it seems my hypocrisy knows no bounds
After much deliberation, I finally decided to read Twilight. I'm sort of trapped between a rock and a hard place here, because on one side there's the people who really love the books, including my sister, my cousins, Bridgette from work...and on the other side are the people who hate and make fun of the books (for example, Emma). So I was always hearing how great they are...and how dumb they are. I might have been smarter to stay away from them, but my curiosity got the better of me.
I read Twilight on my way to Ireland (finished it after arriving), and I started Breaking Dawn today. Let me start by saying that Twilight has been the worst so far (by a good margin). Partly, this might have been because I'd already seen the movie, there was no suspense. In fact, during the big climactic ending, I kept putting it down because I just didn't care. So it took awhile to finish. Then I took a break before starting the next one, New Moon. I read through New Moon and Eclipse in a week. I thought they were a good deal better than Twilight.
Summary of Twilight:
(Bella:) "I'm boring and normal! I hate being social. I am so in love with Edward Cullen. He's a vampire who wants to drink my blood but I don't care because I love him SO much! I would die for him, anyway."
Ugh. More on Bella later.
In the following books, things get more complicated (I think I live for love-triangle drama) and therefore, more interesting. I can't really speak for Breaking Dawn yet. Some people really like it. Then, I've heard it's ridiculous - and there's that whole vampire baby thing. I'm not sure how I'll like that, it sounds weird, at least.
So let's start with the obvious:
Bella - I kind of hate her. Sometimes I really hate her. How can I read books narrated by someone I hate, you ask? Well...I don't know, I guess I'm pretty forgiving. Sometimes it's not so bad. I put up with her to get to things I like about the books. Pretty much the only thing that got me through Twilight was that I had seen the movie - I could picture the pretty actors (even if their makeup wasn't very good on the big screen). And the Cullens are pretty interesting. But Bella is boring. She can't take care of herself but then is always willing to die in place of Edward, and there's that whole "I don't care if it's dangerous to be with Edward, I love him" thing. Some might think she's brave and self-sacrificing, I think she's just stupid. Mainly because Edward has proven many times that he can take care of things without her putting herself at risk.
Then there's Edward - I can usually deal with him. Sometimes I even like him. I hate that he's always described as being beautiful. And he's so perfect - Bella sees him as selfless, he's musical, polite, rich, blah blah blah. Worst of all, he's way too overprotective of Bella, especially in the beginning of Eclipse when he won't let her near the werewolves (ie: Jacob). Then suddenly he changes his mind and decides to trust her...?
And the relationship between them - I can accept it, but I can't really understand it. I get Bella's attraction to Edward, and I get that her blood tempts him. Beyond that, it's like this lightning strike, true-love-at-first-sight thing that is never really explained or developed.
I think it was put aptly by Jacob in Eclipse:
"He's like a drug for you, Bella...But I would have been healthier for you. Not a drug; I would have been the air, the sun."
That brings me to my main reason for posting about this:
No one told me these damn books were going to break my heart.
I love Jacob. He is the only reason I kept reading, and the reason I'm actually looking forward to the next movie - he'll be in it more. I remember hearing something about him, back before I even saw the movie - it was probably from Emma because she also told me that he imprints on Bella's daughter (which I admit sounds really creepy and I'm not sure how I'm going to like that). I forget what it was she was telling me, probably some quote or something, and I said that I already liked him best. Well, I was right.
Jacob is barely in the first book/movie, so I forgot that I liked him. But in New Moon, the Cullens leave. If it weren't for the fact that Bella was so depressing after that, always acting like her life was over without Edward, it would've been really great - no more mushy dumb unexplained love. I mean, I can empathize to an extent with how she felt. (She stopped listening to music because she didn't want to hear anything that would remind her of Edward. I still have a cd that I never listen to - the songs that are on it I can listen to individually, on my ipod or whatever, but there's just something that stops me from putting the cd in (it's a mix that I called "Toledo Mix" by the way, so that ought to explain it enough for you).) But this is when her friendship with Jacob developes. (Oh yeah, he's 16 and loves her and in many ways she was just using him to distract herself - and that reminded me of something else I've experienced. It was odd.)
But then he becomes a werewolf and gets all angry and bitter and really big and strong (in my mind, this is all a good thing - it makes things more interesting). He knows all about vampires, so he and Bella don't have to have secrets from each other. They become even closer.
Jacob loves Bella and she loves him (but doesn't realize it until it's too late) and he's funny - kind of a comic relief. Also, he can build cars and motorcycles and goes riding with Bella and shows up at her school on his motorcycle to kidnap her when Edward won't let her see him (that was pretty awesome, I thought). He knows she loves him even if she doesn't, so he fights for her. He's just as able and willing to protect Bella from the "bad guys" - he even takes pleasure from hunting down and ripping up vampires - as Edward. Most importantly, he's still (mostly) human. Closer to the same level as Bella. When she was cold, he could warm her up (werewolves are naturally very warm, whereas vampires are very cold).
He's just better than Edward!
And damnit, it's just so touching because they were best friends first and he promises to always be there for her and all that. I can understand their love - it developes more logically.
And what does Bella (*cough* Stephanie Meyer) do? She breaks Jacob's heart. A lot. She knows how he feels but still wants to be friends. So he keeps trying to change her mind, but of course it doesn't work. She even breaks her heart at the same time - she realizes she loves him but still wants to be with Edward. Jacob has a temper, so his reaction shifts a lot - sometimes he's really mad, maybe at her (because she sorta betrayed him), but mostly at Edward, and of course he's so heartbroken. But he still comforts her and tries to be her friend. And that's what breaks my heart. See why I hate Bella?
I considered stopping after Eclipse, actually I considered stopping before I finished Eclipse - toward the end when Jacob kissed Bella and she realized she loved him, too, so she kissed him back - I thought maybe I could pretend things ended the way I wanted them to (even if I don't think Bella deserves Jacob). But I didn't stop. Then I heard that there's actually a part of Breaking Dawn that's narrated by Jacob. So I'm hoping that'll be good. So far, it's kinda sucked cuz it's all been about Bella and Edward getting married (bleh). I guess I'll have to wait and see.
Anyway, I guess that's all I have to say about these books, for now. To review:
Bella=dumb, Edward=ok, Jacob=love, Alice and Emmett(who I didn't mention specifically at all)=amusing
Judge me if you must. I probably deserve it.
I read Twilight on my way to Ireland (finished it after arriving), and I started Breaking Dawn today. Let me start by saying that Twilight has been the worst so far (by a good margin). Partly, this might have been because I'd already seen the movie, there was no suspense. In fact, during the big climactic ending, I kept putting it down because I just didn't care. So it took awhile to finish. Then I took a break before starting the next one, New Moon. I read through New Moon and Eclipse in a week. I thought they were a good deal better than Twilight.
Summary of Twilight:
(Bella:) "I'm boring and normal! I hate being social. I am so in love with Edward Cullen. He's a vampire who wants to drink my blood but I don't care because I love him SO much! I would die for him, anyway."
Ugh. More on Bella later.
In the following books, things get more complicated (I think I live for love-triangle drama) and therefore, more interesting. I can't really speak for Breaking Dawn yet. Some people really like it. Then, I've heard it's ridiculous - and there's that whole vampire baby thing. I'm not sure how I'll like that, it sounds weird, at least.
So let's start with the obvious:
Bella - I kind of hate her. Sometimes I really hate her. How can I read books narrated by someone I hate, you ask? Well...I don't know, I guess I'm pretty forgiving. Sometimes it's not so bad. I put up with her to get to things I like about the books. Pretty much the only thing that got me through Twilight was that I had seen the movie - I could picture the pretty actors (even if their makeup wasn't very good on the big screen). And the Cullens are pretty interesting. But Bella is boring. She can't take care of herself but then is always willing to die in place of Edward, and there's that whole "I don't care if it's dangerous to be with Edward, I love him" thing. Some might think she's brave and self-sacrificing, I think she's just stupid. Mainly because Edward has proven many times that he can take care of things without her putting herself at risk.
Then there's Edward - I can usually deal with him. Sometimes I even like him. I hate that he's always described as being beautiful. And he's so perfect - Bella sees him as selfless, he's musical, polite, rich, blah blah blah. Worst of all, he's way too overprotective of Bella, especially in the beginning of Eclipse when he won't let her near the werewolves (ie: Jacob). Then suddenly he changes his mind and decides to trust her...?
And the relationship between them - I can accept it, but I can't really understand it. I get Bella's attraction to Edward, and I get that her blood tempts him. Beyond that, it's like this lightning strike, true-love-at-first-sight thing that is never really explained or developed.
I think it was put aptly by Jacob in Eclipse:
"He's like a drug for you, Bella...But I would have been healthier for you. Not a drug; I would have been the air, the sun."
That brings me to my main reason for posting about this:
No one told me these damn books were going to break my heart.
I love Jacob. He is the only reason I kept reading, and the reason I'm actually looking forward to the next movie - he'll be in it more. I remember hearing something about him, back before I even saw the movie - it was probably from Emma because she also told me that he imprints on Bella's daughter (which I admit sounds really creepy and I'm not sure how I'm going to like that). I forget what it was she was telling me, probably some quote or something, and I said that I already liked him best. Well, I was right.
Jacob is barely in the first book/movie, so I forgot that I liked him. But in New Moon, the Cullens leave. If it weren't for the fact that Bella was so depressing after that, always acting like her life was over without Edward, it would've been really great - no more mushy dumb unexplained love. I mean, I can empathize to an extent with how she felt. (She stopped listening to music because she didn't want to hear anything that would remind her of Edward. I still have a cd that I never listen to - the songs that are on it I can listen to individually, on my ipod or whatever, but there's just something that stops me from putting the cd in (it's a mix that I called "Toledo Mix" by the way, so that ought to explain it enough for you).) But this is when her friendship with Jacob developes. (Oh yeah, he's 16 and loves her and in many ways she was just using him to distract herself - and that reminded me of something else I've experienced. It was odd.)
But then he becomes a werewolf and gets all angry and bitter and really big and strong (in my mind, this is all a good thing - it makes things more interesting). He knows all about vampires, so he and Bella don't have to have secrets from each other. They become even closer.
Jacob loves Bella and she loves him (but doesn't realize it until it's too late) and he's funny - kind of a comic relief. Also, he can build cars and motorcycles and goes riding with Bella and shows up at her school on his motorcycle to kidnap her when Edward won't let her see him (that was pretty awesome, I thought). He knows she loves him even if she doesn't, so he fights for her. He's just as able and willing to protect Bella from the "bad guys" - he even takes pleasure from hunting down and ripping up vampires - as Edward. Most importantly, he's still (mostly) human. Closer to the same level as Bella. When she was cold, he could warm her up (werewolves are naturally very warm, whereas vampires are very cold).
He's just better than Edward!
And damnit, it's just so touching because they were best friends first and he promises to always be there for her and all that. I can understand their love - it developes more logically.
And what does Bella (*cough* Stephanie Meyer) do? She breaks Jacob's heart. A lot. She knows how he feels but still wants to be friends. So he keeps trying to change her mind, but of course it doesn't work. She even breaks her heart at the same time - she realizes she loves him but still wants to be with Edward. Jacob has a temper, so his reaction shifts a lot - sometimes he's really mad, maybe at her (because she sorta betrayed him), but mostly at Edward, and of course he's so heartbroken. But he still comforts her and tries to be her friend. And that's what breaks my heart. See why I hate Bella?
I considered stopping after Eclipse, actually I considered stopping before I finished Eclipse - toward the end when Jacob kissed Bella and she realized she loved him, too, so she kissed him back - I thought maybe I could pretend things ended the way I wanted them to (even if I don't think Bella deserves Jacob). But I didn't stop. Then I heard that there's actually a part of Breaking Dawn that's narrated by Jacob. So I'm hoping that'll be good. So far, it's kinda sucked cuz it's all been about Bella and Edward getting married (bleh). I guess I'll have to wait and see.
Anyway, I guess that's all I have to say about these books, for now. To review:
Bella=dumb, Edward=ok, Jacob=love, Alice and Emmett(who I didn't mention specifically at all)=amusing
Judge me if you must. I probably deserve it.