This week's review is on the wildly popular "Twilight" series by Stephenie Meyer. The reviews are prepared by Sarvinder Kaur and Rebecca Ann Pereira who have both enjoyed the cult-status novels and feel that it is worth sharing with everyone else. The first book in the series is "Twilight", followed by "New Moon", "Eclipse" and lastly, "Breaking Dawn".

-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

TWILIGHT by Sarvinder Kaur

Twilight is the thrilling tale of a vampire romance at high school. It is an extraordinary love story that will stay with you long after you have turned the final page. Propelled by suspense and romance in equal parts, this story will keep readers madly flipping the pages of Stephanie Meyer's tantalizing debut novel.

Isabella Swan (Bella) moves to the gloomy town of Forks and meets the mysterious and alluring Edward Cullen, a boy unlike any she's ever met. With his porcelain skin, golden eyes and mesmerizing voice, Edward can run faster than a mountain lion and can stop a moving car with his bare hands. Edward hasn't aged since 1918 and like all vampires, he is immortal. But he doesn't have fangs and he doesn't drink human blood. Up until now, he has managed to keep his identity hidden, but Bella is determined to uncover his dark secret. What Bella doesn't realise is that the closer she gets to him, the more she is putting herself and those around her at risk. And it might be too late to turn back...

Rating : 4/5
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

NEW MOON by Sarvinder Kaur

Passionate, riveting and deeply moving, New Moon, the compelling sequel to Twilight, irresistably combines romance and suspense with a supernatural twist. New Moon will grab you and keep you reading well into the wee hours of the night. Poised for bestsellerdom, New Moon encapsulates perfectly the teenage feeling of alienation.

For Bella Swan, there is one thing more important than life itself : Edward Cullen. But being in love with a vampire is even more dangerous than Bella could have ever imagined. Edward has already rescued Bella from the clutches of one evil vampire, but now, as their daring relationship threatens all that is near and dear to them, they realise their troubles may just be beginning...

Rating : 3/5
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

ECLIPSE by Rebecca Ann Pereira

Eclipse is the third novel in Stephenie Meyer’s popular Twilight series. You really want to have read Twilight and New Moon (in that order) first before reading Eclipse, because the author doesn’t spend too much time expounding the story-lines of the previous novels but rather drops the reader straight in to the story. Eclipse carries on not long after New Moon left off. Bella’s high school graduation is approaching and she will soon be leaving Forks forever, presumably to go to college - but in reality she is planning to join her boyfriend in his vampire existence and will therefore be unable to return home, due to being dead and possessed by a terrible blood lust for the first few years.

This is only one part of the story though. Eclipse is primarily a romantic saga, so Bella and Edward’s relationship is the primary focus of the novel. Or as I should say Bella, Edward and Jacob’s relationship - because there is a love triangle in the plot of this novel. Bella and Jacob have always been friends, at least they were - right up until Jacob became a werewolf. Then the enmity between vampires and werewolves put a huge strain on their friendship. Besides which, Jacob is in love with Bella, who is in love with Edward so this is going to make things awkward between them. Bella has found her soul mate in Edward but Jacob is the soul mate she should have / could have / would have had if Edward didn’t exist. She loves him too but not as much as Edward. Why she loves Jacob is beyond me – he knows that she loves Edward but Jacob still tries to make her feel guilty that she can’t love him like he wants her too.

Eclipse is still a really good read. The book didn’t feel like it was over 600 pages long, I literally flew through the pages and had to make a conscious effort to slow down my reading so I didn’t finish the whole book in a couple of sittings. For teens already hooked on the series, Eclipse is another solid instalment of Forks goodness. Adult readers may be put off by the teenage relationship angst in this novel but if you have already enjoyed the author’s previous offerings I think there is still plenty here to entertain. This is romantic fantasy – enjoy it!

Rating : 4/5
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

BREAKING DAWN by Rebecca Ann Pereira

Breaking Dawn is the fourth and final novel in Stephenie Meyer’s hugely popular Twilight saga. For readers who have read Stephenie Meyer’s previous offerings Breaking Dawn is the long awaited and highly anticipated end to the compelling tale of vampire Edward and human Bella’s impossible romance. This novel sees Bella coming into her own power and proving that she is more that capable of independent thought and action. While the Cullen family vampires have always been kind to Bella, it has been clear that she was no match for this talented bunch - but Bella’s character gains strengths that make her just as unique and talented as the rest of her new family.

Breaking Dawn is a weighty novel, weighing in at over 750 pages but it doesn’t feel like a long read. The story is well paced and well balanced, with a mixture of exciting supernatural action as well as good character development and romance. Breaking Dawn is a different novel to Twilight (and New Moon) and some readers may be disappointed by this but I’m not one of them. I don’t want to keep buying the same story over and over again just with a different title and cover picture – I enjoy seeing the development of the characters as well as seeing the development of the author’s writing. Breaking Dawn is more like Eclipse, Edward and Bella are sure of their love for each other but outside forces (this time it’s the Volturi) may tear them apart as the story reaches its thrilling climax.

The only small gripe I have about this novel is that in wrapping up the story every loose end has been neatly tied into a pretty bow - sometimes it’s good to leave something dangling in the breeze! Oh, and I don’t like the book's cover either. But apart from that, this book is all that I was personally hoping it would be.

Full of Forks' goodness, Breaking Dawn is recommended reading for any self-respecting Stephenie Meyer fan!