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307 of 359 found the following review helpful:
 A Dalliance with Wolves Sep 27, 2006
By Jonathan Appleseed
4.5 stars
NOTE: I'm adding, rather late, apparently, that there's a bit of a spoiler in this review. So, read with caution. That said, if you paid attention while reading Twilight, I'm puzzled as to how my spoiler could possibly be a spoiler. Myers spelled it out, in the book and interviews, almost as clearly as she spells out Bella's awed perception of Edward.
**********
In my review of Twilight, I said that the book had more in common with "Catcher in the Rye" and "Pride and Prejudice" than it did with any vampire novels or stories. That still holds true, although be certain: I'm not comparing Twilight or New Moon to these books in terms of literary quality. There are few that match either.
In New Moon we miss the vampires for most of the story, and Bella spends time with her friend Jacob, an Indian fated with becoming a werewolf, and fated to hate all "bloodsuckers", regardless of whether or not the bloodsuckers took human lives. (Btw, that little bit is cleared up at the end...what exactly their treaty entails. It's interesting, kind of, but I have to wonder if the author thought of it as the story was being written, and that it wasn't planned when the "treaty" was first mentioned. I suppose it doesn't matter.)
If you're reading this story because you like vampire stories, you will be disappointed. Edward's only around for a bit less than 1/3 of the book. When he is around, however, his presence is appreciated. One thing that the author didn't do this time, and it was similarly appreciated, was to have Bella writing down every single thought that she had regarding his absolute perfection (remember, this is a first person narrative).
While spending time with "the wolves", Bella goes through some interesting growth patterns. I say interesting, because I'm not entirely certain that I followed them or that if I understood them that I agreed with them. That said, I've never been a teenage girl, and the author has been a teenage girl, so I have to bow to her experience in this.
Many readers will look at Bella's behavior during her "dalliance with wolves" as bizarre and entirely unbelievable. I don't think they were. For anyone that has had the absolute love of their life torn from them, with the *absolute* belief that this love would not return, and if you happen to be emotionally immature to top all of this off, your behavior wouldn't be too far off from Bella's. I'm not saying exactly like Bella's, just not too far off.
Again, this is not a vampire story. The fact that vampires were not around in this book as often as some may have liked did not lessen the quality of the story. What was missing, though, was the urgency, and the mystery. For example, we never knew why, in Twilight, Edward recoiled upon first seeing Bella until the very end. We had a reaction, and a resolution, and during that time we had lots of questions. That type of immediacy was missing here. Everything was rather straightforward.
When Edward lies to Bella, we know that he is lying, and we know that there will be resolution. The problem is that we know he's lying, and we know the resolution won't be too surprising.
I did enjoy the unique take on werewolves, but I felt that since we had seen so much of the vampires in the first book, that we should have seen and felt more of the werewolves in this book.
One thing that I found particularly frustrating was the similarity of emotion that both Jake and Edward have for Bella. Yes, Bella is a clutz, and she definitely needs protecting. But to have two main characters, in two separate books, respond to her in a nearly identical manner (both fearing for, and being vocal about, her need to be less careless), is tough to buy.
There were some hints of future issues between the Cullens and Jake's clan. I hope we see them. And I hope that this story can survive the necessary metamorphosis - at some point, it will need to be less about Bella's intense love for Edward, and more about the actual situations surrounding them.
This may sound like a negative review. It's not. I thoroughly enjoyed this book. I've seen others that gave Twilight 5 stars give this 1 or 2 stars, and I've questioned that. I think that given the nature of this story, readers need to be more aware of what this story is really about. See the first paragraph of this review for that.
I'm anxiously awaiting the third book. There are a lot of possibilities, and I can't help but wonder which possibility the author will choose, and how she will resolve whatever roadblocks her choices give her.
129 of 152 found the following review helpful:
 Co-dependent Bella: Act II Jan 09, 2009
By Amy92010
Anyone who enjoyed the first book but found the phrasing repetitive and the character of Bella to be mildly annoying, be warned.
Pgs 1-70 are actually interesting, aside from Bella being a brat about turning 18
Pgs 70-400 are basically the plot of the first book, recycled, with Jacob as the new love interest. As with Edward, she shuns the other kids at school, wants to spend all her time with him, and, when she finds out what he really is, she embraces it, meets the family...etc etc.
pgs 400-the end are essentially the only novelty to the book. Even so, it's ruined by the fact that Bella is so helpless and insecure. I don't understand why Edward loves you either, Bella, but he does. And I don't want to have to read 500 pages of him convincing you of that.
This book is basically ACT II of the first book, but with a few less obnoxious descriptions of Edward's bronze hair/marble body/topaz eyes, and a few more obnoxious descriptions of the aching hole/depression in Bella's soul when Edward leaves her.
Bella morphs from being slightly annoying and whiny, to being completely pathetic. Her world revolves around Edward, so when he leaves, she is left in a catatonic state...until eventually she decides to rebel and do crazy things, in the hopes that she might hear his voice (oh yes, that velvet voice of his is in this book too, and velvet must be on Meyer's 'favorite adjectives list").
But then Bella finds reason for living again, in the arms of another man, Jacob. Her basic attraction to him is based on...wait for it..."she's less miserable with him". Hmmm....the co-dependent latches on again. She completely leads him on, because the whole time she is with him, she is still thinking about Edward and how she can reunite her crazy messed up head with a precious delusion of him.
In the end, Edward and Jacob are mortal enemies (oh no!) and Bella is left choosing between the man who is the world to her, and the man who is the world to her when the man who really is the world to her is unavailable. Gee, I wonder who she'll choose in the end. Apparently Meyer wants us to think it's a toss up and plans to make another book of it. Yeah right.
I can only hope that the third book doesn't contain the following phrases and/or words, because I HATE THEM BY NOW:
grimaced
smirked
topaz
velvet voice
touseled bronze hair
marble slab
perfect face
singing laughter
aching hole
russett skin
angelic anything
it felt like I was dreaming
I wasn't sure if it was a dream
it had to be a dream
99 of 120 found the following review helpful:
 Ladies: Don't act like Bella. Sep 07, 2007
By blue canary
Maybe I'm being stuffy, maybe I'm out of touch now that I'm an old lady of 28. But I generally like quality young adult fantasies, and I liked the original book a lot.
What got me about this one, like others have mentioned, was Bella's inability to function without her boyfriend, and later without a man in general. Like Charlie told her, she's not the first one to have gone through a break-up or have her heart broken. I wish she would have just sucked it up, gone on with her life, maybe gotten ANGRY with Edward for being such a drama queen. Instead it's wah, wah, wah, I've lost everything. Even though I have a home, two parents who love me, friends who are willing to support me even though I dropped them to be with a guy...none of it means anything because my true wuv, my high school boyfriend of one year, is gone. Boo-friggin' hoo, Bella. Her identity is so wrapped up in her boyfriend that her conscience speaks in his voice. Gag me.
Then, naturally, the only person to pull her out of her depression is another boy, and naturally she can't just tell him she ISN'T INTERESTED before things spin out of control. She thinks she's ready to become a vampire, but she can't break it off with a dude. It just bothered me.
All that aside, I liked the parts where Bella wasn't moping! :)
131 of 161 found the following review helpful:
Meyers' books are GREAT.... Apr 04, 2008
By Smarmstress
...if you're an aspiring writer in need of a primer that gives never-ending examples of what NOT TO DO.
I'm working on a teen fantasy novel of my own, and Meyers' Twilight series never fails to remind me of the things I want to completely avoid in my own writing. Let's consult the list, shall we?
1) THE BORING SUE HERIONE. You may have heard of the Mary Sue, the perfect female protagonist who can do no wrong, who has unnatural beauty, who is beloved by all; Bella isn't quite a Mary Sue. She's described (by herself, at least) as plain and is endlessly clumsy (though her clumsiness is so contrived that it seems like a magical Sue ability, practically). She also has no interests, hobbies, or anything that she excels at in particular. Despite these flaws, Bella nevertheless ends up a Sue because everyone loves her for reasons that defy explanation or logic. Even when she is behaving in a selfish, whiny, and intolerable way, Bella is never called out for her behavior. The only character who ever seems disgusted by Bella is Jessica, but since Jessica is written as a shrew anyway, we're clearly not meant to put much stock in her opinion.
2) FATED TRUE LOVE. In my world, Fated True Love isn't romantic, it's lazy. It says "hey, instead of working out why these characters are attracted to each other and showing how their relationship develops, I'm gonna just put it in the hands of FATE and have them fall in love for no reason whatsoever!" Edward loves Bella because she smells good, which means Edward loves Bella like I love freshly baked bread. Bella loves Edward because he's beautiful. God-like. So beautiful...really BEAUTIFUL, in case you missed it in all the numerous descriptive reminders. But really, why do they love each other? I have no idea. Shakespeare was all too aware of the ridiculousness of star-crossed love, which is why he was smart and killed his teenaged lovers off. But Bella and Edward's happiness hinges entirely on their togetherness. What a strong, solid message to send to the young women of the world: happiness isn't something you create for yourself, oh no, it's something you can ONLY find in a beautiful, immortal man. Bella's slow recognition of Jacob as a potential suitor was far more interesting and realistic, and it was teeth-gnashingly disappointing to see Bella repeatedly insist to herself that no one would ever do it for her again but Edward.
3) THE ZERO-HOUR PLOT. Nothing much happens in Meyers' books, aside from Bella's enthrallment/suffering over Edward. In the last few chapters, Meyers will attempt to inject some kind of conflict into the narrative, either in the form of James, Victoria, and Laurent ("Twilight") or the Volturi ("New Moon"). It's difficult to get invested in this conflict at the last minute, and again feels like a lazy, tacked-on, "oh right, I am writing a book, maybe something should happen!" move from the author.
Of course, as someone who hopes to be successful at writing teen fantasy, it's depressing to know that all I would need to do to achieve this success is construct a BORING SUE HEROINE, a FATED TRUE LOVE, and a ZERO HOUR PLOT.
Or maybe it's not depressing...maybe it's an incredible relief! After all, coming up with those three things shouldn't be too hard. If a lazy writer like Meyers can do it, anyone can!
For readers looking for good, solid teen-level fantasy featuring interesting heroines, more complex and realistic portrayals of love, and truly gripping plot, I recommend Diana Wynne Jones and Libba Bray.
33 of 38 found the following review helpful:
Review for Parents of Young Readers Jul 20, 2009
By Cynthia R. Knowles
***Possible Spoilers***
I'm reading this series because my 11-year-old is reading them. These books are written for adolescents but still deal with some adult themes so it seemed prudent for us to read them together. I am far from a prude, but I had trouble with many of the underlying messages.
1. Pain that never eases or ends is normal:
No! I've had to explain to my child that when a relationship ends that yes, you feel horrible and yes it feels like a part of you has died, but that degree of pain is time-limited and you get over it! If, 6 months after a break-up, you are still clutching your chest in agony when someone mentions your ex's name, then it's time to get professional help.
2. Suicide is a viable solution:
It is not OK, healthy, common and especially not romantic for both main characters to consider suicide as the only logical end to their emotional suffering. An absolutely horrible message for kids.
3. If it hurts this bad, it must be love:
I don't care for the authors assumption that the degree of suffering equals the depth of love. Another horrible message, especially for young girls.
4. Role-confusion between the children and their parents:
The parents are portrayed as inept, weak and incapable and they would surely perish if not for the competent, strong children who cook and shop for them. In fact, Bella's dad is unable to make spaghetti, so would surely die if she did not take care of him. [Insert eye-roll here]. Adding to these layers of disrespect, she calls her parents by name rather than `mom' and `dad.' This underscores her character, or lack thereof.
5. Flagrant disregard of her father's authority:
Interesting that she sneaks her boyfriend into her bedroom to "stay over" every night without any consequence. And leaves the country for three days basically leaving the note "home soon." Her dad is the police chief, like that would ever happen? The assumption that adults are dumb or clueless runs through the entire book.
6. Friends are disposable:
Bella sees her friends as clearly disposable and even a nuisance to her even though they are nice kids. God forbid should someone reach out to her and try to shake her out of her emo world. Her cavalier treatment of her friends is sickening. If this book is about relationships, why oh why doesn't the author show even one healthy relationship?
7. Women are nothing without a man:
Intensive descriptions of this identity-losing co-dependence with her boyfriend. Without him she is less than nothing. She only begins to recover when she, you guessed it, finds another man. And then she uses this other man, knowing that the relationship is lopsided. News flash - having a man in your life is not the only thing that will make you happy. I also have no idea why they are in love. They don't actually have substantive conversations or do anything together. They just stare at each other and doubt their worthiness. Where are the feminists!? Why aren't women outraged over this! And BTW, women can drive their own cars and men can be passengers.
8. Generally poor writing:
I got so tired of hearing how "perfect" her boyfriend was, how beautiful, how cold, how statuesque. OK, OK, I get it. It doesn't have to be said over and over again. I have no clue why an editor didn't reduce the tonnage of adverbs.
9. Weak and illogical plot line:
Did the Cullins really have to leave Forks? Did Bella really have to go to Italy? Really? Am I supposed to believe that the same girl who dreaded gym class because she can't play volleyball is going to cliff dive without instruction on an impulse? And if everything they've done throughout the book is about the threat of Victoria, why, suddenly at the end is that threat gone? Nothing was actually resolved. Sloppy plot line.
10. Unbelievable plot devices:
I am supposed to believe that neither of the main characters can tell whether they are dead or alive?
11. Terrible Character development:
I know nothing about Bella. Does she have any interests? Hobbies? Talents (besides whining)? Plans for her future? Thoughts about her past? I don't know anything about her previous school or friends left behind in Arizona. Did she even have friends? Seriously, how can I buy into an adolescent character without any knowledge of her social identity. That's all adolescents do at this age. Why doesn't the author think this is important to share with us? And Edward, isn't there something else about him we might be interested in knowing about besides his physical appearance? Like, what does he do with all his free time if he doesn't need to sleep?
12. Didn't do her research:
Washington State requires motorcyclists to wear helmets.
If your kids are going to be reading this book I STRONGLY RECOMMEND that you read it first and discuss it throughout their reading, just to let them know that fiction isn't truth, that not all authors are responsible, and that in the real world, friends are important, as is taking care of yourself.
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