‘Eclipse’ fails to surpass other books in Twilight series

By Sarah Abbott
South Charleston High School

“And so the lion fell in love with the lamb.”

The above quote clearly defines what “Eclipse,” the third book in the Twilight series by Stephenie Meyer, is all about.

In the first book, “Twilight,” Edward Cullen, a “vegetarian” vampire, fell in love with Bella Swan, the series’ 17-year-old narrator. Book two, “New Moon,” described Edward’s disappearance and Bella’s subsequent meltdown.

Now, in “Eclipse,” Edward is back, Bella is as normal as she ever was and there’s one more main character added in for good measure: Jacob Black, a werewolf — who also happens to be in love with Bella.

Even with Edward back, all is not well in Forks, Wash. There has been a string of mysterious murders in Seattle, and Victoria, the vampire hunting Bella, is still at large. Bella is also plagued by a more internal battle: her love for Edward versus her love for Jacob.

That last aspect is the reason for this book. It’s the main point, and it can get quite repetitive.

The time has come for Bella to choose a side — at least, that’s what fans thought. But the formerly decisive and strong heroine has suddenly become wishy-washy and more than a little — dare I say it? — whiny.

As Edward and Bella’s relationship escalates, Jacob tries everything he can to get Bella back with the werewolf tribe. He even goes so far as to blackmail her into kissing him.

Many of the trilogy’s fans expected Bella to choose Edward over Jacob easily, but this isn’t the case - which throws the entire story into a different light: does Bella truly love Edward as much as she says? How can she, when at every turn she’s racing off against his wishes to go see his enemy, Jacob?

This storyline might not be so irritating if it weren’t spread out across every single chapter, with readers privy to Bella’s every worry and scheme.

In “Eclipse,” Bella changes. She leaves behind the girl that everyone identified with and becomes someone who’s just really annoying.

However, there are still several very good things about this book. For instance, many of the supporting characters’ histories and personalities are fleshed out. Rosalie, Edward’s beautiful adopted sister, has always wanted to be human again, and in “Eclipse,” she gets to tell her story, as does Jasper, Edward’s more intriguing brother.

Readers also discover many curious things about the werewolf tribe and their history. Of course, this is a given, since it seems like Bella is practically living there.

Besides being very introspective, “Eclipse” is also hilarious. There are many laugh-out-loud moments, and it’s Meyer’s funniest book yet. Once, I laughed so hard I began to cry.

The final chapters are the only ones that make this novel really difficult to put down. That’s when all the facts come together and the action comes to a climax.

Though it’s still a worthy read, “Eclipse” is not on the same level as its predecessors. A fan of the first two books should read it for the sole reason that the next title in the series, “Breaking Dawn,” has the potential to be amazing. Meyer has the skill and the personality to write another jaw-dropping book.

If you haven’t read the Twilight series, I would definitely suggest it, including “Eclipse” because despite my lukewarm review, it is still a good book. However, in retrospect it would be better to get “Eclipse” from the library or wait for the paperback than to buy it now.

An excerpt from “Eclipse”:

In the dead silence, all the details suddenly fell into place for me with a burst of intuition. Something Edward didn’t want me to know. Something that Jacob wouldn’t have kept from me. Something that had the Cullens and the wolves both in the woods, moving in hazardous proximity to each other...

Something I’d been waiting for anyway.

Something I knew would happen again, as much as I might wish it never would.

It was never going to end, was it?