Breaking Dawn - Stephenie Meyer

As the final instalment of a series I would just like to mention firstly that I will attempt to keep all major points of this story out of my review, but may touch on past events in the series. My apologies if I mention anything that you have not already read, but please note you have been warned. Continue at your own risk.

Right…

Background / General Info
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Breaking Dawn is the fourth book in the hugely popular “twilight series” written by Stephenie Meyer. Released in August 2008 and is an impressive 756 pages long. It’s a mammoth book and as far as I’m aware it is currently only available in hardback, which does make for a bit of awkward handling as it’s so chunky.

The book follows both Bella Swan (a human 17 year old) and Edward Cullen (A 100 Year old vampire). The couple are the main focus of the book series as their unique relationship grows.

Characters
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As I mentioned above, the 2 main characters in the book are Bella and Edward.

Edward’s family are involved throughout the whole of the series and play a larger part in this book as Bella spends a lot more time with the Cullen Clan then her own family.

Jacob Black, who progressively becomes a larger part of each book as the series progresses, is a rather big part of this instalment, as we actually get a third of the story from his point of view.

Writing and Narrative
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The books were previously all written from Bella’s first person perspective; however Breaking Dawn breaks away from the series’ usual narrative as Jacob Black (Bella’s best werewolf friend) has a section of the book to himself to tell part of the story through his prospective.

The books use a simple but detailed writing style. Stephenie Meyer has a very good talent for portraying deep descriptive emotion through her writing. She may not win any awards for her basic style, but it does completely immerse you into the world you are reading about and really helps to keep you as a reader hooked.

My Opinion
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I adore the twilight series and find everything about the world Stephenie Meyer has created to be fascinating. She has a great way of really expressing characters, as a reader you completely understand everything the characters go through and can relate to most even though there are obvious differences (myself being a human and all the vampires and werewolves being fictional beings).

The pace in the 4th and final book is a lot slower at times than the previous books but also has sections that are a lot more jam packed with action. Being so long, the book is split into 3 sections titled Book1, Book 2 and Book 3. Covering such a long space of time (I believe the whole book covers 6 months or so) there are obviously some parts that are busier than others.

I enjoyed all sections of the book and I know some twilight fans were disappointed by the decision to switch to Jacobs voice in the middle, I personally liked this. It was refreshing and enjoyable to see everything through a new angle. We do not loose sight of any of the key points in the story it just follows from a different side.

The story flows well with the rest of the series and has a couple of surprises and large events that happen to the characters. There is enough action and suspense throughout at the right places to keep you hooked and wanting to know how everything will finally end.

The ending itself has been the brunt of a lot of annoyance from some fans as it wasn’t what a lot of people were expecting. Again I personally liked the way everything was finished and summarised. The book is simplistic and brings a good amount of closure to what has been a brilliant series to read.

I would suggest breaking dawn only to those who have read the previous books. Although the story could quite easily be picked up ad past events are summarised or touched upon and explained, it wouldn’t have as much impact as it does to those who have become more attached to the characters. I think most enjoyment could be had for this book only if the series has been followed properly.

There are a few more violent graphic scenes in this book. Stephenie Meyer’s use of description is at times very visual and is perhaps not as suitable for sensitive children as most description is of a bloody scene with possible death, although I can’t imagine anyone over the age of 14 having a problem with any of these parts.

There are also more adult themes with regards to sex, marriage and childbirth, but again all of these should be suitable for anyone not easily offended by such notions. Especially as for the sex moments in the book, we are not given any graphic details at all and are left to put 2 and 2 together as to what is happening.

I adore the character progression in this book; the characters are given a whole different set of trials to overcome, unlike the previous books. I like that we get to see the characters do something a little different.

Conclusion
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Breaking dawn has an overall feel to it that is slightly more adult and a little unusual compared to the rest of the series, perhaps because as a fan, I knew the end was coming. It still flows well with the series and remains completely part of this world that has been created.

It’s a brilliant book by itself with a fantastic story which helps develop some much loved characters. It’s engrossing and extremely hard to put down.

I can’t say a negative with regards to the writing, characters or plot and I thoroughly enjoyed every aspect. The only down side to the book that I can comment on is the fact it isn’t out in paperback. It is a long book but one that I completely think is worth your time. It sums up and rounds off the series well and I personally was very happy with the ending.

Thanks for reading :)