My journey into the past is complete now that I’ve finished reading Breaking Dawn by Stephenie Meyer. This is the fourth book in the Twilight saga. I have reviewed the other three and I recommend reading those posts before this one. This review will have spoilers. Let’s get into the synopsis!

Synopsis:

“Don’t be afraid,” I murmured. “We belong together.”

I was abruptly overwhelmed by the truth of my own words.
This moment was so perfect, so right, there was no way to doubt it.
His arms wrapped around me,
holding me against him….
It felt like every nerve ending in my body was a live wire.

“Forever,” he agreed.

My Thoughts:

Breaking Dawn has always been my favorite book in the series. It’s the longest and the most adult, though, still solidly YA. The book begins with Bella marrying Edward and even though I’ve read this book multiple times, my over emotional self still teared up. From there, they head off on their honeymoon and the impossible happens… Bella gets pregnant.

I clearly remember reading that part for the first time and being stunned. Teenage me thought that Meyer had created the most brilliant plot twist to ever be written. I still think it adds a lot of interesting drama to the story but the mechanics of the whole thing are a little sketchy. Eh, just suspend disbelief and go with it.

Bella’s pregnancy and the birth of Renesmee are simply brutal. I’ve talked about my love for Meyer’s writing many times and I think this section of the book really proves how talented of a writer she is. There’s nothing truly graphic, per se but the description of Bella’s spine being broken by the baby and then the birth scene after is pretty horrific. It’s honestly one of the best scenes in the entire series, in my opinion.

My only true issue with this book is what comes after the birth of Renesmee. I wasn’t a fan of this the first time I read the book and I’m still not; Jacob imprinting on Renesmee is REALLY creepy. Of course, I wanted Jacob to get his happy ending but I hate that it’s with Bella’s daughter. He was only as close to Bella as he was because of an egg in her ovary that would one day be her daughter… that is a level of weird that I just can’t get behind. I’m not sure how Meyer could have given him a satisfying ending without doing this but there had to have been some other way.

The rest of the book leading up to the final confrontation with the Volturi is really good and I’ve always loved Bella as a vampire. I do wish things would have been a little harder for her, however. There could have been some interesting moments of conflict and tension but instead, Bella adapts to being a vampire immediately. Her “voice” as a vampire is really no different than when she was a human. As for the final battle, I wish it would have had a little more oomph. Nothing really happens other than a heated discussion. However, even with those complaints, this is still my favorite book of the series.

Final Thoughts:

I have had so much fun reading this series again! It’s really made me want to read some of my other older favorites. I AM planning to review all of The Mortal Instruments series and its various spin offs at some point. That series had my heart even more than Twilight. What is your oldest favorite book or series? Thanks for reading and have a great day!