tiny pink books

The Short Second Life of Bree Tanner An Eclipse Novela by Stephenie Meyer
Little, Brown and Company, 2010

I admit it.  I just can’t get enough Stephenie Meyer!  I can’t even put my thumb on what it is about her writing that is so compelling, but put her books in my hands and I will read them.  Quickly.  That said, I cannot say that The Short Second Life of Bree Tanner was a particularly good example of her work.  Yes, it was highly readable (finished it in less than a day).  Yes, it was fun to read an alternate view of the big battle in Eclipse.  However, there was an overall clunky feel that made this feel like a tacked on, fanfic-esque project designed to bring in a little extra cash from the throngs of excited Twilight fans as the release date for the Eclipse film looms.

Bree Tanner’s fate is already known to any reader of the Twilight saga.  Born into an army of newborn vampires, Bree is trapped, by her coven and her leader, in a world where she must use her skills of observation to survive.  Unfortunately, even and she and her new friend, Diego, discover that their leader is keeping them thirsty, ignorant and under his thumb, they never manage to take control of the situation.  This is one of the critical problems with The Short Second Life of Bree Tanner-even though we are introduced to Bree and Diego as “the smart ones” of their group, they never seem to use any of their supposed intelligence!  The other major problem is that the relationship between Diego and Bree is forced, to an almost laughable degree.  The high drama, emotional kick of Meyer’s previous books is totally lacking here.  There is one interesting relationship in the book and that is the friendship that develops between Fred and Bree.

With all those complaints, do I regret reading the book?  No way.  The Short Second Life of Bree Tanner is a fun, satisfyingly fluffy read for any Twilight fan, despite its many flaws.  Read it online for free until July 5, 2010.

The Host by Stephenie Meyer
Little, Brown 2008

The Host is Stephenie Mayer’s, author of the hugely popular Twilight YA series, first adult novel. In some ways, The Host is very similar to what we expect from Meyers after the Twilight books.  It has undying romance, shares the same themes of questioning what it is to be human, and is every bit as much of a page turner.  In fact, I saw little difference between the writing style and treatment within Meyer’s YA work and The Host, but I suppose that just goes to show that a lot of these differences seem to be held up in the marketing and not the writing.  I digress.  What I meant to say, rather than blathering on about Meyers and YA vs adult, is that The Host was a thoroughly readable and enjoyable book.

Set in an apocalyptic future where body snatcher type parasitic aliens have peacefully taken over the human race, The Host is about two characters sharing one body.  Melanie, a 19 year old woman, was caught and implanted with Wanderer, an alien soul who has experienced many past lives and hosts on other planets.  Melanie refuses to surrender her consciousness to Wanderer as the two battle for control of Mel’s body and mind.  They share thoughts, memories, and emotions.  Melanie uses all of her thoughts to persuade Wanderer to leave the peaceful alien society to find Jared, the love of Mel’s life, and Jamie, her little brother.  Love triangles and emotionally charged relationships ensue as Wanderer learns firsthand the pain and the tangled emotions that come along with being human.

I found this book to be quite enjoyable.  Although it has a slowish start, it soon became one of those books that I was simply hungry to read at all moments.  I guess what I liked was the way Meyers creates truly emotionally difficult relationships between all of the characters.  There’s subtle doses of action spiced in as well to keep things exciting.  Although it’s probably harder for me to judge, since I am naturally quite a fan of science fiction, I also think that Meyers has, just as she did with the Twilight series, delivered a genre novel that reaches beyond the genre.  That is to say, I think readers who are not necessarily fans of science fiction will still enjoy The Host.  With that conclusion, I would recommend this book to Twilight fans looking for more as well as adult and YA readers who want a good fun read that’s both exciting and emotional without getting too dense.

Breaking Dawn
by Stephenie Meyer

I feel like it’s quite unnecessary to review Breaking Dawn, as most of us have already made up out our minds about the Twilight series by now.  Breaking Dawn is just what you’d expect from the 4th installment of this hugely popular YA/Vampire/Romance series.  It’s thick (over 700 pages!), it’s melodramatic, and, if you’re into the whole Bella Edward chronicles, you can’t put it down!  There are some key elements delivered by Breaking Dawn that stand out of from the series.  For one thing, there isn’t really a cliffhanger ending (in fact, some might complain about the neatly tied up ending) and for another, Edward and Bella finally move forward through the stages of intense teenage longing and into a more active stage in their relationship (if you get what I’m implying here).  For those unfamiliar with the series (seriously, you need to go visit your bookstore of library!), the Twilight saga is about Bella Swan, a perfectly normal, kind of awkward, teen in Forks, Oregon with just one special problem–the love of her life, Edward Cullen, is a vampire. 
Breaking Dawn was a satisfying read.  There’s actually much more shifts in the dynamics between characters than one comes to expect from Stephanie Meyer and the book leaves with a feeling of closure.  Perhaps Meyer will stick to her guns and this really will stand as the conclusion to the Twilight  saga (though fear not fans, she’s already busy writing another book, Midnight Sun, which will tell the events of the Twiligjht saga as we know it through another character’s point of view.

Eclipse by Stephenie Meyer
Little, Brown Young Readers, 2007.

The third book of the Twilight series, Eclipse is another saga of Bella, teenage girl who happens to be deeply in love with Edward, a vampire. In this chapter, Bella comes to terms with the fact that choosing Edward, and thus choosing to become a vampire, will have irrevocable consequences of giving up her human life. Also, Bella struggles with her relationship with Jacob, who happens to be a warewolf, the natural enemy of the vampire, another contender for Bella’s love. Of course, there’s also a suspenseful story about an old, quite literally, blood thirsty enemy who is coming after Bella again, this time with some new friends.

So, all in all, the story doesn’t move too much in Eclipse. While there’s plenty of action and ooey gooey love melodrama, very little permanently changes for the characters. Still, Meyer has manages to successfully fill over 600 pages with exciting, page turner suspense and melodrama, the winning combination that is present in all of the Twilight books. While I do feel that the quality of the writing may have slipped slightly since the original Twilight book, Eclipse still has that magic that has made this series among the most popular of current young adult literature. To tel the truth, I had a lot of other book that I needed to read for grad school, two part time jobs, a paper to write, and all those other adult responsibilities that come along with being a grown up, but I simply could not put this book down. I read Eclipse in three days, staying up to the wee hours of the morning until my eyes closed with exhaustion. I recommend it for fans of the series. Overall, I recommend the series to YA readers as well as adult readers who are looking for something that’s a fun take on teenage romance and, of course, vampires.

New Moon (Twilight, Book 2) by Stephenie Meyer
Little, Brown Young Readers, 2006

The second installment of the furiously popular Twlight series, intense teenage drama wins out over supernatural in New Moon…and its not necessarily a bad thing. In New Moon, young Bella is dumped by the love of her life, Edward, who just so happens to be a vampire. Of course, vampirism is the main cause of the downfall in their relationship, with Edward fleeing to try and give Bella a safer, more normal life. The whole thing backfires though, with Bella falling into a deep depression while all kinds of creepy things wander into her life with intent to harm.

New Moon is not quite as intense, both in romance and in action, as the previous chapter, Twilight. It is, however, a fairly decent continuation of the story that, aside from being a little too brooding (okay, at times it feels like page after page of teenage depression and rejection will never, ever end!) delivers a little bit of action and a little bit of development in the overall Bella/Edward story. There are also some fun supernatural developments in other relationships, bringing warewolves into the picture. Of course, the whole thing ends without much resolution, making me desperate to pick up Eclipse, the next chapter of what will perhaps become a long running series.

I listened to this book as an audiobook by Listening Library and will, once again, recommend Ilyana Kadushin’s reading performance.

Twlight
by Stephenie Meyer
Little, Brown Young Readers, 2006.

Oh yes, I read another vampire book. Actually, I listened to the audio version of this one (put out by Listening Library), which was quite enjoyable. Twilight is the story of Bella, a 17-year-old girl who moved from home with her mother in sunny Phoenix to the ever-rainy small town of Forks, Washington. Not only does she have to deal with the normal teenage issues of making friends and navigating the social scene of a new school, but she ends up falling in deeply and madly in love with the handsome and dazzling Edward Cullen…who happens to be a vampire.

The characters in Twlight are both very real in terms of emotions with a sense of mystery that makes them interesting. The love between Edward and Bella is a little bit on the melodramatic romance side, but hey, isn’t teenage love just a bit like that anyway? It is this intensity between Bella and Edward that makes the story so compelling and exciting. Readers will enjoy the emotional aspects of this book, the romance, Bella’s struggles with her divorced parents, the social aspects of school, while the darker, more supernatural elements make it unique and intriguing.

I think Twilight will appeal to a lot of readers.  While it is YA, it’s not strictly for YA audiences.  Adults, especially women, will enjoy Twilight just as much as the younger set.  Twilight also manages to appeal to those seeking teenage drama and romance AND those seeking a good gothy bit of romance and darkness.  I know that I quite enjoyed both aspects and it pleased me to no end to see them together.

I “read” the audio version of Twilight, put out by Listening Library, which I also recommend.