Reviews

Midnight Sun by Stephenie Meyer

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xilefakzena's review against another edition

challenging mysterious reflective sad slow-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Character
Strong character development? It's complicated
Loveable characters? It's complicated
Diverse cast of characters? No
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.25

Come on Edward. We know you hate yourself. Seems like Stephenie Meyer wrote this as a redemption/explanation for why E leaves in New Moon, which kinda ruined it for me. It does have some behind the scenes from Twilight which was enjoyable.

jordongmc's review against another edition

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3.0

As a person who grew up reading the books and watching the films throughout my teenage years, this series will always have a special place in my heart. I know it’s not amazingly written, but I think nostalgia allows me to forgive that... With that being said I will start with the bad points... I found this book incredibly long and meandering. I felt like it was just the same thing over and over and over again. Edward wanting to kill Bella, but he loves her, but he wants to kill her, but he doesn’t, he’s hurting her, she’s better off without him, etc. The self pity from Edward was off putting. This book actually made me kind dislike him as a character. But now for the good points... hearing other characters thoughts, especially when they’re unaware that Edward can hear them, was hilarious. This book made me fall in love with the Cullen family even more than I already was... Alice and Emmett are standouts for me. Edwards hatred for Mike was hilarious and honestly, justified. Horny murderous Edward was funny, I won’t lie. The bottom line is I enjoyed this book, I just felt it could it been half the size. 756 pages was completely unnecessary in my opinion. That being said will I read anything else Stephenie Meyer puts out that is within the Twilight world? Absolutely. I would love a book from Alice’s perspective, or a book from Carlisle’s perspective, his life story.

rachaelreverie's review against another edition

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3.0

I read the original Twilight what feels like ages ago. I enjoy hearing Edward’s perspective. Stephanie did amazing expanding on the family and their thoughts which I liked. I wish the end would have looped in more of new moon since he really wasn’t involved in that book much. Kind of tie in where he leaves and what he sets off doing would have been a good touch I think.

indigoblue777's review against another edition

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4.0

4.5 stars

When I got this book in the mail, I was so out-of-my-mind excited that I then spent the entire night binge-reading it.
I have complex feelings about this book because of its unique nature. I reread the partial draft version that was online a few weeks before as preparation, but it's not fair to compare the draft to the book. Still, I can't help myself, and there are a few minor changes they made to the book that I liked better before in the draft. There are also some very nice changes in the final copy.
If you've read the draft enough times, as I have, you will be able to see the first half of the book from the eyes of the editor. Why was this section deleted? Did it have a different meaning than intended? Does adding this section here make it more clear why Edward's so conflicted?

I know, without a doubt, that this book will be one of those comfort reads that I pick up after a few months and skip around to my favorite parts to reread when I'm sad or lonely or tired or frustrated or wistful or questioning.

Some things I want to mention:
-If you don't like Twilight, you are not going to suddenly turn into a Twilight fan by reading this book.

Spoiler

-There are some interesting moments where Edward dwells on information that is glossed over in Twilight. For example, there is a whole chapter of Edward asking Bella personal questions about herself that Bella ignores in Twilight. In Midnight Sun, Edward relishes each question and answer. This reveals a lot of personal things about Bella, such as specifically which books and movies are her favorites. Some of the pop-culture references are intended to make Bella seem more relatable and make her character more fleshed out and likable.

-Edward also mentions that the events of Midnight Sun are set in 2005. The setting of the story is more important now than it was when Twilight was released. Because I grew up with Twilight, I don't question the lack of smartphones, computers, and other technological advancements, and it felt strange for the story to mention the year or for the characters to date the story by discussing media only available at the time. For younger readers, Twilight and Midnight Sun might feel somewhat foreign because it is set in a world they have never experienced.

-Edward's head is so spacious that he reminisces frequently about the Cullens' history as a vampire family, interrupting the main story. I still don't know how I feel about this, to be honest. It was a bit jarring to be ripped away from the main story so often, but it was also nice that Meyer included these scenes that have not been included elsewhere in the Twilight Saga canon.

-The ending foreshadows the beginning of New Moon. Edward is sad but resolved to leave Bella alone for her own safety.
I originally wasn't one of the people pushing for an Edward POV New Moon, Eclipse, and Breaking Dawn. But Midnight Sun's ending was painful to witness, especially after seeing the beauty and exultation of Edward's love after the meadow scene. I was surprisingly frustrated, wanting to hear him get his eventual happy ending. I wanted to show him, like Alice seeing the future, that leaving Bella wouldn't help, and that there were a lot of crazy things that were going to happen but he and Bella were going to be ok.

6/29/2022 - Review part 2 written, but I haven't read Midnight Sun in a sec, so fingers crossed my memory serves me well.

I was originally thrilled that this book was in print so that I would no longer have to rely on the online version of Midnight Sun. However, I'm not going to delete my copy of the Midnight Sun draft, because my favorite line from the draft was cut from the book.

I am so sad that this line was cut, but I also can see why. It makes Edward seem like a stalker.

The Twilight Saga has gotten a lot of hate because Edward and Bella promote unhealthy relationships.

Midnight Sun, the book, is clearly written to fight against this imagery. After the Twilight Saga ended, Stephanie Meyer could not do anything to change the public's image of Edward being a creep. However, Midnight Sun is written so many years later, that Meyer is able to mold Edward's story to lessen his creepiness.

I can hear in my head the editor's voice, saying:

Editor: Stephanie, how can we redeem Edward for our readers? How can we justify or change Edward's creepy decisions?

Meyer: I know what to do! Let's add an overarching Hades and Persephone metaphor. And we'll increase Edward's self-loathing and brooding!

Editor: Okay, that's good, that's good. Now, how can we make Bella less of a Mary Sue?

Meyer: I think I should flesh out that one chapter where Bella tells Edward about herself. That'll give me the opportunity to add little details about Bella that make her unique and quirky!

Editor: Good, good, and it also will give you the opportunity to divert from the path of the original story. You can add more redeeming Edward stuff there too! But that's not enough to make Bella a unique and special character!

Meyer: Ummm... how about this? I keep getting criticism for Renee's parenting skills. What if I explain that Renee forced Bella into a parental position and that it was abuse?

Editor: Perfect!

Midnight Sun is clearly written from a 2020 perspective. 2020 hindsight hahaha.

In conclusion, I will be keeping both my PDF of Midnight Sun the draft, and my massive copy of Midnight Sun the book.