NOTES/THOUGHTS/REACTIONS:
Kind of another boring chapter. The cliff diving is seriously the only exciting thing happening and even that's dimmed by the knowledge that we all know she makes it and is dragged down by the fact that you seriously want Bella to GET THE HELL OVER IT. Or at least I do. I'm sorry if I sound unsympathetic but really, this girl has taken this to the extreme and I have little patience for the "my boyfriend just broke up with me how will I ever live with myself!" types. If Bella had moped around for a few weeks or so, I could understand. But seriously, it's been SIX MONTHS now. That is half a year. There comes a time when a person needs to wake up and say "Okay, now is the time to be able to stand on my own two feet and move on" Bella has passed that point a long time ago. Especially as I will again point out: this was not exactly a rough break up.
Okay, well, we open to Bella being stalked-I mean protected by Jacob and his pack. She is spending a lot of time at La Push though I notice there's never actual mention if she actually LIKES it there. Even Mike has noticed and is of course made out to be a resentful jealous baby. I have to comment on this wierd thing:
"I know,"I sighed. "Life is complicated."
"And girls are cruel," Mike said under his breath.
I supposed that was an easy assumption to make, too.
From New Moon, Chapter 15
First of all, huh? I don't get this at all. Second, he has a point. Bella is kind of basically leading Jacob on and she knows it but she's continuing to do so anyway and even worse, he kind of knows it and is letting her do so. But just because Bella doesn't like that Mike is pointing out her shortcomings, Mike is just being resentful and doesn't understand the situation. Now, no he doesn't get all the stuff, but he is right on the money about the leading Jacob on thing.
Anyway, Bella and Jacob spend more time together. There is more bad dialogue where Jacob emos about being a werewolf, Bella emos that she's messed up, and then they both emo about the two of them being messed up though Bella still says she's more messed up then Jacob. Okay, we get it Meyer. They have issues. It would also be more poigntant of you to SHOW us that these two have issues instead of having them lamenting that they have issues but I guess that would be asking too much.
Some notes on Meyer's werewolves that come up in the questioning: speed, body heat, heal really fast. Well, I will say this: at least her werewolves resemble werewolves. Though, I think they're more shapeshifters then werewolves as they can do it all the time instead of the full moon but that's probably just me. Also, at least Meyer gives some sort of reason for why all the stuff comes easily to Jacob: two of his relatives were part of the original werewolf pack.
More bad dialogue as the two start to talk about the Cullens and naturally, this causes Bella MORE pain...I've mentioned she needs to get over this, right? Okay. Then there's transition were she spends more time at Emily's place and both act like good little housewives cleaning, gardening etc. while the men go off and protect. Ye gods, I don't know, but I keep picturing these two and the wolf pack in Little House on the Prairie garb. Maybe because if I think of it in that time period, the way the women act in this book makes more sense and doesn't make me want to scream and wonder if Meyer realizes we are not in the sixties anymore.
Bad transition and then we cut to Bella and Jacob making a date to go cliff diving. Great Jacob, you've become an enabler. Just so you know, my opinion of Jacob has really sunk these last few chapters. I still like him a whole lot better then Edward (not that hard) but it's like Meyer just keeps holding back his character or is chipping away what little character he had as soon as we found out he was a werewolf. I think perhaps if he had stayed a regular human it would have been better. But then Bella can't date a NORMAL human, so of course he was made into a werewolf.
Anyway, fast forward next day. Bella gets to La Push and discovers the wolves are off fighting Victoria and is now all worried even though Billy has said what I've been saying: they obviously know what they're doing, she's being stupid. But what does he know, right? Probably a whole lot more then Bella knows, but that's beside the point. Bella goes and emos out on the beach and decides that she's going to cliff dive, with or without Jacob. Stupid move? Yes, it is.
I will say, this scene was a whole lot more powerful in the movie (even if it was, again, melodramatic). They actually SHOW the wolves fighting Victoria as well as Bella deciding that she's going to cliff dive. Plus, Victoria was also there as an added danger element but that's not here in the book and I this is more instance of where the movie is much better done. Yep, you heard me, I think the movie is better then the book. Not by much mind you, because the vamps still sparkle and Bella has no emotions on her face, but at least I don't get pages upon pages of bad prose describing an event that takes maybe a minute. Also, much less of Bella's whining.
So long story short: Bella jumps off cliff, hears Edwards voice and is happy, and then starts to drown. Her last thought being I love you to Edward. But fear not all, as there are two and a half books more to go in the series, Bella obviously makes it. Damn.
WORD LIST: dilute
POSSIBLE EDITS: It was Spring Break in Forks again. When I woke up on Monday morning, I lay in bed for a few seconds absorbing that.-These two sentences need to be put differently on the page because the way the grammer is makes it awkward. A better way would have been this: It was spring break in Forks again when I woke up on Monday morning. I lay in bed for a few seconds absorbing that.
I do spent most of my time with Jacob, though.-Spent should be SPEND.
GENERAL ANNOYANCES: I sat down on a patch of semidry rocks and curled up in a ball.-Putting aside how pathetic Bella is being again, how the hell does she know those are semidry rocks? What, she's a geology expert too? Just say she sat down on rocks.
The cliff diving did seema but stupid to me. I mean come off it - she has never in this book seemed like the kind of person who would do this.
ReplyDelete