New Moon by Stephenie Meyer

This is the second book of the Twilight Saga and it just makes me wanting for more. Stephenie Meyer is one brilliant storyteller, just like J.R.R.Tolkien and J.K.Rowling, one who keeps its reader turning the page until the very end.

This book sees the continuation of Bella (Isabella) and Edward’s relationship at the beginning. I see it coming that Edward is not hundred percent sure whether he’s right being together with Bella at all because he thought that he’s always putting her in danger. Due to an unforeseen incident with Edward’s family, Edward decides to end their relationship because he thinks that this is the only way to keep her safe, by keeping vampires out of her life.

Bella succumbs to depression for a few months due to the break up with Edward. I like the way Meyer describes Bella’s depression by those blank pages…it amplifies Bella’s pain and emptiness effectively. It is at this lowest point of her life that Jacob Black, an old family friend comes into the scene. As the friendship of Jacob and Bella grows, so does Jacob’s feeling for her, although Bella sees Jacob as nothing more than a good friend, as someone to lean on while going though a troubled period.

A large part of this book is dedicated to Jacob and the legends of his Quileute (Quill-yoot) tribe. Incredulous as it may sound, it turns out that Jacob is not as human as you and me but he’s a werewolf as well. Oh my God, I can so see your eyes bulge . Well, if there is a world with Harry Porter and magic, then the idea of werewolves and vampires co-existing doesn’t sound so far-fetched at all right ?

All in all I find this book sort of an opening for another interesting side of this saga, which is not all about vampires. Although this book is not as good as the first book, it is not a bad read at all. It shows a darker period that Bella has to go through and she is torn between her friendship with Jacob and her love for Edward because werewolves and vampires are ancient enemies. Both of them aren’t making her life any easier.

How can one choose between one’s soul mate-like, best friend and one’s first, true love? Life would be miserable without either one. That is one thing I don’t understand about Bella and through this book, my opinion of Bella is little clouded. I’ll come back to this point in book number three.

I’ll say this book is like a bridge for the first and the third book of this series. Although I’d very much love to jump from the first book to the third book, however without this second book the story is not complete.

I’ll give it 3.5/5.