Twilight.

[eponis]

All I can say in defense was that it was $1 for a used paperback.

Comments

[skipperdee]

does it get any better?

No, no it does not.

The second two books are vaguely readable, though just as troubling from a feminist/relationship health standpoint. (I also was relatively engaged by Bella originally, for similar reasons and also because I don't read enough fic to have strong negative reactions to Mary Sue (and because i don't think she's as egregious ax Mary Sue as has been alleged).

The fourth book consists of the author realizing she's written herself into a corner on a number of levels, and responding with a series of increasingly panicked and ridiculous moves, and increasingly insulting/troubling/questionable levels of consent/squick/bad writing.

[eponis]

Hrm. I wondered about the "writing herself into a corner" bit; there were various coincidences and odd facts that seemed implausible enough that I assumed some explanation was coming, but.

(And I've heard about, um, the undead baby antics. Ew.)

[eponis]

Oh, also: I agree she's not a super-egregious Mary Sue. Certainly not the worst I've seen. The bit of Mary-Sue-ness that bugged me was that, despite being generally not a Mary Sue (aside from her prettiness, smartness, and endearing clumsiness), EVERYBODY male is attracted to her. Edward I guess makes sense, if you want to accept the "you're precisely my blood type" premise, but the idea that everyone her age at the new school was asking her out (and not just when she was New and Exciting) just seemed . . . very wish-fulfillment-esque.

[oniugnip]

Vampirism does not make stalking attractive.

[eponis]

Okay, that is an incredibly awesome t-shirt and one which I may have to acquire. :-)

P.S. You're, like, only a couple hundred miles away now! ;-) If you're ever up in this neck of the woods, do let me know -- it would be really fun to hang out. Unfortunately, odds of my getting down there this summer are low.

[oniugnip]

I will, for definite!

To be totally honest, I don't have a solid fix on your location. But it's pretty likely that I'll be making a trip Boston-ward sometime in the near future. Does that help?

[eponis]

Boston-ward would be perfect! I'm in the suburbs, but I could easily come in to the city to meet you (or vice versa). Just let me know when you're heading 'round!

[cordelia_v]

Jacob was clearly the better choice, and I was rooting for him through all four books. But as someone pointed out to me, Edward is really the one to choose if you follow the traditionally-advised strategy for women of marrying up. He and his family ARE the upper class in her town, while Jacob's family appears to be even slightly poorer than Bella's. Plus, Jacob cannot transform her and make her immortal AND render her forever young and beautiful (and as the series proceeds, it becomes clear that this last is what is really important to Bella. I've never seen a worse case of "I don't want to grow up. I want to be 18 forever").

As for plot, what Skipperdee said, above. And yet, it truly does keep you turning the pages. I'd advise buying more if you find it used for $1. The stalking part does get a bit better, and Edward comes up with a much more persuasive explanation for avoiding sex later on, which he was too shy to offer at first.

[cordelia_v]

Oh, and yes, there is a hella lot more sexual desire expressed in later volumes on almost everyone's part. And the way that her blood smells so good to him seems to diminish, too.

You're right that they seem to have very little in common, however. And as it proceeds, you see how very much she and Jacob have in common.

*is an unrepentant Jacob shipper*

[eponis]

Hee. I admit that the Jacob/Bella relationship is the biggest reason I'm curious to read on. (Though I know already that I'm doomed to disappointment and a really ridiculous resolution of the triangle

[fer_de_lance]

Caveat: I tried to read book one, and stopped when Bella -- after angsting for pages and pages about how she hoped the people in Podunk, Wherever would like her, then proceeds to ignore every overture of friendship made to her in favour of staring raptly at the "alabaster white" kids across the lunchroom. It left a bad taste in my mouth.

(Along with the tell-not-show writing; Bella is supposedly intelligent, a reader of classic literature, insecure, etc... but what I actually read about her doing was, well, nothing much really. She's so smart she'd done everything her classes in Podunk are studying, but she never references any of that material; it reads like an excuse to get on with the wangsting. Which is all she does, far as I can tell; at least, at no point did she mention that she was going to go home and finish _Moby Dick_ before bed, or whip out a book and read at lunch, or even make any mental references to all that literature she's supposedly read.)