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 It's just entertaining Nov 24, 2009
The second in the teenage vampire romance series finds Edward conflicted about the danger he and his family bring to Bella. Deciding they do her more harm than good, the Cullen family leaves Forks, and Bella sinks into a deep depression. Her only saving grace is Jacob Black, the son of her father's friend, who quickly becomes someone of great importance to her, the only safe harbor she can find. But when Jake's open and friendly demeanor changes abrubptly, Bella is left to figure out what keeps changing the boys in Forks.
What I keep waiting to find out is "why Bella?" I'm hoping that by the end of the series, I'll learn the answer to that. Don't tell me the answer, I want to find out on my own :::sticks fingers in ears and sings la lala:::.
While the Twilight saga will never be viewed as great literature, so far I'm enjoying the ride. They've been good for cold wintery weekends when I just want to stay home and get lost in someone else's drama for a while. Fortunately, Bella has a LOT of drama so it's very easy to sink into.
 Not as yummy as twilight, but still good Nov 23, 2009
There was a certain anguish in this book that lasted a bit to long for me. But I still really enjoyed it. Definitely read it so that you can go through the whole series.
0 of 1 found the following review helpful:
A Phenomenal Romance Nov 23, 2009
For fantasy fans of romance New Moon is the perfect book for you. New Moon is a parallel to William Shakespeare's Romeo and Juliet. A romance between a vampire and a mortal seems nearly impossible, but when readers learn they have held a strong relationship for nearly six months we begin to believe the relationship might work. It is not until Bella's birthday party at the Cullen's that reality strikes. Bella recognizes that she is in danger of playing out the greatest romantic tragedy. The author builds the tension for the climax of the story by creating this parallel but she also adds a twist. Another lover exists; Jacob comes into Bella's life in place of Edward. During Bella's depression, she rebuilds her friendship with Jacob. The two are quite attached but not for long. Edward realizes it was a mistake to leave her beloved. Edward comes back for Bella and therefore conflict rises. A vampire vs. a werewolf who will win over her heart? The Quileute werewolves are an exciting addition to the story and it will be interesting to see how this plot line is developed in the next novel in this series. How will both men play a role in her life, is the question. The second half of the novel is where the action really begins and questions are answered. This novel is an exciting addition to the series. I found myself turning page after page wanting to know more and reading nearly half the book in just one day. It is a book full of mystery and adventure that makes an exciting read.
0 of 1 found the following review helpful:
 One of the Worst supernatural romances ever written Nov 22, 2009
I can't even express into words how strong my distaste for the entire Twilight Saga truly is. In my personal opinion Twilight is prefabricated, poorly written, shallow, demographic-forcing tripe. When I was a fourteen-year-old girl I was very obsessed with the vampire anti-hero Lestat from Anne Rice's The Vampire Chronicles. And though Lestat had many relationship issues he was still a better defined and more well conceived character than that of Edward Cullen.
Edward and Bella are poorly thought out, two dimensional shells. This was a deliberate effort by the author so that every young reader could imagine themselves as the main characters but in the process she made them so superficial that the characters lacked any quality of definition. They did not feel like real people.
Not only is Twilight poorly written but it also hinders upon actual mythology. The notion of vampires glittering in the sun is laughable at best. It brings to mind the recollection of such toys as the My Little Pony dolls. The logic behind vampires sparkling in the sunlight is non-existent. A vampire burning in the sun has been a staple of Gothic fiction for many years. There are real diseases and disorders in the world that make sunlight harmful to certain individuals. Scientifically it's more plausible to be harmed by sunlight than to 'naturally' sparkle in it.
Another flaw in the mythos of Twilight is the definition of werewolf. I cannot tell you how many times I have come across Twilight fans who insist the characters who can turn into wolves are not werewolves. They say that these characters are shape-shifters. A shape shifter by traditional definition can take on multiple forms, not just one. Many Twilight fans also argue that within the mythos of the books a true werewolf only changes on the full moon and that's why Jacob and company are not actually werewolves. The parapsychology student in me winces at this. In many traditional werewolf folklore out of Germany and France there are werewolves that most certainly can change at will, are aware in their wolf form, and are not bound by the phase of the moon. The very word werewolf means man-wolf. It does not mean part man and part wolf. It comes from the notion of a man INTO a wolf. Most classic werewolf stories (before The Wolf-Man movie) had the werewolf changing from a person into an actual wolf.
The very first werewolf legend can be traced back to the Greek myth of King Lycaon. According to legend King Lycaon served human flesh at a feast for Zeus (the king of the Gods). Zeus was so offended that he punished Lycaon by turning him into a wolf. Only his eyes remained human. This myth is where the terms Lycanthrope, Lycanthropy and the more modern Lycan come from. I guess it's safe to say Stephenie Meyer does not do her research in regard to the occult before writing these stories.
Not only is Twilight poorly written and intellectually insulting to occultists (amateur and professional alike) but it also promotes very unhealthy relationships. Edward Cullen is abusive, stalkerish and obsessive. Edward has also had moments of physically harming Bella. Bella is equally so but that does not make it okay, nor does it make the relationship healthy. At one point Edward disables Bella's mode of transportation and has her kidnapped as a means to 'protect' her. If he was not a vampire this would be viewed as highly abusive of the character. There is a fine line between being chivalrous and sexist. Edward Cullen crossed that line miles ago. This sets a very unhealthy ideal of what defines romantic relationship for the young readers of Twilight. I am not saying not to read Twilight nor am I saying to burn the books. I am simply saying that it needs to be looked at in context for what it truly is and that there are far higher quality reads out there. If you want a chivalrous character who is NOT sexist, seek The Dresden Files novels by Jim Butcher. The hero, a wizard named Harry Dresden, is very chivalrous without being sexist.
Bella is what modern writers call A Mary Sue. In fiction writing and role playing games Mary Sue characters are strongly frowned upon. A Mary Sue is a character of shallow quality who is nearly flawless. The character is so perfect that even her so-called flaws are endearing.
I have run online text based role playing games since 1999 and I can tell you there are plot points in Twilight I would not have allowed in my game. A major one would be when Bella and Edward finally had their daughter toward the end of the book series the child aged extremely fast and by age seven or so she was involved with her mother's werewolf ex-boyfriend. To me this is disgusting. I would never have allowed this in my online role playing game. She might have developed with supernatural speed but she still has only had only seven-years-life experience and I feel that is certainly not enough time to be in a romantic relationship with a grown man. That was disturbing to me. Supernatural speed aging does not give her enough life experience for that sort of relationship. That was simply not right.
In short Twilight is not what I would consider a good read even for those who truly love supernatural romances. See out the likes of The Ghost and Mrs. Muir. Twilight is not worth the time. There are higher quality works of fiction out there.
Absolutely wonderful Nov 22, 2009
I had already read this book when I bought it but I wanted it in hardcover because I tend to be a little rough on books and the one I borrowed from a friend was softcover. The day I recieved it in the mail I couldn't help but read it again and it was just as good as the first time (the movie comming out this month probably helped my enthusiasm somewhat as well). The whole twilight series is wonderful and I would highly recommed any one of the them to everyone regardless of age or preference. I will say though that book 2 begins to get a little racy towards the end so I would recommed parents read the book first before passing it along to younger children (but be warned they are going to want to keep reading and in book 3 and 4 the sexuality esculates).
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