See how Risingshadow readers are responding to this book.
Share your experience with other Risingshadow readers.
What Risingshadow readers think about this book
I liked the first book a lot, but I hated the movie. Overall, it was very well written and gripping. I stopped reading for a while before this book was released, but this kicked right back into reading again.
It's clear that Bella is the damsel in distress and that Edward is the proverbial knight in shining armor, but hey, nothings a hundred percent original anyway. What really matters is if an author can put new skin over old bones, and Meyer did that with the Twilight Saga.
Definitely for young readers. My husband and I always take books on CD for road trips and we thought that we would try this since we really enjoyed the Harry Potter series on CD. Was told that they would be just as good.
I wanted to shoot myself while listening to this book. I would have been better if I could have read it so I could have skipped through hours of torture of Edward and Bella in her bedroom and how he watched her sleep and so on and so forth.
And does it seem creepy to anyone else that Edward could be Bella's great great grandfather!
It's easy to understand why Twilight Saga has created such a buzz and sold millions of copies.
On the other hand, it baffles me how Meyer got away with such horrible writing. I'm not a native English speaker but still some of the parts were just absolutely horrendous.
Maybe I'm too old but I didn't quite fall head over heels for Edward. His smoldering eyes left me totally cold, on the other hand I did like Bella's character.
In the end, the story is what counts. Drawing from the old classics, Twilight is hardly an original, but it had enough appeal to make finish it in a day and buy the next part.
When I had first read this, I loved it. Now that I see people everywhere who seem to be brainwashed with this series, I grimace when I hear the name.
Now, whenever someone mentions vampires the first thought is: "Oh my god, Edward!"
Twilight does NOT define what a vampire is. Never has and never will.
If I was 12 I might have liked it. Now - mostly having fun with the poor writing and bland characters! The only thing she got right is the feeling a girl haves for her first crush - but I had that at 10 or something, not at 16 or 17 :D I do understand WHY this sells - who didn't want a beautiful, mysterious boyfriend in their teens?
Stephenie Meyer's Twilight is a nice little book, which is written for young adults.
I didn't enjoy this book very much, but it was readable. It wasn't bad, but I've read much better horror and dark fantasy books.
If you want to read better and more interesting horror and dark fantasy books, I can highly recommend The Vampire Chronicles and The Lives of the Mayfair Witches by Anne Rice. They're excellent books.
This book is mostly a decent read. The plot is serviceable and the pace isn't too bad. This could have easily been a 3-star book if not for the following three issues:
1) The author seems to be worried that we might forget just how dazzlingly beautiful and impossibly attractive Edward is. She can't go more than three sentences without reminding us.
2) Bella is one of the most annoying characters I have ever come across. I understand that some people have serious self-image issues. I was one of those people for many years. But no one wants to put up with incessant whining about it, even if you can sympathize. I did find myself agreeing with her on one point, though - I utterly fail to see what Edward sees in her.
3) SPOILER - One of the most important rules of writing is to never have major events occur "off stage." Readers feel cheated when you do that. The event that this author chose to have happen off stage was not just any old critical plot point - it was the entire climax of the book. Why even write a book if you're going to leave out the most critical part? This book is the novel-length equivalent of telling someone, "Wait for it... wait for it... oh, never mind."
One final note that is not part of the review: I have a theory about why this book is so popular despite its weaknesses, especially among young females. There is a scene where Edward and Bella are in a restaurant and the attractive waitress is obviously flirting with Edward. But Edward is so enamored of Bella that he doesn't even notice the waitress's advances. "I love you so much that I can't even SEE other women." What young female doesn't want a man like that?
