Twilight

Title: Twilight (Twilight #1)
Author: Stephenie Meyer
Genre: YA Paranormal Romance/ Urban Fantasy
Pages: 498
Rating: 3/5 Stars
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Upon arriving in the rainy, small town of Forks, Washington, Bella sparks the interest of the mysterious, secluded boy, Edward Cullen. However, Bella doesn't know the half of what Edward really is. Because if she did, she wouldn't be so intrigued- she'd be appalled.

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I think I know what you're probably thinking. It's something among the lines of, "What?! You haven't read Twilight yet?!" Okay, I confess, I haven't felt the need to even touch this book until I decided I wanted a genuine opinion on this novel. So many people love it, and I felt like I was missing out on something. Plus, I mean, I love Urban Fantasy, I should love this, right?

I mean, yes and no. I have mixed feelings about this one. It was better than I expected it to be. Of course, I think I pictured it to be two people, sitting in a room staring at each other, so I'm not sure how much that says. But I did enjoy reading it. However, I have a couple problems with it. 

Firstly, there's Bella. I can't decide if she's a good role model or not. She's really studious, she takes all honors classes, gets good grades, and never intentionally is late for class. In the beginning, I couldn't figure out why so many people considered her to be a bad literary influence. But then Edward. I get that this is supposed to be a romance novel, so of course it's going to center around two people in love. Who wants a romance story where the main character isn't interested in the love interest? But I was hoping that the independent, strong, and powerful Bella that's introduced would remain the same. She doesn't. As soon as Edward shows up, she's at his beck and call. She literally does anything he asks of her, and she ignores everybody else. Plus her relationship with Edward isn't even all that healthy. I would feel violated if someone staked out in my room all night to watch me sleep- with or without my knowledge. 

And the romance is pretty artificial. It's definitely instalove if I've ever seen it. I think within the first day of meeting Edward Bella is confessing her love in her sleep. And I hated how irrational she was being. This guy was literally telling her that if she got a paper cut he'd probably eat her, yet she wasn't afraid- she didn't want to leave him. I mean, I suppose love wins all, but still! I don't think Twilight accurately represents a healthy relationship.

I'm taking off quite a bit from my rating simply for the horrendous writing. I don't care how you look at it, the writing is not good. And Edward chuckled and smirked way too much. I was severely annoyed by the fifteenth chuckle-smirk. 

Okay so now I'm going to defend Twilight. 

Near the climax, when Edward was away, it got infinitely better. I was honestly actually invested in the plot at that point, I was actually concerned about Bella's safety. 

And I don't think it's fair to compare Twilight to big franchise competitors such as Harry Potter. They're just completely different. As my dad would say, it's like comparing apples to oranges. Twilight isn't supposed to be better or worse than Harry Potter, it's supposed to be different. And Bella isn't supposed to be a heroine like Hermione. She's supposed to be a girl in love.

However, I could really relate to Bella. She faints at the sight of blood, and as someone who does that as well, it was nice seeing a character who isn't invincible. You get used to these fantasy characters who can literally do anything, but Bella's not like that. She faints at the sight of blood. And I appreciate that. 

I'll be continuing this series. I want to see how this creates a four part series, and if Meyer can maybe write a little better, but I can only award Twilight three stars. 

           

Click here to view Twilight on Goodreads

The "Perfect" Fall

Fall is, without a doubt, the best time of year. And I don't know about you, but I live my life in anticipation for fall. This autumnal time of year can come and go, but to make it just so, there are a couple things that have to happen. Today I'm talking all about the little things in my life that create the perfect fall.

1. Fall Fashion

I always get excited to ditch my summer shorts and tank tops for army green jackets, jeans, cozy socks, flannel button downs, and fashion boots. Dressing for fall is basically the time of year that everyone gets to see your clothes before you become buried in winter coats, scarves, hats, and gloves.

2. Fall Tea 

I'm not much of a coffee drinker, but offer me a cup of tea and I can't physically bring myself to say no. During the summer months, I'm typically going for colder beverages, such as iced tea or infused water, but as soon as the fall months hit, my electric kettle is running double time. Right now I am obsessed with the Pumpkin Spice Brûlée tea leaves from Teavana. It's actually the best thing ever.

3. High Fantasy 

When the days get shorter, the nights get longer, the wind gets bitter, and the temperature drops, I begin to crave the high fantasy genre. Right now, I'm eyeing Three Dark Crowns, Crooked Kingdom, and Heir of Fire. 

4. Acoustic, Fall Music

In all honesty, my music taste doesn't change all that much as the seasons change, but I do love turning on a calming, acoustic, soft playlist on Spotify to be the background music to my life these few months. I'd like to recommend the "crisp leaves & lattes" playlist by Kalyn Nicholson on Spotify if you're interested in 5 hours of awesome, fall music.

5. Fall Pinterest Boards 

As my friends will tell you, I'm a pinterest addict. As the summer season turns to autumn, my fall pinterest board sprang to life.  (Because fall IS my aesthetic.)

6. Did I mention Pumpkin Spice Brûlée? 

7. Two Words: Flannel Sheets

Does anyone else switch their bedding over from linen to fleece or flannel in the fall time? Because I do, and it is heavenly.

8. Celestial Viewing 

There's something about fall and the nighttime sky that just go together. Take the Supermoon for example! I love gazing at the night sky in the fall time, perhaps because I see so much of it!

9. Fall Food 

One of my cooking enthusiast friends and I cooked a dinner for some of our friends, and it was completely fall themed. From pumpkin snicker doodles to harvest quinoa salads, it was amazing in an autumn kind of way.

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So that concludes this post! As you can tell, I absolutely love fall, and right now where I live, it's in the 50s (F) which is like the perfect temperature. So. Yay fall!

Thanks for reading, let me know what your favorite part of fall is below!

The Next Year of Blogging

Hello! 

It's been a couple months since the last time I posted, and I'm sorry for that, but I needed time off. So much in my life has changed, so much is different, and I needed time to adjust to everything, and keeping up with my blog schedule was too much. 

I am genuinely upset I had to miss these specific months. I had things planned around Banned Book Week, and my blog turned 1 year old on October 19th. I wish I'd been actively blogging at these times, but it simply wasn't realistic. 

I'm also sorry to all the authors and publicists that tried to get a hold of me. I've got a massive buildup of emails that I'm actually scared to sift through. 

On a brighter side, I do feel ready to start easing back into blogging. I miss it, and I want to come back. So I do hope you can forgive me for my disappearance, and get excited for what this new year will bring! 

- Julia