17. 18. 19. 20. The Twilight Saga

by Stephanie Meyers

Twilight, New Moon, Eclipse, and Breaking Dawn

I think you'd pretty much have to live under a rock to not have at least heard about the Twilight Saga, so it seems a little pointless to go over the plot lines. I will say there's been a lot of controversy over the books, but isn’t there a saying that any press is good press?

Even though I love vampire romances, I've been avoiding this series. Why? Because I'm not really into the young adult genre when it comes to romance and I've let my opinion be coloured by all those critics out there – “the writing is really bad”, “her vampires sparkle, for crying out loud!”

Well, I’m not afraid to admit that not only did I read them, I enjoyed them. The story captured my attention enough that I didn't waste any time trying to analyze the writing. I blazed through the first two books in one week and the other two I fit into my busy schedule during the work week.

I think one of the things that made this an excellent series is that it allowed me to become emotionally involved in the characters and their story. At the end of the first book I felt sorry for Bella and thought Edward should be staked for what he did to her. At the end of the second book I thought Edward was too good for Bella. By the end of the third book I didn’t think she deserved either Edward or Jacob. And the fourth book neatly wrapped up the loose ends.

As far as the writing goes, I think what people need to bear in mind is that these were written with teenagers in mind, and I think the critics subconsciously enjoy the story but wanted it to be written for adults. And you know what? I don’t think it would have worked as well if it’d been written for adults.

And as far as the “sparkling” goes, the way it’s presented makes perfect sense. Perhaps we could have stood a little more explanation about why it happens, but the fact that it happens is important to the story. So there! :-p

So, while I wouldn’t say Twilight is up there with The Count of Monte Cristo, I’d still put a copy of it on my keeper shelf. As for all you folks up in arms about it, how many books have you had published that not only become best sellers but are made into movies as well?

That’s what I thought.