Format:Audiobook, Unabridged Media:Audio CD Edition:Unabridged Reading Level:Young Adult Number Of Items:1 Shipping Weight (lbs):1 Dimensions (in):5.8 x 5.1 x 1.7
ISBN:0739367676 EAN:9780739367674 ASIN:0739367676
Publication Date:August 2, 2008 Availability:Usually ships in 1-2 business days
Amazon.com Review Great love stories thrive on sacrifice. Throughout The Twilight Saga (Twilight, New Moon, and Eclipse), Stephenie Meyer has emulated great love stories--Romeo and Juliet, Wuthering Heights--with the fated, yet perpetually doomed love of Bella (the human girl) and Edward (the vampire who feeds on animals instead of humans). In Breaking Dawn, the fourth and final installment in the series, Bella’s story plays out in some unexpected ways. The ongoing conflicts that made this series so compelling--a human girl in love with a vampire, a werewolf in love with a human girl, the generations-long feud between werewolves and vampires--resolve pretty quickly, apparently so that Meyer could focus on Bella’s latest opportunity for self-sacrifice: giving her life for someone she loves even more than Edward. How close she comes to actually making that sacrifice is questionable, which is a big shift from the earlier books. Even though you knew Bella would make it through somehow, the threats to her life, and to her relationship with Edward, had previously always felt real. It’s as if Meyer was afraid of hurting her characters too much, which is unfortunate, because the pain Bella suffered at losing Edward in New Moon, and the pain Jacob suffered at losing Bella again and again, are the fire and the heart that drive the whole series. Diehard fans will stick with Bella, Edward, and Jacob for as many twists and turns as possible, but after most of the characters get what they want with little sacrifice, some readers may have a harder time caring what happens next. (Ages 12 and up) --Heidi Broadhead
Product Description To be irrevocably in love with a vampire is both fantasy and nightmare woven into a dangerously heightened reality for Bella Swan. Pulled in one direction by her intense passion for Edward Cullen, and in another by her profound connection to werewolf Jacob Black, she has endured a tumultuous year of temptation , loss, and strife to reach the ultimate turning point. Her imminent choice to either join the dark but seductive world of immortals or pursue a fully human life has become the thread from which the date of two tribes hangs.
Now Bella has made her decision; a startling chain of unprecedented events is about to unfold with potentially devastating and unfathomable consequences. Just when the frayed strands of Bella's life--first discovered in Twilight, then scattered and torn in New Moon and Eclipse--seem ready to heal and knit together, could they be destroyed...forever?
The astonishing, breathlessly anticipated conclusion to the Twilight Saga, Breaking Dawn illuminates the secrets and mysteries of this spellbinding romantic epic.
Forbidden Love? What About Forbidden Conflict?December 4, 2008 1 out of 1 found this review helpful
The only time Bella really suffered was when Edward left in New Moon and during the birth scene. I admit that I only read mostly 2 out of the 3 parts of Breaking Dawn but I know everything that happens. However the book is awful. I have the same problems that all of the negative reviewers have, but I have a problem with something else also. The whole series is a dud. Nothing really happens. No one suffers (besides the two exceptions that I noted above). Every book follows the same pattern. 9/10ths of the book is eye candy and infaturation between Bella and Edward. During this, the story builds up to villain confrontation. Then the "Epic" battle scene takes place and lasts for only a few pages. It felt like Meyer swinging the baseball bat to strike a homerun but it ends with a bunt. After 500 pages, villains and heros take each other on, but it ends quickly. Meyer seems to only introduce her villains near the end rather the beggining. If she did introduce them in the beggining, there would be more struggle in the story and will keep the reader totaly hooked. Ex) "OH my gosh will the Human Torch prevent Dr. Doom from destroying the world?!" Have you ever been addicted like that to a tv show, movie, or book before? Probably. Have ever felt like that with Meyer's books? Did you ever feel an adrenaline rush and your own heart racing while watching a car chase scene? Did you ANYWHERE in Meyer's books? Did you feel and share the same feelings of victoy and suffering with characters like Bella or Charlisle? Most people don't in Meyer's stories. Meyer loves her characters too much to let anything exciting or dangerous happen to them. I'll give you an example. Edward constantly says to Bella that he can't be with Bella because that he is a "Vampire" and that he might try to suck her blood. This NEVER happens in the whole series. What if Edward really did attack Bella or even her father Charlie? This would have created so much healthy conflict for the story and would really improve the plot. The fact is that readers can't trust Meyer. It would hook them if Meyer actually proves that Bella and her loved ones are in fatal danger from her relationship with Edward. This would help the Twilght series live up to the title of " Forbidden Love".
Fluff and mistakesDecember 4, 2008 1 out of 1 found this review helpful
I gave the book two stars because the author knows how to write and how to entice a young audience by using "Romeo and Juliet" for her outline, but other than that, the series is all fluff and doesn't even include accurate information. For instance, who ever heard of an elk bull (not buck--that's deer) with two dozen points (and they're tines, not antlers)? Unbelievable! Someone needs to do a bit of research before they write stuff like that. Since it's a fantasy romance series, it really doesn't matter whether or not an imaginary vampire can impregnate the main character, etc., but at least the author should get real facts straight.
Other than that, everything in the story is predictable, the main character is so stupid, whiny and fragile that you want to slap her, and like other people mentioned, there's really no appeal to her whatsoever, so why would the other characters in the story find her so alluring? I hope teenage girls are smarter than this and don't look to this character as a hero.
The sad thing is that teenagers will infer from the book that people are liked because of their looks and not because they are of strong character or because they can communicate effectively with others. The lack of communication within relationships in the story was quite disturbing, but apparently that's why romances sell so well.
I Echo The Read it for Yourself CrowdDecember 4, 2008 0 out of 2 found this review helpful
I made the mistake of reading a lot of the reviews of this novel before it finally arrived in the mail. The conclusion I've come to is this: If you are fully engrossed in this saga, then Breaking Dawn will be a book you'll really enjoy. If you are of the mindset who read the stories in this series very critically and you are looking for things wrong, then that is all you will find.
I enjoyed this read. I liked the changes in the characters and the atmosphere. Meyer's writing was much tighter too. Even the ending wasn't as poorly done as so many have alluded to. My only wish is that the book didn't end. There is so much potential for more stories here and I hope Meyer will continue forward in that regard.
So ignore the bad reviews here and give this one a chance. I think you'll be pleasantly surprised. I know I was.
Perfect Ending...December 4, 2008 0 out of 2 found this review helpful
This is the best series I have ever read, and I can say that having lived through nearly all 4 sagas myself, I have come to appreciate Stephenie's compassion for her characters through writing.
Breaking Dawn encompasses the Love that was chosen from book 3, and committing to it. There is an endless array of emotions in this book, and I feel the older audience (or younger adults in their early 20s such as myself) would appreciate it a greater deal than the younger readers would.
Overall, the delicate details of this book is highly impressive, and I suggest you read it yourself before going with all the naysayers who honestly, may not have reached that stage in their life to appreciate the completeness of this last book.
BD doesn't live up to its promiseDecember 4, 2008 2 out of 2 found this review helpful
The beauty of Twilight, New Moon and Eclipse was the developing love, devotion and relationship between a vampire and a human. I loved Bella's flaws all-- of them. They made her endearing...human
I loved Edward's strength of character, maturity and his internal conflict in loving Bella. I loved his commitment to protecting her at all cost. I also loved the fact that he wanted Bella to live longer, to enjoy many human experiences that she would lose as a vampire. And I loved the sacrifices and dangers each of them face each day to love each other. It made their love and commitment special. It's what made the series so compelling.
All the things I loved about the Twilight series were sadly lacking in BD. I think Bella became a vampire too quickly and she lost all of the qualities that were so endearing. I missed her clumsiness and penchant for getting into trouble. I missed Edward's maturity and broodiness from the earlier books. The Bella and Edward that emerged in BD were not the couple that kept me hooked on this series.
BD was just too long and too confusing at times. The book introduced too many characters and twist and turns. I eventually had to skim through pages just to finish the book.
BD really missed the mark with Bella and Edward. I missed the interaction, love and growth of Bella and Edward as a couple. There were so many plots, twists and turns that Bella and Edward's love story became secondary to everything going on.
