Book one-hundred-and-thirty-three: Eclipse

Eclipse (2007)
Stephenie Meyer

Rating: 2.5/5

So disappointing.

For a 628 page book, it read like a really long epilogue to New Moon. There was no new plot, nor did it move the series on. In fact it took a few steps back.

Oh, and in case anyone who hasn’t read it, stumbles across this: there are some slight spoliers below the cut.

As Seattle is ravaged by a string of mysterious killings and a malicious vampire continues her quest for revenge, Bella once again finds herself surrounded by danger.


In the midst of it all, she is forced to choose between her love for Edward and her friendship with Jacob - knowing that her decision has the potential to ignite the ageless struggle between vampire and werewolf.


With her graduation quickly approaching, Bella has one more decision to make: life or death. But which is which?

As far as plot goes, yes, there is this whole thing with the serial killer/newly made vampires and Victoria still seeking her revenge. But that could have been cut to three scenes – because they seem to be the only scenes about that.

For the rest of the book, we have a whole lot of talking, and back stories. And the back stories didn’t really flow as part of the story. They were written as if the person were speaking to Bella, but they included stuff that you wouldn’t say in normal conversation. Like, instead of the character saying “and then they argued about what to do with me,” it would say:

“ ‘Oh yes,’ Nettie quickly agreed, leaning toward me again.
"‘Patience,’ the brunette cautioned her. ‘I want to keep this one.’
"Nettie frowned; she seemed annoyed.

I think she either needed to phase out of the scene and have it like a flashback, or put it in the characters voice (or may be we didn't need to be know all this back story at all?). Surely, not all of them are that literary.

The only two other plots points are: Edward turning her into a vampire and the conditions surrounding it and the whole Jacob thing.

First of all, I read enough conversations about the vampire-turning in the first two books. Either do it, or stop talking in circles about it. The only thing that happens is that Bella finally agrees to marry him. I did like that their conversations finally turned to talking about sex, but I still don’t like the whole tone of Edward always being in control of the physical side of their relationship. He decides what they can and can’t do – and he’s constantly changing the rules. I don’t like the inference that she is weak because of this. That’s its okay for him to be in control and for her to constantly feel that she is somehow less than him because she has normal impulses that he is better at suppressing.

Second, the whole Jacob thing. Oh. My. God. Why? Why?

Yes, I like him as a character roughly 35 per cent of the time, i.e. when he is being her friend. The rest of the time: go away. You bore me, as does your plot line.

I hate the whole love triangle thing. If I wanted to read about an annoying girl choosing between a werewolf and a vampire, I’d read Anita Blake.

So, now we come to Bella and why I am coming to hate her. I am tired of her thinking she is somehow unworthy of Edward. I am tried of her not learning from the past, I am tired of her stubbornness. I am tired of her.

She hasn’t grown up at all from the character who completely fell to pieces when Edward left (which I hate too – such dependence is unhealthy, even in fiction). I hate that she was inconsistent to the person she supposedly can’t live without. I hate that she is uncompromising. I hate that she won’t accept gifts. I hate that she is selfish.

Usually, I would say that having so many character flaws is a good thing. That it makes the character seem real. In this case, it is just starting to make the character seem annoying, with a tendency to cry.

I can only hope that this was a deliberate ploy on the part of the author and that someone is going to give her a good slap in the next book and tell her to grow up. And stop crying.

All in all, the writing is still good and I will read the next one. I just wish she hadn’t stalled her series though by giving me a whole book of people talking in circles.

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Finished: 9/8