilight_3_)
Seems like I'm handing out only 3 stars lately. Am I in a rut? God, I hope not! Maybe I need a break from the YA for a while.
Eclipse got read finally, even with the Sookie breaks in between I managed to finish up this third installment of the legendary (good or bad, you fill in the blanks) Twilight series. I myself don't find them tremendously good, but not bad either. It passes the time and sometimes that's what reading is for me. Not an investment, but an enjoyment.
Eclipse has much more to offer than the previous novel New Moon. I didn't like that moaning and falling apart, way too dramatic, even for a highschool girl. Twilight still is my number one, but I do find Breaking Dawn the second in command, even though almost everyone in the twilight-universe isn't backing this up.
This is my second read of Eclipse, but while I breezed through it the last time (read all four of them in a weekend), I don't seem to have the same feeling about them. But I promised myself to read them all again once and by god if I don't respect my own promises.
My thoughts in short, is that Twilight is a path for Bella and in Eclipse she has come upon a fork in the road and she isn't sure which way to take. Is Edward the one for her? After he abandoned her once and after him clearly not wanting her to become a vampire herself. Jacob was there for her while she was hurting from his sudden departure and in that time he has found a way into her heart, albeit in a less obvious way that Edward gained entrance.
Is Jacob the one for her? Sometimes it feels like he doesn't 'want' Bella, for being with her, but mainly because she will get to live and Edward won't have her. I feel the pathetic little part of love more palpable in Jacob, than I do in Edward. Jacob is too immature to know what love really is and he is doing what most do of his age, putting their first love on a pedestal and be warned to one who tries to shake those foundations.
Bella herself is torn between Edward and Jacob because, like in the previous novels, she seems to be guided by the current instead of choosing herself. She is a selfcentered little person, but most girls are at her age, so what can we expect. The only thing that seriously aggravated me is the continuous low self esteem and the guilt trips she constantly has. Lighten up Bella, you've got two gorgeous guys wanting you. Nothing wrong with the way you look and enjoy it while it lasts.
In the end she chooses obviously for Edward and an eternal life with him. I felt sorry for Jacob, but life isn't always fair. The fork in the road wasn't really a choice she had to make, as it both would have led to the same end, but one directly and the other with a serious heartbreaking detour. I guess Bella had her walking shoes on.
And now enough with the metaphores and I'm ending this review. One left to reread and since it is my second favourite I will probably like it better.
