Round Three, Fight!

Hellooo, all those out there on the web. This is Creative Karma and I’m back again for another book review.

For those of you that have been keeping up with my book reviewing, you’ll know I’ve been shamelessly playing into the Twilight saga that is rampant in our movie theaters. And, of course, giving the birth of a new phenomena known as the “Twilight Mom”. It’s a little sad to me that now they actually have stickers of that slogan for sticking in the window of your car. Yes, I’ve seen it myself and no I don’t know where they got them from. I really don’t wanna know.

Besides, this is a book review blog. Not a movie review blog. We are now one review away from diving away into book Breaking Dawn in which part one is now being shown in theaters. The book separating us from present day hysteria is Eclipse.

Now, while most people have their favorites elsewhere in the series, I personally finally Eclipse to be the best book of the series.

Why you may ask? Well, let’s delve into the book and see why. Here is Eclipse.

This book may have some of the same elements as in the other books but Eclipse is one of those books that doesn’t make it just about Bella, Edward and Jacob. While many screaming fan girls out there yelling at me, I may have been drawn into the romance to a degree but I just never found Edward or Jacob as the kind of guys that I’d want to spend my time with.

In this book, we actually get some insight into the characters that have been pretty much ignored the rest of the series. Namely, Jasper and Rosalie Hale. I appreciate that this is the place where we finally get to know these characters and appreciate them for what they’ve been through that made them who they are.

If it had been me, I would have done this much sooner. It would have given the readers a chance to see what each member of the family brings to the table. However, I can see the need to keep holding this off so we can have a big reveal.

Most of my friends know about my love for Jasper in this series. Here is the book were Jasper is pulled from the background of one or two lines and is made center stage. I won’t delve into too much here. However, this shows to us why Jasper has it the hardest of all the Cullen clan.

In my mind, Jasper is the ultimate example of dealing with the issues you have and never backing down. He doesn’t simply give up and in to his urges but goes to battle against them everyday. If he doesn’t give in, then he’s made an accomplishment. Something to be proud of and strive to get better at doing. Also, we are shown that Jasper has more inner strength and knowledge and power than the readers would have given him credit for. Jasper is the one that brings the knowledge to the table about newborns and the history of making the strongest type of vampire into an army.

Newborns are what vampires are in the first days and weeks of life as a vampire. They are stronger and faster. However, they don’t have the self control of a vampire that has been around for a few years or centuries.

Now, I know they segway this into talking about the fact Bella will most likely be like that when she is changed into a vampire. However, without Jasper’s knowledge and skill Bella wouldn’t be alive to become a vampire in the first place.

Now, onto Rosalie. While most people would dislike her for her attitude towards…pretty much everyone, we learn that it’s not for some superficial reason like most teen pretty girls. Keep in mind, she hasn’t been a teenager for years. Her reasons for not liking Bella aren’t because she’s human but because she’s so willing to give up being human.

To me, that’s a more than logical way for SOMEONE to feel about someone giving up all chances for a person to have a good life. Since Bella doesn’t even remotely have feelings linked to that then someone needed to.

Rosalie becomes the voice of reason. Someone who really makes Bella think about what she is giving up. The ability to have kids, to grow old and watch those kids have grandkids and going out to do all the wonderful things that vampires can’t do because of what they are. We know that they even hide away when it’s sunny outside so that means no more lounging on the beach. Bella couldn’t go back and visit her mom because of that very thing. It’d be more than suspicious that she’d never step outside.

These two characters balance out the others and bring a more down to earth feel to this story. They keep the audience grounded and remind them that there is far more to the story than just being a romance novel in a weird love triangle. If it was only about love then there isn’t a reason for all the added drama. This means to me that while the series features a love triangle between three very different people that this series isn’t just a love story.

It features the much deeper emotions and conditions that brought various and highly different individuals together to face these problems all together. Without each individual in the Cullen family and the pack of wolves that all come together for the sake of another, then Bella wouldn’t get to dream of a happy ending with Edward. She would have died in the first book or been on the run.

These things aside, this is the book where everything comes to a head with Victoria and her newest companion Riley. This book becomes more a tale of revenge and triumph over evil than the love triangle story that somehow runs along in the background without interruptions.

It seems only logical that all this tension being built up so bring about an epic fight scene. Where we didn’t get it with James and Edward, we get it here. I will say this for the movie, they did an amazing job of bringing the fight scene to life. You don’t get much a sense of it from the book but you get Edward’s dialogue of what is happening. I would have liked this scene better if they actually had jumped down into the fight scene that was going on below them at least from an omnipresent perspective.

However, once the fight is over, the drama isn’t. The Volturi arrive on the scene leading them to realize that they knew damn well what was going on and let it happen. Of course, no one calls them out on this directly but through sly turns of phrase.

Once they give another warning about the fact Bella is still human, the Cullen’s know they have to watch their backs and Bella’s even closer now that the time is drawing nearer to her impending change after her graduation from high school.

The story ends as we finally pick back up the events that happened in the last book. If you remember, Edward offered to change her sooner if she would agree to marry him. Apparently, she has constantly kept him at bay on that subject not wanting to get married. Then again, it was Edward’s goal for her to put off turning into a vampire as long as she could. Even though it is planned for after graduation, he’s still getting his way and showing her that there is still one thing that stands between her and becoming a vampire.

Here’s a thought, if Bella wanted to become a vampire so badly then why not take him up on it? Isn’t it usually the girl who is asking for this sort of thing and the guy that is completely against it? It’s a nice role reversal and cunning device by Edward. He finally gets some points on the board in my book.

However, Bella seems to have been thinking about the offer and, before the battle against the newborns, had finally agreed to marry Edward in exchange for him being the one to turn her into a vampire. So far everyone in her life, save for the Cullens has been unaware of this change in plans for Bella because she hasn’t been wearing the ring.

The story closes on them attempting a more dangerous mission than dealing with newborns…telling Charlie about the engagement.

Now, while this may seem corny and silly it’s something to think about. In the previous books, Charlie has been given a more and more prominent role in his reactions to what Bella is doing. Many times we don’t see him actually punishing her while other times we hear his loud yelling and raving over Bella’s stupid actions that get revealed.

I personally would have loved a little side story at the end of the book to see Charlie’s reaction to her declaring she is getting married to Edward. In the back of my mind, I know that Edward is definitely not Charlie’s favorite person in the world. Who could blame him?

While the ending is rather anti-climatic, it’s the story in the middle that we are meant to remember. Everything from the funny to the action and the drama and even the telling of the most revealing stories in the entire series.

I have to say, I still get a chuckle every time I read about Bells talking with Emmett about how she didn’t break her hand by falling down but by punching a wolf in the face. It’s such an Emmett moment.

All in all, I love this book. This is one of those books that I find hard to let go of when the last page is turned over. Why? Because this book is not just about Edward or Bella or Jacob or some combo of the three. It’s about everyone. Jasper finally gets to stand center stage and we find out that he can more than hold his own which is a huge change from the “boy that looks like he is in pain” from the first book. Rosalie becomes an actual human being to the reader when we really get to understand what is behind the very actions that is against Bella joining the Cullen family.

Who would have thought that Rosalie is the voice of reason? I sure didn’t.

So while you my have the hots for Jacob or Edward, give this book a fair try and just maybe you’ll find that there are other characters that are far more relatable than an emo vampire and a jealous werewolf.

Keep it tuned in to this site as next week I will finally tackle Breaking Dawn.

Until then, I’m Creative Karma and the next time you see me I might be reviewing your favorite book. 

On the Crazy Train to Vampire Land

            Hey everyone on the internet. It’s Creative Karma again. That means it’s time for another book review.

            Like I promised, over the next couple of days I will be tackling the Twilight series. Last Wednesday I went over Twilight. Today it’s time to tackle the second book in the series New Moon.

            This time around I won’t be going into as much detail since you have the basic foundation for the way the characters work. The only thing that really changes is the amount of “face time” the characters receive in the story.

            Without further adieu, here is New Moon.

            This time the book really takes the readers on a ride. In the first book, it was all about Edward and Bella. This time the readers get thrown for a loop as Edward completely removes himself from the field. I won’t say why because if you haven’t read the story then I don’t wanna ruin it for ya.

            However, this allows the readers to really see the relationship between Bella and Jacob which is something the reader didn’t have. It was only ever implied that they had a friendship. Now, we get to see how deep the friendship goes.

            That is something I really appreciate about this series. They don’t just give a straight forward romance and stick with it. They have ups and downs and they let it fall together completely. At least they offer Jacob as a true friend to keep Bella from being completely alone.

            There are some issues I have with the Bella acts in Edward’s absence is that she is in a very deep depression. I get that a girl could be upset when her first boyfriend disappears on her. However, she is so depressed that she cuts herself off from all her friends. We may not see if her friends try to help her out but it is presumed that friends would help each other. This leads to my second issue, Edward and Bella were only together for what…half of one school year? Maybe the summer and a bit into the next? Even so, seems like a really short amount of time to be so depressed over the loss of a boyfriend.

            Now, Bella has completely alienated herself from her friends and the only one she has to turn to is Jacob. By the way, those school friends of hers. Time to start saying your goodbyes. They will be making their last large appearance in this book. In the next one they are the minority.

            So now that Bella has a friend to talk to and hang out with, she can hang out, talk about how she feels, get over Edward, and move on with her life right? Wrong. Despite how kind Jacob is being in trying to distract Bella from the loss of Edward, Bella spends all her time doing stupid stuff in order to have hallucinations of Edward. The picture of mental health.

            This continues no matter where or who she is with. You would think she’d try to just maintain a sense of normalcy but no. She’s too obsessed with Edward that she will do anything to see his ghostly figure again. This is really turning out to be healthy relationship.

            Unfortunately, this crazy train doesn’t stop here. Nope, we have our last stop. All of this comes to a crazy head when Bella decides to take up cliff diving. Now, to make this a stupid thing she goes alone despite the fact Jacob had offered to take her to do this very thing. Nope, she’ll do it alone and maybe die because she doesn’t know what she’s doing. Reeeaaalll smart move there Bella.

            Of course, the series doesn’t end here so we know she doesn’t die but she gets really close. Jacob saves her life and berates her for her actions. This being the normal part of this scenario. He takes her back to her home and we see the return of a Cullen. My personal favorite (besides Jasper) named Alice.

            Just to review for those that don’t know, Alice has visions of the future based on a line of choices a person has made. Until the choice is made the future remains foggy. Alice can always see Bella’s future except when she is around the wolf pack. This being said, Alice saw Bella jump off the cliff but didn’t see her being rescued. Like any sane person, this led Alice to believe that Bella was dead. So, she rushed back to Forks to see for herself.

            However, the problems start mounting immediately. Through Jacob’s hatred of the Cullens and the lack of correct and complete information lead Edward to believe what Alice came to confirm or deny. That Bella was dead. This is where we truly see that Edward, despite his disappearance from Bella’s life, still was just as in love with her as ever because he would rather be dead with Bella than alive without her.

            Now, you may think I’m crazy but everything after this is more logical. Hear me out first before you throw things at me.

            If there was someone you cared deeply about who thought you had died and it was up to you to go and prove otherwise so they wouldn’t kill themselves, wouldn’t you go? I know I would. And this is exactly what Bella does. However, unlike for most of us this requires her to get on a plane and fly with Alice to Italy. In Italy, is the group of vampires known as the Volturi who are more or less the vampire police. They were the ones that made the rules about what not to do and what the punishment would be for doing it. Rule number one: don’t reveal the existence of vampires. Ole Edward is gonna break this rule in order to make the Volturi kill him.

            As I said before, this book series wouldn’t have more in them if one of the members of the love triangle died. It just wouldn’t be interesting to most people anymore if they killed off Edward.

            But now they have a bigger problem. Here they all are together in front of the Volturi. Let’s see here. Aro, vampire. Caius, vampire. Jane, vampire. Marcus, vampire. Dimitri, vampire. Felix, vampire. Alice, vampire. Bella, human. Edward, vampire. Oops, Bella is a human that knows about vampires. Now, those that read the book know that the Volturi have a human working for them. However, they are more than willing to kill her or turn her if she either becomes more useful or a hazard. Edward on the other hand…not so much.

            This is the drama in the book that I actually appreciate. Emo girlfriends. Just no. But because you’ve fallen for a vampire and are discovered for it, that is something I can get behind. It creates a sense of urgency and fear. If they don’t agree to turn Bella by a set time then the Volturi will definitely make Alice’s vision of Bella’s death come true. I will ignore the fact for now that Bella is way too willing to become a vampire.

            If Bella hadn’t been as willing throughout the books and then this happened, I think it would have been much more believable and riveting. Then, it’s not just about Bella and her wants that have to come to pass but about her survival. Thanks to Alice’s visions, Bella is saved because everything is back on course for Bella to be a vampire one day. Obviously Edward is no longer thinking about staying out of Bella’s life.

            So after a less than thrilling anti-climax where they get to go home, we get to the end of our story where Charlie gets to be a dad for a page or two, Bella gets around Edward’s wishes by voting with the rest of the Cullen’s for her to join the family after she graduates high school, and a nice little time skip.

            The rest of the pages afterward doesn’t seem to be much of anything. One might think they could skip these pages and leave the book alone. But don’t do it. They are there for a reason. It’s in these pages that Edward finally has something over Bella. These pages make me laugh. All this time Bella has been completely eager to become a vampire. However, she’d rather have Edward change her into a vampire. Oh, but Edward gets an idea. He would be more than happy to turn her tomorrow if she agreed to marry him tonight. Makes me laugh thinking that Bella is finally out done.

            Personally, I would have taken the offer. However, Bella’s odd way of thinking has her completely against being married so young but she’s more than willing to be a vampire at nineteen. Kinda backwards isn’t it?

            Anyway, the book ends with no decision made and a nice little prologue which I will keep secret. To me it’s like the icing on the cake. Funny, drama, Charlie doing what he does best and Bella in actual trouble for once.

            Now, with all this said about New Moon, I do like the book. However, it’s still not my fave. Wait for my review of Eclipse for that. But this book changes things up. It’s not all about Edward and Bella. It shows us just how deep the friendship goes for Bella and Jacob. We get more details that wouldn’t have been revealed if this book never came out. Edward’s reactions my seem to come out of nowhere but if you read between the lines then you can see the act he was putting on in hopes that Bella would try for her own life without him in it. Sounds like a decent guy to me.

            However, this book has some serious negatives. Bella’s reactions to Edward leaving are WAY too over the top for me. It doesn’t feel logical or real. It feels like an overly obsessed emo girl going crazy over a boy who she barely knew much about and knew only for a short time. Bella’s friends are a little too forgiving in this book as well for all the psycho things she’s done.

            I don’t hate this book, but I don’t love it either. If I had to rank this book against the others then it would come in last place. However, there are other books I hate far worse than New Moon and with any luck you’ll hear about them soon enough. Now, this judgment might change with the next reviews but we will see how it goes.

            For what it’s worth, give it a shot. You need this book to at least understand what is going on in the last two books. Every book series has a book that’s not as great as the others and for the Twilight saga New Moon is that book unfortunately.

            Well, that’s all for now. Tune in next time for my review of Eclipse and you’ll see why that book is my personal favorite of the series. Until next time, I’m Creative Karma and I love me a Southern vampire.