Midnight Sun: The Obsession Continues

        Ever since I discovered the first 400 pages of this book, posted as a draft on the author’s website, I have been DYING to read the rest of it. I was SO excited to find out that it was finally being released last year! I definitely pre-ordered this one… and I may have planned out the other books I was reading to end right around the time it was being delivered… but, this is Midnight Sun we’re talking about, so it’s totally justifiable :-P.
          In case you didn’t know, Midnight Sun is the companion novel to Stephanie Meyer’s Twilight. It’s the same story as the first book, but told through Edward’s perspective. And I LOVE it! Twilight was amazing and fascinating when I first read it, because I didn’t quite know where the story was going. But now, with all the facts and future outcomes already in mind, Midnight Sun adds the deeper layer that you didn’t realize was missing the first time around. There is so much more going on in Edward’s head than in Bella’s! Yeah, she’s got a crush and she’s willing to risk her life to be with him… but he’s quite literally guilt-tripping himself over the fact that his attraction to her could get her killed. Then there’s the depth of being a nearly 100-year-old vampire who reads minds (versus a teenage girl with hardly any life experience), plus all the flashbacks and memories of his past – all of which make a delicious backdrop as he wars with himself over what he wants versus what’s right. There’s sorrow, there’s anger, there’s bitterness, there’s heartbreak; all the dark emotions you could ever want, all rolled into one book. Emo friends, eat your hearts out!
      It’s funny, but the most frustrating part of the novel was actually Edward himself XD. I periodically wanted to yell at him to stop being so dramatic; that this is what Bella wants and he’s missing out on his own happiness by worrying and being wishy-washy. He himself said, and I quote, “I decided as long as I was going to hell, I might as well do it thoroughly” (pg. 119), and I REALLY wish he had taken his own advice! At the same time, I found myself wanting to ease his guilt by reassuring him that everything will work out – that in the strange, twisted way that can only be explained by all 4 original books, this is meant to be. There is more joy in his future than he can possibly believe, if only he can relax enough to receive it.
         I wish I could say I was the type of author who would never treat their characters this way, that I would never drag out their happy endings by plaguing them with guilt or other emotional complexes that increase the dramatic tension… but where’s the fun in that? XD And really, as long as you give them that happy ending eventually, it’s okay to torture them a little bit (not too much, but a little bit :-P). And we all know it’s not a story if there’s no drama!
          I have more to say on this book, of course (who wouldn’t?!), but that will have to wait until next time. Stay tuned, and in my next post, I’ll tell you my favorite part ;-).
          What do you think?  Share your thoughts in the comments section!
          Until the next time, keep reading!
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