Eclipse: The Twilight Saga, Book 3

I adored both Twilight and New Moon (gave them both 5 star ratings) and was happily anticipating loving Eclipse as much as I did the first 2 in this series. Unfortunately, the bad things really overshadowed the good for me in this installment.I think Stephenie Meyer has an amazingly readable writing style; she's definitely one of 3 writers that I budget time to read their latest books in one sitting (Rowling, Charlaine Harris and Meyer). Eclipse was no exception in terms of being a page-turner. This novel really showcases Meyer's great sense of humor as well. Obviously from the amount of time and emotional energy I've invested into the series over the last couple of years, I care very intensely for her characters, and I think having your readers care so much for the characters should be a real tribute to any writer.I was very pleased that Edward and Bella finally confronted the issue of their sexual relationship. It was tastefully depicted in my judgment, and it was long overdue. I also think it makes perfect sense for Bella to realize that having human sexual experience before sacrificing her humanity is worth exploring.While I agree with so many other reviewers that the action plot in this book was only ho-hum at best, I did cheer that Bella (and we readers) at long last got to see Edward the Vampire in action. Now she has a better idea what she'll become, and he understands that she doesn't think him a monster for having witnessed him being a full-fledged vampire.I didn't like the concept of imprinting (which is limited to the werewolves). It eliminates free will entirely, which I found very unsettling. I also found the similarities between imprinting and Bella's relationship with Edward to be more than a bit disturbing (more on that below).The Cullens and the Wolves are no closer to understanding the core of humanity that resides in each of them. Jacob acknowledges that Edward loves Bella, but he still doesn't understand their love at all and hasn't made any attempt to understand the Cullens generally. Same, of course, holds true for the Cullens not being keen on the wolves at all. I really thought this would have to be the central theme, but I would have expected more progress in Eclipse.Now for the Ugly .....I'm shocked and appalled that Ms. Meyer could believe that many of us who disliked or were on the fence about Jacob in previous books would suddenly convert to pro-Jacob fans after reading Eclipse. I'm truly shocked.After her book-signing tour for Eclipse, Meyer updated her website with some FAQs about Eclipse, and she has this to say about Jacob: "Those who are upset by some of his tactics should consider his youth and the fact that he is, after all, right. Bella is in love with him."I thought Jacob was absolutely horrid as a person for the entirety of the novel, and it went beyond simple immaturity. Bella defends Edward (and her love of Edward) to Jacob at one point, emphasizing that Edward is decent. And Edward is decent. And good to the core.Jacob, however, is not. He is so not decent. I truly despised him by the end of Eclipse and quite honestly, I wish he would just never return from his sojourn in the forest.I've read enough reviews and talked to enough other readers to know that I'm not alone in being extremely upset and bothered by the Forced Kiss. No decent man would force himself on a woman, no matter what. His inexperience and immaturity don't excuse it. His goal of forcing Bella to acknowledge the connection between them is not sufficient reason for him to have done that. His apology might have ameliorated the wrong, if he had followed through and stopped trying to force or trick Bella into intimacy with him. I think the Forced Kiss sends a horrible message to Meyer's younger fans too. There are no repercussions from his forcing himself on her. Even Bella's father good-naturedly congratulates Jacob for having kissed Bella against her will! Yes, really.The second later kiss (the one where he threatens to commit suicide since Bella doesn't care about him, provoking her to ask him to kiss her, henceforth the "Trickery Kiss") also proves unequivocally that Jacob is neither decent, nor a man. He's just a bitter, conniving, dishonorable and immature little boy who will apparently stop at nothing to try and get what he wants. I don't believe for one moment that Jacob is motivated solely by the lofty aspiration to save Bella from a fate worse than death (being turned into a vampire). Jacob wants what will make Jacob happy, and he makes absolutely no attempt to genuinely understand Bella's perspective.Meyer clearly wants readers to feel Jacob's "pain," but honestly, he's 16 years old (which, remember, apparently gives him license to be a total jerk). But, if he's just an average immature 16 year old kid, then he'll just get over Bella and move on, right? I don't fundamentally understand why Jacob's broken heart is supposed to tug at my heart-strings. At the end of Eclipse, it is late June or perhaps mid-July. Jacob and Bella became best friends in January of the same year. He's really known her well for all of 6 months and he's 16 years old. It's a big shrug, isn't it? And if it isn't, why not? Hmmmm......might it be because Bella is turning into the biggest Mary Sue in all YA literature?Bella frankly comes off worse than Jacob in this book. I've been a big Bella fan and defender in the prior books, but she left me cold in this one. I think she is selfish, whiny, indecisive, subservient to every male in her universe and generally a terrible role model for younger readers of these novels.I think that Bella was portrayed in Twilight as an "old soul," and the love that she and Edward have (had?) was meant to transcend the normal love relationship that average teenagers might experience (or even that most adults might have). Their love was painted as something that was a cut above all other romance. Most average love affairs get tested by threats such as what Jacob poses. But, the Bella/Edward love story was, I thought, something different. If you take away the supernatural trappings of the two males, then you're left with a rather humdrum average love story, are you not? Again, what was the point of the New Moon epiphany if Bella just throws it all out the window in the next book and remains convinced that she's not good enough for Edward and starts to have romantic interest in another guy?Bella did at last agree to marry Edward in this book. She made that promise to him, was engaged and then cheated on him. Just because she is only going through the formality of the wedding and an actual marriage because it's important to Edward is no excuse to treat it as though it isn't a promise. And it just kills me, absolutely breaks my heart, for her to be thinking "How soon can I give him back this ring without hurting his feelings?" when he's so suffused with joy and happiness at seeing it on her finger, at knowing that she's agreed to compromise and make him happy with a marriage that is clearly very important to him. That is heart-breaking. Edward deserves so much better.Further, her objections to marriage are weak. Since we knew in New Moon that Bella had undefined "issues" with marriage, I expected Eclipse to reveal something more along the clichéd line of "child of divorced parents" than the reality. The "I don't want to be that girl" reasoning is really, really lame when you consider what Bella's ultimate plans are. Why the hell would she care what the kids she graduated with are saying about her, when she's never going to see any of them ever again? Since when did Bella Swan care about gossip or what other kids her own age thought about her? Charlie and Renee might be disappointed and encouraging her to wait until after college, but if Bella said the right things, her parents would accept her decision. I can understand the whole "that girl" argument, really I can -- but it makes no sense for Bella to be making that argument. It's weak and completely out-of-character. As one reviewer noted, it's a manufactured conflict designed to stretch out the storyline by another book.I'm also growing very weary of Bella's self-esteem problems. I can't help wondering what happened to that great epiphany she had at the end of New Moon? The one where Bella and Edward both realized that they love each other completely and would always belong to each other --- what happened to that? In Eclipse, Bella is right back to viewing her relationship with Edward as "out of balance." As Edward noted once, "the way you regard me is ludicrous." I thought we were past all that, and yet Eclipse drags us right back down into the abyss of Bella's self-esteem issues. It's really growing tiresome and overdone (much like the continued repetitive emphasis on Edward's beauty). Grow up and grow a spine, will you, Bella? Please do us all a favor and get a backbone.In literature (or movies), the author has an obligation to lay some clues that a love triangle is in the offing. Otherwise, it's just cheating. And I feel cheated, completely and utterly cheated. If Bella is resolute about anything, it's that she loves Edward and has only friendship feelings for Jacob. In her Eclipse FAQ again, Meyer insists that Bella fell in love with Jacob in New Moon and states: "Bella has only fallen in love one time, and it was a very sudden, dramatic, sweep-you-off-your-feet, change-your-world, magical, passionate, all-consuming thing (see: Twilight). Can you blame her for not recognizing a much more subtle kind of falling-in-love?" Well, Bella may not recognize it for what it is, but the readers darn sure should be able to see it. I know I'm not alone in finding no evidence of Bella falling for Jacob in New Moon. I think she grew to love him in New Moon, yes. But, it was always clearly a platonic, even sibling-like, love.In Eclipse, Bella remains clear on this point when talking to Jacob ("I love you, but I'm not in love with you" - page 329) ..... and she's resolute on this point in her own thoughts. Yes, in New Moon, before Edward returns, Bella is debating internally whether she ought to consider giving Jacob what he wants (romance) in order to tie him to her more firmly than just through a friendship that he finds less than enough. But, once Edward is back and through the first ¾ of Eclipse, we don't see any signs that Bella is wavering, having doubts, etc. Jacob was, by the looks of it, her first real close friend in life, and I wrongly assumed that her determination to spend time with Jacob was because she missed her friend.When Jacob accuses her of being overly defensive about insisting she only cares for him as a friend, we're set up to chalk that up as Jacob's usual cocky arrogance. We've seen nothing from our heroine to make us think that Jacob is onto something. Jacob himself doesn't seem to be consistent on this point either, Meyer's statement that he's "right about Bella being in love with him," notwithstanding. How about the whole "I know you don't feel the same, Bella, but I don't want to chance there being any confusion about how I feel about you." That serves to reinforce to the reader that Bella's feelings for Jacob are clearly not romantic.What might happen in real life is that Bella could have one of those "Oh. My. God." moments when she is kissing Jacob. But, the author has an obligation to his/her readers to set up a grounding for the character's Oh My God moment so that the reader at least understands what is happening, whether the reader is cheering for said development or not being irrelevant. I won't lie and say that I would have been rooting for Jacob, under any circumstances. But, readers are not psychics. If Bella isn't communicating her inner angst to us in some way, we can't divine it out of thin air. Art imitates life, and in real life, sometimes these things happen out of the blue. But then again, I think that it's rarely completely out of the blue -- it's more that a person has been deluding themselves to some degree or another. But, most of us don't have thousands of bystanders trying to figure out what made us make certain decisions or take certain courses in life. Bella does have an audience though. Her audience deserved more preparation, more clues.I think the whole angle would have been so much more palatable if Jacob had been portrayed as even remotely likeable. He was so cocky and conniving throughout the entire book, and he seemed completely unworthy of Bella. It would have been so much more bittersweet if Jacob had been persistent but the sweet and charming Jacob of Twilight. I cannot believe that I'm supposed to actually like this guy who forces himself on the heroine with his immense physical advantage, taunts her and her intended family in a steady stream of invective throughout the entire novel and then manipulates and tricks her into asking for a kiss by threatening to go get himself killed in a blaze of noble glory. He's still manipulating her emotions when she is telling him she is choosing Edward; he can't let it go even then. I thought he was absolutely rotten to the core, and I'm flabbergasted that he's supposed to be a "good guy" and that Stephenie honestly felt she'd written him sympathetically enough that fans would finally understand and embrace Jacob Black. I cannot for the life of me understand what she sees in Jacob Black that is so appealing!I also think that the meat of this love triangle conflict was tossed out with too little build-up and aftermath. Bella changed from "I love you, but I'm not in love with you" to "Oh, I've been so wrong, I can totally see us married and with kids and growing old together" to "Oh well, that part of my heart just broke away" in the space of about 2 paragraphs. It would seem to me that one of the central themes ought to have been about Bella's growing attraction to Jacob (and denial thereof to herself). The reader should have been able to pick up on what she was denying to herself, and the whole crux of the conflict deserves more than a paragraph or two, doesn't it? She has this grand vision pass through her head while she's kissing him because he tricked her into it, and before she's even broken away from the kiss, her heart has severed off that part of itself. No angst, no self-evaluation, no consideration of what all of this means for her and Edward. Just nothing but "woe is me, I must give Jacob up."I agree with Meyer that it is certainly possible for a person to love more than one person at the same time, and I think it was great for Bella to understand sacrificing her humanity meant more than giving up her parents. I think Bella's friendship love for Jacob would have worked just fine to illustrate this point, but I also would have been fine with Bella developing another romantic love for Jacob to make her choice of Edward that much more lasting, if that had been handled better from a stylistic standpoint. Again, if there's no foundation for the heroine having this revelation, the readers feel cheated.So, in the end, Bella "chooses" Edward and agrees that they should tell her parents that they are engaged, moving forward with a wedding to be held by mid-August. I should be happy, right? That's what all the folks who loved Eclipse tell me. I got what I wanted in the end or so they say.Unfortunately, the whole "I can't live without him" thing did nothing to restore my confidence that Bella and Edward are destined, that they are in fact soul-mates. Not being able to live without someone is really not quite the same thing as being in love with that person. I'm starting to wonder if Bella really is just obsessed with Edward, but not truly in love with him. She chose him in the end, yes. But was it a choice made happily and in exercise of her free will? To me, it read almost as if she feels compelled to stay with Edward, even though her heart is telling her something different. That may in fact be the biggest reason I dislike Eclipse so much -- it seems that all the characters are being manipulated by some other power other than their own free will. None of the wolves have any choice with this imprinting concept, and it almost seems as though we're meant to conclude that Edward and Bella have imprinted and therefore she has no choice left either. I don't like that. I want her to choose Edward because she's in love with him and because he makes her happier than anyone else. I don't think she has yet made that choice though, and I'm honestly not sure if choice is truly going to be available to her.She also seems to be pushing ahead with the game-plan without pausing to think about whether she really does need some more time for reflection. And, Edward seemed a bit desperate at the end too, just to be honest. For all his understanding reaction to the whole debacle, it seemed to me that he was suddenly quite anxious to get her changed to a vampire. He's even willing to give up the wedding. It sounds like 2 people who are both plunging head-long into disaster if you ask me. And I hate that I feel that way about one of my favorite fictional couples! I wanted to be happy for them. On the surface, I should be, right? Bella has chosen Edward, they are engaged and planning a wedding and moving ahead with plans for her to change into a vampire. So, why do I feel so unsettled and sad about it all?I will read Breaking Dawn next year, but I will try to go into it with lower expectations. I hope Meyer can return to the standard of Twilight and New Moon, but I am not confident given where things stand at the end of Eclipse. Sad.

Eclipse is way better than New Moon. Its the first time I read this series and I love them. Would definitely recommend!

The romance intensifies, becoming very poignant and bittersweet, in this third installment of The Twilight Saga, which I have read for the third time, because I simply can't get enough of it! In fact, I have embarked upon a third re-reading of the entire Saga.Edward has returned to Bella's life, so Jacob informs her that he can no longer be her friend...Initially, Edward forbids Bella from trying to go to La Push to visit Jacob so as to heal their friendship. He even 'bribes' Alice to 'kidnap' her, which ultimately doesn't work. Edward finally decides that trying to prevent Bella from seeing her friend will only make her suffer, as she cares deeply for Jacob. Just how deeply, however, she herself is not aware of....until very dramatic events ensue toward the last third of the book, and Bella has to admit, at last, that she's in love with Jacob, as well, although she does love Edward more.Conflict is slowly brewing in this novel, and not just because of the love triangle. It seems that someone is rapidly creating a small army of newborn vampires that have begun to ravage Seattle. The Cullens decide they must intervene, fearing that the Volturi will step in. They don't do so right away, however, as other, more ordinary human events, prevent them from leaving Forks unnoticed.This novel gives the reader more background on the two groups that have become open antagonists -- the Cullens and the Quileutes. I was fascinated by the stories of Rosalie's and Jasper's transformations into vampires, although the acts of violence in their individual stories did make me quite uncomfortable. These were, thankfully, glossed over in the movie version of the novel. The stories did serve to flesh out these two characters, though. (Besides, they finally came across the Cullens, and embraced a non-violent lifestyle, refraining from killing humans.) I wonder why Meyer didn't do the same for the other members of the Cullen family, but then, perhaps the book would have become too cumbersome.Equally fascinating were the Quileute legends, told by a roaring campfire, with Bella in attendance. Billy started the storytelling, which was then taken over by old Quil Ateara, grandfather of the younger Quil, one of the werewolves. The stories dealt with the origin of the Quileute tribe, of how they had spirit warriors that later on became werewolves. These warriors were always protectors of the tribe, and their mission continued when they became able to shapeshift into wolves.I was especially interested in, as well as saddened by, the story of "the third wife", which, ironically enough, would have later repercussions in the novel.The dialogues between Edward and Bella, as well as those between Jacob and Bella, are the most poignant I've yet come across in this series. Edward loves Bella so much that he refrains from hurting Jacob, so as not to hurt her. Although it's painful for him to realize just how much the werewolf means to his girlfriend, he endures the pain, even going as far as asking Bella if she is truly happy with choosing him over Jacob.Bella realizes, for the first time, that Jacob would have been perfect for her, had Edward not been in the picture. Meyer gives her readers a fleeting glimpse of what could have been. That brief scene is a very touching one, too.As the danger from the vampires in Seattle escalates, an unusual and uneasy alliance is formed between the two groups that had until then been total enemies. They trust each other rather grudgingly, but still, it's very gratifying to see them working together. As Bella herself states, at several points in the story, there's no need for the Cullens and the Quileutes to be at war with each other. And so it is that Meyer begins to cleverly set things up for the events of the last novel in the Saga -- Breaking Dawn. I love that she did this! It's beautiful to see this alliance unfolding, as well. And it's Bella who is the catalyst in this developing state of affairs.Although the pacing in this book was a bit slower than that of the two previous ones -- at least for the first third of it -- I enjoyed it immensely! It's just that Meyer is tremendously skilled at creating very real, very believable characters that the reader can come to love. This reader certainly did! The conflicts and entanglements these fictional people are involved in became my conflicts and entanglements, as well. I know that, as I read, I felt their feelings, thought their thoughts, and was swept right along with them in the plot's intensely romantic angst....The unfolding story of Edward, Bella, and Jacob -- The Twilight Saga -- is the romantic masterpiece of our time. It is also a dramatic tale involving complex existential themes that engage the intellect just as much as they enthrall the heart and mesmerize the soul.There will definitely be a fourth re-reading in my future! Stephenie Meyer has woven a permanent spell for me, one I have no desire to break....

This was hard work to read. It felt like the book dragged on for ages, gave us some really quick action, then ended. The best part about this book was the ending, and not just because it ceased Bella's monotonous internal monologue, but because we had a chapter from Jacob's point of view. Perhaps the most engaging thing I've read in all 3 books to date.I'm begrudged to waste another £5 buying the final installment but my OCD is already screaming at me for the mere thought of not finishing this series so I guess I'm going to torture myself some more.One of the most disturbing things about this book had to be when Bella begged him for intimate relations. This guy must be the hero of all men to get an 18 year virgin to beg him for that (not saying the word in case amazon bans the review). It's just another level to his deep manipulation and abusive nature.I can't connect with Bella and I really don't like Edward. He's not noble at all.

I cried, I laughed, I got very angry. I fell deep into this book as I read it and cursed its characters and their actions, complained about injustices and unfairness, blamed first Edward, then Jacob and judged Bella. But I loved it. And I love that it gave me more than the films.

An excellent book. Bella is still in danger from vampires and there are confusing thoughts to work out. Should she stay with Jacob and remain human or go back to Edward whom she loves so deeply?Then there are those vampires trying to kill her and the Cullens. Can the werewolves and Cullens work together to defeat a common enemy?This book is a great read for anyone who wants love, fighting and heroes all in one book.

This is the third book in the twilight saga, in which we once again join Bella in her strange love triangle with her boyfriend Edward (a vampire) and her best friend Jacob (a werewolf).The supposed main storyline deals with a group of new vampires in neighbouring seattle, who as it turns out are actually being made to hunt Bella, as their maker Victoria is still pretty violently put out about Edward killing her lover when he attacked Bella. This storyline is greatly overshadowed however by the love triangle between the three lead characters.Edward, (who is possessive and controlling at best) is demanding that Bella marry him before he turns her into a vampire (which she doesn't want to do) and even more rigidly demanding that she marry him before he will have sex with her! I mean, what age are we living in here? Is this not just a bit bizarre? He also seems to think that Bella is being unreasonable about the whole marriage thing, when she is only 18, and of course her parents will object and everyone think she's crazy! Never mind that if he's going to turn her they will have an eternity in which to get married anyway.Jacob on the other hand is either not talking to Bella at all, or desperately trying to convince her to pick him over Edward, and acting very much like a jealous, obsessed stalker who won't leave her alone. Although, in his favour, at least he seems to be happy to take Bella as she is without making the outragous demands Edward does.Bella herself seems to get stuck in the middle of this little tug-of-war, although a lot of the time she puts herself in that position, and doesn't make things easier for anyone, especially as it seems she has already choosen who she wants to be with. She also constantly cries and whines throughout the book, and is apparently incapable of being alone for even a second without someone to watch over her. I also don't get why she is so incapable of making a choice and sticking with it. If she wants to be with Edward she should just say so and stop leading Jacob on, and if she doesn't want a graduation party, and doesn't want to get married she should just say so too instead of allowing everyone else to make her decisions for her.I would suggest that this book is too long for the events that take place, with major events like the fighting and the graduation glossed over, while most of the focus is on discussing characters feelings over and over again when it really isn't necessary - we've heard it all before. Action-wise, its not as good as 'New Moon' which at least seemed to have a little pace and excitement. I have to admit that at times during this book I felt my attention really wavering, and had to make a conscious effort to bring my attention back to what I was reading.Overall, the book continues the story set out in the first two, and gives us a glimpse into what Bella's life would be like depending on which boy she picked, it also leads up to the obvious finale and expected turning of Bella in the final book. Hopefully the last book in the series 'breaking dawn' will make up for what this one lacks and mean that I haven't totally wasted my time thus far, and hopefully Bella will grow a backbone and learn to stand on her own two feet for once.

Another gripping, thrilling, intense novel from Stephenie Meyer, the third in the brilliant 'Twilight' series. After the scrumptious romance of 'Twilight' and the evolution of larger plots and themes in 'New Moon', 'Eclipse' draws everything together into a more mature plot that reflects the turbulence of sexual awakening and the harsher realities of living alongside the vampires and werewolves of Forks.I won't say too much about the story since it might depends so heavily on having read the first two books. The werewolf characters are developed and drawn much more heavily into the action. The Cullens' individual histories are revealed in more detail. Raw animal rivalry and passionate love are brought to breathless climax and down the steep slope to heartbreaking agony. The running revenge plot comes to its violent and explosive conclusion, and the way is cleared for the much-anticipated union of Edward and Bella in 'Breaking Dawn'...Meyer might be criticised for not being the most literary writer in the world, but like Dan Brown, J.K. Rowling and Nicholas Sparks, she creates novels that people genuinely fall in love with, with worlds that we can utterly immerse ourselves in and characters that we really care about. Each of her readers has their favourite Cullen, their preference for Edward or Jacob, their own hopes for how everything will pan out in the end. The humour made me giggle, the romance was achingly bittersweet, the action was nail-bitingly exciting - and what else can you ask for from a novel of a winter evening?