New Moon

Since I wrote my take on Twilight I might as well write how I felt about New Moon.

I'm not sure if it's because I knew what to expect heading into this one or what, but I much MUCH preferred New Moon to Twilight. I felt like it had plot and action and all the stuff that I wanted out of Twilight but didn't quite get.

Plus, very little Edward.

Now, I know there are gasps of horror coming from the peanut gallery, but I don't actually much care for Edward. He's far too brooding and sentimental. I prefer my men with a sense of humor and I'm not so sure he has one. And the way he's written...he's physically cold and hard (often described as "stone" and "marble") and why would you want to cuddle with that?? Ya, he might be pretty to look at, but he doesn't sound all that fun to touch. Bella is constantly freezing when she's with him. There's something about him that just makes him seem like such a pansy. Plus, if Bella chooses a life with him, she has to either A. continue to live a human life and never enjoy any kind of fulfilling physical relationship with him. And look like a really creepy 70 year old woman snuggling with a 17 year old boy or B. become a vampire, give up her soul, and, um, drink blood for the rest of her existence. Neither of those options sound particularly great.

I am firmly in the Jacob camp. Big, strong, warm, mostly human Jacob. I love that he's described as a constant ray of sunshine. He laughs! He ages! He's able to eat (vast quantities) of normal people food! He's good looking without being The Undead! The werewolf thing is less than ideal, but I think it's preferable to the vampire bit. Jacob sounds like someone I'd want to hang out with. Edward sounds like someone I'd want to stare at.

Plus I think Jacob and Bella are capable of a normal, healthy relationship.

I realized that this was something that bugged me a lot about the first book. What Edward and Bella have is obsessive, kind of creepy, and borderline unhealthy. And, having been a 17 year old girl, I think it's very much a product of their respective ages. There's lots of talk of how Edward and Bella's love is a product of fate and it's written in the stars and stuff among Edward fans and I think that's hooey. I think they're 2 teenagers in an obsessive type of teenager love that will never have the chance to evolve and mature since he is stuck at 17 and she'd like to be. I think she'll grow out of it if he lets her age, as he would like to do. Frankly, their love is exhausting and unsustainable.

Jacob and Bella have the chance to experience the type of grown-up mature love that comes with age and experience. The type of love you feel when you find out he snores really loudly and never takes out the trash and forgets the ziplocks when he does the grocery shopping. When there's not constant clinging to each other as you gaze deep into each other's eyes and talk about how you're going to be together forever and ever. I like that Jacob and Bella ran errands looking for motorcycle parts and did homework together. He represents the real life, the un-fairy tale, and I think that's far preferable.

Now, we'll see how I feel after reading Eclipse!