Book Review #393 - Breaking Dawn (Twilight #4) by Stephenie Meyer

When you loved the one who was killing you, it left you no options. How could you run, how could you fight, when doing so would hurt that beloved one? If your life was all you had to give, how could you not give it? If it was someone you truly loved?

To be irrevocably in love with a vampire is both fantasy and nightmare woven into a dangerously heightened reality for Bella Swan. Pulled in one direction by her intense passion for Edward Cullen, and in another by her profound connection to werewolf Jacob Black, she has endured a tumultuous year of temptation, loss, and strife to reach the ultimate turning point. Her imminent choice to either join the dark but seductive world of immortals or to pursue a fully human life has become the thread from which the fate of two tribes hangs.

Now that Bella has made her decision, a startling chain of unprecedented events is about to unfold with potentially devastating, and unfathomable, consequences. Just when the frayed strands of Bella's life — first discovered in Twilight, then scattered and torn in New Moon and Eclipse — seem ready to heal and knit together, could they be destroyed...forever?

 

 

My Rating: 4/5

 

 

I didn't like this book that much when I read it for the first time in 2008. Reading it for the second time now, five years later I was surprised by how much I actually did enjoy it. 

 

 

This book is split between Bella and Jacob's points of views. I know that this was written before Midnight Sun was put on hiatus, but it would have been interesting to have had chapters from Edward's point of view as well. 

 

 

The plot had a lot more depth to it than the previous three books, which is why it is significantly longer. I am glad that it wasn't split in halves like the films.

 

 

All loose ends were tied, although I thought that the ending was very anticlimactic as it felt like throughout the book it was building to something much greater.

 

 

 

The only new important character was Renesmee who quickly became one of my favourite characters in this series. I would love it if Stephenie Meyer wrote a series from her perspective.

 

 

In a way I am a little disappointed that this is the last book in the series as it would have been good to follow Bella into her new life as a vampire, but I am happy the way that this series ended.

Book Review #392 - The Skull in The Wood by Sandra Greaves

 

Deep on Dartmoor, cousins Matt and Tilda discover a skull. And from that moment black things happen. Birds and animals turn bad, and there's talk of the return of an old curse.

 

 

My Rating: 4/5

 

 

I received this book for review from Chicken House for Scholastic.

 

 

Like all books that are set on a moor, this book was very atmospheric. From the opening chapter, everything was very vividly described.

 

 

The story is told mainly from Matt and Tilda's perspectives with the occasional chapter from Kitty who is Tilda's younger sister.

 

 

Both Matt and Tilda hated each other, and so I didn't really like either of the characters. In Tilda's chapters, Matt was annoying and in Matt's chapters Tilda was too whiny.

 

 

The plot was well paced but definitely peaked in the last few chapters as this where the majority of the action occurred.

 

 

Given that this book would probably most likely be classified as horror, there is a lot of family aspects to it. Matt's parents are in the middle of a divorce, and his mum is already looking to remarry. Plus his and Tilda's mothers have a heavy influence on the story behind the curse.

Book Review #391 - Kissing Coffins (Vampire Kisses #2) by Ellen Schreiber

Not far from Dullsville, someone's lurking in the dark. . . .

After meeting the handsome and shadowy Alexander Sterling, goth-girl Raven's dark world has a bright, new glow. But as in her favourite movie, "Kissing Coffins," Raven knows that love always has its complications, especially when Alexander has a big secret to guard.

When Alexander suddenly disappears, Raven leaves Dullsville to begin a dangerous search to find him. Can she stay safe, no matter who--or what--she encounters on the way?

 

 

My Rating: 3/5

 

 

The way the first book ended, I expected more from this book. It did contain more action and suspense but I also thought that it was rather slow paced particularly the first half or so.

 

 

Raven seemed more mature as she realised her vampire fantasies were true and were not as glamorous as what she had been expecting. Alexander was barely present in this book, although a lot of his back story was revealed.

 

 

Jagger was the newest character to be introduced. He was just a typical evil teenaged vampire and there wasn't really anything that stood out about him. His relationship with Trevor though seems like it could be interesting.

 

 

Dullsville seems like a very boring place with pod type people so I liked how Raven went to Hipsterville to visit her Aunt Libby and she found people there who she related to and felt like she belonged.

 

 

I think the only problem with these books is that they are too short and so cannot expand on things and have the required depth at times. However, they are very fast, fun reads.