Twilight -- Destroying Contentment Around The Globe

"Once upon a dark and stormy year, tens of millions of women and girls, of all ages, all nations, all religions, fell under the spell of one 17-year-old boy…


who was not even human…


and was not even real."

Anna Sophia and Elizabeth Botkin could not have said it any better. I've seen these books around a lot, heard and read a lot of things about them, and have been horror-struck by how popular these books are, especially among Christians. I've had an interest in reviewing this book for quite a while now but have felt like God was telling me "Wait." so I have contemplated and prayed about reading it for about a year now. It wasn’t until now that I felt I was given the  "go ahead" to read it. I was prepared to put it down at any moment, knowing that it had a tendency to get reader’s trapped within its pages and addicted to its scenes.

 I made it half way through before coming to the conclusion that I’d read enough to satisfy my questions and enough to get a good enough review off of. So, when reading this review keep in mind that I have only read half of the book, but have read countless reviews of it from both viewpoints, read debates about it, and heard sermons on it.

 First off, let me say that I actually didn’t find this book gripping for the story that much. Perhaps I didn't get far enough of in, but I didn't find the story all that captivating. Girl meets guy. Guy is vampire and has serious problems not EATING HER. Girl falls in obsessively in love. Guy falls in love back. They break some rules. Tada! The end. I'm sorry for any Twilight fans reading this, but seriously? How is this even worth reading?

The characters seemed to have no morals at all, no lines that weren't to be crossed. Edward knew he had a craving, yep I said craving, for Bella, yet he wasn't smart enough to withdraw from certain activities with her. He knew it wasn't prudent to be alone with her, yet he purposefully did it anyway. Bella knew, also, yet did nothing to help. She fed the fire, agreeing to go into secluded locations with him, such as the woods. There was no rule that wasn't to be broken. Lying to her father came easily, and wasn't even discouraged in the book or made to look bad.

The main thing that bugged me about these books is the passion that clogs it, especially since it is geared toward teenagers.

"I smelled his cool breath in my face. Sweet, delicious, the scent made my mouth water. It was unlike anything else. Instinctively, unthinkingly, I leaned closer, inhaling."
Page 263 of Twilight

So Edward pulls away at this moment. But is it because he knows what is about to happen shouldn't? Nope. It's because he's afraid he won't be able to resist his urge to eat her. Because this is what happens 13 pages later, same scene.

"Slowly, never moving his eyes from mine, he leaned toward me. Then abruptly, but very gently, he rested his cold cheek against the hollow at the base of my throat.
Page 276 of Twilight

And not only were they in love...but they were obsessed. Creepily obsessed.

"'You're intoxicated by my very presence.'" 
Edward, Page 284 of Twilight

So as you can see, one of the main things I disliked about this book, no, hated, was the immense passion between the characters. Meyers was smart in using the vampires desire for blood to help make her hero seem even more passionate because it grabbed the attention of most of the world, but all it did was creep me out.

But, I have to point something out here. There is Christian romance out there that is this passionate, this bad. Now, it may not be so directed toward teens as the Twilight saga is, but it is still present. I have put down several so-called "Christian" romances in the past year, simply because the romance was that strong and unwarranted.

Too many romances today are unrealistic and have absolutely no purpose except make single girls fantasize about what they want to have and married woman uncontent with what they do. Most of them are painting images that are unpractical and are going to leave women disappointed with they life they have. Don't get me wrong, my opinion isn't that love stories are evil. Some of my favorite books have a side romance in them. But when the book focuses only on the passion with no discretion, no boundaries, no Biblical standards...that's when things go awry.

The whole fact that Meyer purposefully made Bella to be Eve and Edward to represent the forbidden fruit sickens me a bit. Just look at the cover. That was a sorrowful story...not one to be painted onto some romantic love tale and have it be good that Bella is "following her heart".
What?
She even has a verse at the beginning of the book, Genesis 2:17 to be exact, that talks about the forbidden fruit.

How far have we fallen that we are taking the sin of Eve and putting it in a good light? Making it to look okay to go after what is wrong, what is forbidden?

I could rant forever but I must bring this post to an end. I didn't finish this book and I don't ever intend to. Jasmine Baucham sums it up pretty well for me.

"Thank you very much, but you can keep Edward Cullen. I'll take a passionate follower of the risen Lord all day every day. And I'll save my heart -from flesh and blood distractions and fairy tale notions -for the one whose soul belongs to the Lord. He won't be "excruciatingly beautiful," "god-like," and "perfect" --but he'll be a living, breathing being who loves me -not Bella Swan."

So there is my opinion on Twilight. Please feel free to leave a comment, whether for or opposed to my ideas. I'd love to hear y'alls thoughts. :)