Twilight

Being one of the last to jump on the proverbial Twilight bandwagon, I’m sure there are far more suitable people to write about these novels. Considering I’ve only read the one and seen the first movie, there most definitely are better people. However, when asked for my opinion on the books and why I haven’t read the others (not that I won’t but I have a tendency to put things off, hence why it took me fours years to read the first one), I’m led back to the same reason.

You see, I don’t mind Twilight per say. I think it makes an interesting Harlequin Romance novel, but an actual piece of adventure fiction? Not really. I don’t see it as a young adult’s novel. Compared to Emily Rodda and Tamora Pierce it’s tripe as a young novel. But when viewed as an HQ novel? It’s honestly not bad.

Unfortunately it keeps being advertised as a great adventure nove when it’s really romance. Halfways decent romance, but nothing that could actually be considered a serious piece of literature. I think I’d have less of a problem with the book if I had gone into it knowing it was romance. Instead, I was expecting a strange plot (a seriously strange plot) but hopefully with enough kickass vampire action to make it worth reading. I got romance and sap instead. I don’t mind sap, but not when I’m expecting vampire action. So it was disappointing in that regard.

Anytime anyone asks me my opinion on Twilight, this is basically what they’ll get: Good as an HQ novel, bad as an action-adventure novel. So on a whole I give the book a “meh”. It’s not bad but it’s not good enough to deserve the cult following it’s garnered. There are far more interesting well-written novels and romance novels should stay where they’re supposed to: in the HQ section that you browse when regular fantasizing doesn’t work and you need help from cheesy plot-lines and dialogue with a romantic ending that will never actually happen in real life and just give you too-high expectations as to what real romance is like.

On *that* shelf. The one you turn to when you’re looking for pathetic perfect airheads and overly-macho perfect males that just want to *protect the female*. The novel you feel that small sense of self-deprication over reading but you just can’t help yourself because life has honestly gotten to that pathetic point where you need “never-gonna-happen” romance to distract you from the utter wasteland real-life romance is. The bog of real-life you’re trying to sludge through that horrible romance novels distract you from by giving you this nice little bubble to live in for a few hours before the bog jabs it with a stick and you’re stuck helplessly trudging again. I sometimes find myself longing for a good pair of rubber boots somedays.

Unfortunately, being one of those who doesn’t hate the book, but doesn’t love it, leaves me in the precarious “in-between” situation where both Twilight fans and Twilight haters are frustrated and angry that I can’t just make up my mind...

Rather similar to what I go through when I tell people I’m bisexual. So at least I’ve had practice in that regard.

However, this is honestly how I feel about Twilight. It’s HQ. That’s it, that’s all and I wish people would stop trying to tell me it’s anything else. I enjoyed the novel, but only because by the first few chapters (re: chapter one), I recognized it for the HQ novel that it was and had fun laughing at the rest of the unbelievable plot until I finished it.

So make of it what you will. I will not disregard Twilight nor will I praise it. I enjoyed the book, which honestly is more than I can say of some novels.


Listening to: 'Save You From The Dark (Legend of Zelda Original Song)' - JC Van Luyn feat. Docjazz4

Hauntingly beautiful, made even better by knowing it's a collaboration of Zelda themes.