Most people don’t think of the word “love” when vampire stories come to mind. In fact, one might be considered crazy for suggesting it. I had similar suspicions when I read the back cover of Stephenie Meyer’s Twilight. I had had a feeling that it was going to be one of those books that I would start to read, lose interest in, and never finish. On the contrary, Twilight was addicting; I finished the book within 24 hours of starting it.
Twilight is about ill-fated lovers, and it focuses first on Bella, a seventeen-year-old girl from Phoenix, Arizona, who grudgingly moves in to live with her dad, Charlie. Charlie lives in Forks, Washington, the rainiest place in the United States. It is in this town she meets Edward Cullen and his four “siblings,” all of whom are breathtakingly beautiful, have skin so pale it is almost translucent, and never eat. As Bella becomes closer to Edward, she becomes more curious about his family’s strange habits. Then she figures it out – they are all vampires. Led by Dr. Carlisle Cullen and his vampire wife Esme, this clan of vampires has renounced human blood, feeding only on animals. But it does not completely sate the bloodlust they feel for humans. Edward, especially, has this problem because Bella’s blood appeals to him more than does anyone else’s. He finds this craving difficult to ignore, which is why, when Edward brings Bella home to his family, many members are apprehensive. Nevertheless, they do welcome her. Yet this delicate relationship they create may not last for long when a vampire tracker, thirsting for Bella’s blood, has the Cullens in a desperate struggle to protect her.
Twilight is entrancingly written, leaving the reader craving more. For those who do want more, there are two sequels, New Moon, and Eclipse, that are already out, and a fourth book, Breaking Dawn, is set for a November 2008 release.
Mazz • Feb 26, 2008 at 4:26 PM
Although the book is a page turner and I went through it very quickly, I thought the writing was not very good. Meyer got the idea for the book in a dream, and I thought the writing reflected that, as it was choppy from idea to idea and went on way too long.