2 for 1

I am going to do something I rarely do. I am going to critique two books in one blog entry. They are 2 of a 3 and soon to be 4 book series by Stephenie Meyer. It is the first time I've read anything written by her and, I am a fan!

The books are Twilight and New Moon and they are fantastic. I am reading them like I drink my coffee in the morning...quickly and thirstily. I can't get enough of them. The main characters are Bella Swan and Edward Cullen. Edward is a vampire and Bella is his unlikely desire. As much as he thirsts for her, he loves her more and fights the urge to unleash his nature on her. Her blood is his "brand" which makes it harder than normal to fight his urges to feast on her but, given that he has spent his entire life not feasting on humans and hunting for wild animals in an effort to live his life, or undeath, as good as he can, he has had some practice with refraining from unleashing his natural instincts on humanity.

Bella is a dangerous girl. She is clumsy and seems to attract trouble. But, she means well and Edward can't resist her.

Stephenie Meyer has a way of drawing one into her characters so well that it leaves you smitten with Edward. And, I do mean smitten. I find myself missing Edward when he isn't around Bella. I get anxious and excited when they get close. I never wanted two characters in a book to kiss one another as bad as I wanted Bella and Edward to kiss. And, each miss drove me nearly bonkers! The tension between Bella and Edward is so thick that even the best, strongest and sharpest Santoku knives are neither sharp nor strong enough to cut that tension.

While Twilight had me remembering what it was like to first fall for someone, New Moon had me racing through it waiting until Bella and Edward would see one another again. I grew frustrated with my inability to read faster at the penultimate moment!

So, having finished those first two, I have begun the 3rd book in the series titled Eclipse and, it already has me worried and anxious for what trouble lies ahead for Bella and Edward. They are a modern day Romeo & Juliet and you never know from page one to page 629 whether Bella and Edward can make it through the trials and tribulations of a Vampire meets Human relationship.

The 4th book in the the series, which I mentioned earlier, is Breaking Dawn and it is set for release August 2nd. I almost want to slow down and read Eclipse as slowly as possible so that I won't have to wait so long, or it won't seem so long, until Breaking Dawn is released. But, knowing how captivation Stephenie Meyer makes these two characters, I will, no doubt, fail at my attempt to savor instead of devour Eclipse.