Book Review: Stephenie Meyer's Twilight - Cutting Through the Hype

So I don't know about you guys, but I have heard a lot recently about this "Twilight" series. I've even heard it being harkened as the new "Harry Potter" series. People are seriously obsessed with these books. Doubt me? Just type in Twilight in Google and you'll see what I mean. With the first movie harkening, and the fourth book about to come out in just 17 days (with midnight releases planned at a bookstore near you), Twilight mania seems to be all around us. So I wanted to read this book and see what's up? Will this book live up to it's hype?


I have slavishly applied myself to reading this book, all 498 pages, in two days, just so I can cut through this hype as quickly as possible. All for you guys. I'm selfless like that. So was it the new Harry Potter? Did it live up to all of it's hype???


Ok, for me this book was enjoyable (enough so where I had no problem finishing it in two days despite it's length), but not so enjoyable that I feel like I just HAVE to get started on the next one to see what happens next. I will break down for you all why this is so in two different lists (since girls love lists and all).

Lived up to the Hype:
-Plot kept you wanting to keep reading without just shamelessly TRYING to hook you into the next chapter
-Well developed characters; likable for the most part.
-Well thought out, and interesting fantasy world. Or IS it fantasy??? :)
-It FINALLY made me understand why the whole vampire thing is so hot to some people.

Didn't Live up to the Hype:
-Romance TOO intense! I would have been like - get me out of this! Too much pressure!
-FINE, I get it - Edward is really beautiful.
-Edward actually a little creepy to me. Yes I am aware he is a vampire, but that's not why. Where I feel that most teenage girls reading this are going "Why won't someone do that for me?", I am going - whoa Dude, I think you maybe slipped into crazy-ville with that one. I don't want to give anything away, so let's just say that he went a little TOO far in his desire to want to be with her all the time. Did I just give it away a little? Oh well.
-COME ON, just give into her wish. I don't know why you wouldn't. I think you have unrealstic expectations for your "love" otherwise!!! Whatever.

So was it the new Harry Potter? Heck no. Harry Potter had better characters (Yes Ron - you), a more compelling fantasy world, and much more detailed and intricate plot lines. With Harry Potter you could stay up for HOURS just speculating and reading into passages and things that people said trying to decode what they really meant. Nothing was written into those books without it having a purpose. Twilight lacks that same kind of purposefulness - but then I don't really expect that from most books. Whereas Harry Potter is genius, Twilight was just an enjoyable book, and there is nothing wrong with that.

If you want a quick, fun, escapist novel - this would be a good book for you. Especially if you have a proclivity towards vampire books (there were some really...tense... scenes that were rather enjoyable.) I will definitely be reading the rest of the series, but I won't be rushing to do so. If my sister didn't own them all already, it would probably take me awhile to get to them, because I definitely wouldn't be going out to buy them myself. But I most definitely WILL be going to see the movie when it comes out (don't expect me to be seeing it first day though. Unless Becky makes me go with her first day.)

Overall, I give it a solid B+.