New Moon (The Twilight Saga)

Bella Swan is so in love with Edward Cullen and Edward is just as in love with her. Bella is a danger magnet, so when Edward’s sister Alice has a birthday party for her and a paper cut almost causes a blood bath, Edward is sure that he is bad for Bella. Of course, in we have to see the comparison with Romeo and Juliet by Edward and Bella watching a movie and Edward telling Bella how he would die if she were no longer in the world. Then, Edward and the Cullens leave Forks and Bella behind and Bella goes into a black spiral of gothic proportions.

Then Jacob Black and Bella build a closer friendship and become almost inseparable. Jacob is light and joyful and lifts Bella’s spirits unlike anyone else, with the downside of Jake falling in love with her, whereas Bella loves Jake more as a brother. Bella also discovers in her temporary insanity that she hears Edward’s voice when she does dangerous things, so she does lots of dangerous things.

Meanwhile, Victoria is still after Bella, and she discovers this after the vampire Laurent almost has Bella for lunch. Bella is saved by five gigantic wolves, one that passed within a foot of her right shoulder.

There is so much more drama to be had in this book, which is why this is my least favorite book in the series. I hate drama, but unfortunately all the books are necessary to pull everything together and this is the book that Bella actually considers romance with something warm blooded. I was always torn about that. Anyway, the book is well done if you don’t mind the Romeo and Juliet thing… ugh.

This was my third re-reading of the novel, which is the second one in Meyer's beloved series. I read it as avidly as I did the first two times! I know there will be future re-readings, as well.

I had not posted a review of the book before because so much has been said about it, in other reviews -- on Goodreads, Amazon, and countless blogs, although not everyone likes this book, (nor do they like the entire series). Still, I felt it was time for me to post my thoughts about this installment in the Saga, since I have embarked on a third reading of all four books.

This is a very bittersweet novel, due to the introduction of the love triangle of Bella, Edward, and Jacob. In the first novel, Twilight, the intense relationship of Bella and Edward was the main focus throughout. In this one, Jacob makes it clear to Bella that he has fallen in love with her, even as he realizes she only considers him her best friend.

The story opens with a deceptively happy event -- Bella's eighteenth birthday. Bella is hypersensitive about celebrating this event, because Edward is eternally seventeen, of course, and she has been pleading with him, since the first book, to make her a vampire so that she can be as young-looking as he is, forever. She's terrified of growing old and being mistaken for his grandmother in the future.

Not to be deterred by Bella's reluctance to acknowledge the big day, the irrepressible Alice plans a party for her. And this is where the novel's emotionally-wrenching, unexpected plot twist takes place....At the party, Bella cuts herself when opening her birthday card, and Jasper, suddenly crazy with bloodlust, attempts to attack her. Although the other Cullens do restrain him, Edward makes a fateful decision -- to leave Bella, for her own good. He doesn't want to place her in any more danger because of his vampire nature, and also wants her to have a chance at a normal human life.

After Edward tells Bella he no longer wants her, abandoning her in the forest near her house, she sinks into a three-month-long depression. When I read the novel the first time, I sank into a depression right along with her. After all, I remember what I went through during my divorce... Bella describes feeling a 'hole' in the middle of her chest, and I can definitely relate to that. The pain of losing such an important relationship is very deep and all-consuming, and Meyer's description of the desolation and emptiness is very much spot on.

When Bella makes an interesting discovery -- she's able to hear and see Edward every time she's in a dangerous situation -- she decides to deliberately place herself in such situations in order to elicit these hallucinations. Enter Jacob, who will help her restore a couple of old motorcycles, and teach her how to ride one of them. Thus begins Bella's new flirting with danger. She is elated to hear Edward berating her, pleading with her, to be careful, when she's in danger. Her new friendship with Jacob, who made some brief appearances in the first book, not only makes it easier for her to engage in these activities, but also helps her to deal with the loss of Edward. While she's with her friend, she feels grounded, safe. The tattered edges of her hole are almost -- although not quite -- closed.

Jacob, who later joins the Quileute pack of werewolves after he discovers he's able to shapeshift into one himself, is an entirely lovable character! I fell under his spell this time around as well. He's a marked contrast to Edward because, in spite of being a werewolf, he's still human. It's wonderful to see how gentle he is with Bella, as well as how he makes her laugh, bringing her out of herself. Many fans are "Team Jacob", and I myself was torn for a while.... Bella would have had a great life with him. They would have had several kids, laughed and played together... I can almost see it. Jacob is just as loyal as Edward, just as committed to not hurting Bella as Edward is. He is more down-to-earth, though. With him, Bella can be totally herself. She forgets all of her self-deprecation. Jacob represents life in all of its immediacy and reality, while Edward represents a nearly impossible ideal of existence, devoid of the natural cycles of human development.

Yes, I was tempted to want Jacob to be Bella's true love. Meyer makes a very compelling case for him, after all. But then, whenever Bella experienced one of her Edward hallucinations, I yearned to see them together again... This was also the author's way of gently reminding the reader that Edward was somehow still in the picture.

In this novel, Alice becomes very important to the plot, and she and Bella become more than friends -- they are now sisters, united in one purpose: to protect Edward from himself. Alice can see the future after all, and she knows his plans. She and Bella become powerful allies in their quest to help Edward.

Alice has been one of my favorite characters from the beginning, but I especially liked her in this novel. She's so much fun! She's also gentle, compassionate, totally unpredictable, and very loyal to Bella. Her failed attempts to turn Bella into a glamour queen are not only funny, but poignant. She really does care about Bella like a sister. How I wish I had a real-life friend like her!

The reader gets to meet the frighteningly evil vampire clan, the Volturi, toward the end of the book, which brings the narrative full circle back to Edward. Aro, their leader, is especially terrifying, with his syrupy- sweet exclamations that barely conceal his true motives. He has a very powerful talent -- that of seeing all of a person's thoughts -- past, present, and future -- while clasping that person's hand. Jane, the young vampire who truly looks like an angel, can immerse anyone -- except Bella -- in agonizing pain with her intense stare. Felix and Demetri are Aro's goons, doing his bidding unquestioningly, while Alec has undisclosed powers of his own. In the movie version, he has the power to emit a dark mist that effectively cuts off a person's entire sensory input.

I found the novel's pulse-pounding climax to be extremely satisfying. Klutzy Bella becomes a hero! This, I think, should lay aside all those ridiculous criticisms of Bella perpetually being a damsel in distress. She is now irrevocably a member of the Cullen clan, even though she's not a vampire -- yet.

Everything about this novel attracted me when I first read it, and I continued to feel that attraction during this third reading! I love the characters! The setting, which is full of lush forests and snow-capped mountains, is incredibly beautiful, in spite of all the rain (and actually, it didn't rain all the time). The plot itself, with its poignant, emotionally-packed events, described in a very engaging prose style, is totally riveting. Of course, I also loved it when the action shifted to Italy, with its spectacular landscapes. The town of Volterra was splendidly medieval, with its closely-packed buildings and quaint streets.

The ultimate power of this novel, and indeed, of the entire series, is the power of true love. Even though this power is presented through a paranormal tale, it is more important than the supernatural beings and events in the book. True, monogamous love, passionate and powerful, is the true protagonist of this beautifully-written book. Edward and Bella embody that love, while Jacob longs for it -- with Bella.

The huge appeal of this series is precisely that -- the presentation of an eternal, everlasting love, never to be destroyed, never to decrease....

In the midst of all the vampire and werewolf action, this is what matters about New Moon -- the eternal love of Edward and Bella. It's why I have read this novel, and am reading the entire series, again. I will never tire of it. Of course there will be other books, other stories. But I will always, always return to these tales of love, with their powerfully compelling characters and strongly emotional conflicts. That's because they deeply satisfy my soul.

Twilight was a grand romance which frequently left me smiling, but New Moon takes on a bittersweet, angst-filled and edgy tone in this continuing dramatic saga of teen love between a vampire and a human. The book gets off to a rather explosive start, but rapidly turns to heavy sorrow when Edward make a fateful decision concerning Bella's safety. Following his decision, Edward is off the canvas for about the next two-thirds of the book, as is the entire Cullen family. During this time, the story is very reminiscent of Twilight in that it moves at a languid but steady pace while extensive character and relationship development occurs. The fall-out to Bella's psyche from Edward's choice is heart-wrenching to read. Stephenie Meyer is so good at writing Bella's agony, that I felt like my own heart had been ripped to shreds. Then a newfound depth in her friendship with Jacob Black, seems to be Bella's saving grace, bringing some sense of peace to her otherwise chaotic life. Still, danger lurks everywhere, bringing a certain level of suspense to the story, which then escalates into a taut thriller when an unfortunate misunderstanding places Alice and Bella in a race against time to save Edward from certain death. With so much going on, New Moon was yet another installment in the Twilight series that was extremely difficult to put down.

I can't help but continue to enjoy the characters in this series. I still like Bella very much, but I found myself wishing that she would have a little more confidence in Edward's love for her. After the beauty of their romance in Twilight, it was hard for me to understand how she couldn't, but ultimately, it seemed that her feelings of inadequacy – of not measuring up to a spectacular creature like Edward – simply got the best of her. Thankfully she did have an epiphany before the end, so hopefully will be beyond that stage by the next book. Bella also has a tendency to think of everyone else first (except when she's being reckless), which can be a very good trait, but also left me thinking that it might be nice if she took care of herself once in a while too. While Bella is still an accident-prone magnet for danger, I missed her endearing awkward clumsiness. Instead she is now living on the edge and seeking out the danger. It was also very difficult to read about her severe depression without being dragged down a bit myself. Edward is still the same thoughtful and loving hero I adored in Twilight though his absence for much of the story, left a huge hole, which was a major point of the story that I though the author conveyed magnificently. One of my favorite things about Edward is his wry, teasing sense of humor, but the tone of New Moon is so serious, it didn't allow for many of these moments to shine through. In Edward's absence, Bella develops a deep friendship with Jacob Black, who ends up being much more than she at first thought he was. Jacob also essentially becomes a second hero and the third point in a love triangle. While Bella never really feels more for Jacob than friendship or brotherly love, Jacob does fall for Bella. Jacob and Edward have very different personalities, but Jacob is such a wonderful character, I couldn't help but adore him too. While I don't think that his happily-ever-after does or should lie with Bella, I do hope he gets one eventually. These three characters have completely engrossed my attention, and I can't wait to see what develops next for them.

The secondary characters were wonderful as well. It was nice to see Charlie finally taking charge and acting more like a father. Most of the Cullens didn't play very big roles in this story, with the one exception being Alice. Because of her visions, she is an intriguing character who I hope will be front and center throughout the series, as I really like her breezy manner and no-nonsense attitude. New Moon also fills in a couple of the missing pieces of her human past. Although Carlisle only appears in a couple of scenes, he also fills in some missing pieces about himself and Edward. New Moon introduces Sam Uley and a “gang” of Native American teens who are far more than they seem to be on the surface and who play key roles in Jacob's life. Billy, Jacob's father, is also present, but doesn't take on a particularly strong role. Readers are also introduced to the Volturi, a group of vampires who live in Italy and are basically vampire royalty. They are at once both fascinating and monstrous creatures, and unlike the Cullens are extremely dangerous, posing yet another threat to Bella's existence. Overall, I thought the story had a varied and colorful character palette.

As with Twilight, New Moon did not contain any explicit elements – no sex, only a dozen or so mild profanities, and minimal violence. There is a scene though, in which a group of humans become unwitting prey for a group of blood-thirsty vampires. It does takes place in the background and is not played out explicitly, so whether or not it is disturbing for readers, would depend more on the individual's imagination and sensitivity level. I happen to have a very vivid imagination, so it did make me a tad squeamish. The story also contains several mature thematic elements, such as severe depression, discussion of and a near attempt of suicide, deliberately reckless behavior, and stealing cars (though for a good reason). There are also racial tensions between two classes of supernatural beings, which includes some derogatory name-calling. In addition, depending on the reader's point of view, it may seem that Edward and Bella's love for one another borders on obsession. Even I admit, that if these characters were real and normal, I would have been telling them to go get therapy and quick.;-) I've read enough paranormal romances though, to know that the bond that is shared by supernatural creatures and their mates is stronger, deeper and more permanent than most human bonds. It's just that in this particular story that bond gets a rather heavy treatment owing, in my opinion, to it's highly character-driven nature and emotional intensity. I still think that most mature teens should be able to handle all the complex subject matter, but all these elements would make great points of discussion for parents and educators.

In spite of the serious and sometimes even depressing overtones of the narrative, I found New Moon to be yet another fascinating read. I really enjoy stories that include some sort of spiritual element, and New Moon has one in the form of an ongoing debate over whether there is an afterlife for vampires or whether they truly are the eternal damned. I love stories that make me think and there is so much more going on beneath the surface in this one (even outside the spiritual thread), that I can't seem to help pondering it even after turning the final page. New Moon has earned a place on my keeper shelf right next to it's predecessor, Twilight, and I'll be eagerly looking forward to reading Eclipse and Breaking Dawn , the final two installments in the Twilight series, as well. Ms. Meyer is also planning a re-write of Twilight from Edward's perspective titled Midnight Sun. With two-for-two, Stephenie Meyer definitely deserves a place among my favorite authors. I will be very interested in reading The Host and seeing what other tales might be created from her fertile imagination.

Not the best of the Twilight series, but you do still need to read it to finish the set. You'll gain a lot of information you'll need for the other books that you can't pick up without reading this one. You have to read the whole book to get to the (for now) happy ending. I've never been a big fan of Jacob, so if you are you may love all this anguish of "Oh, I love Jacob, but only as my best friend!" silliness.