[Review] Midnight Sun

Dear Reader,

Do you remember the vampire movie Twilight? Even though it has been over a decade since the shiny Cullen clan sparkled on the silver screen, I bet you still remember Bella Swan, werewolves, and awkward high school drama. If you are a fan of the series, you’ve probably already heard that the author, Stephanie Meyer, released the book Midnight Sun, which is the action of Twilight retold from Edward’s point of view instead of Bella’s.

I was initially skeptical about reading Midnight Sun. Although Twilight still has a place in my heart (more here), my vampire novel days are many years behind me. Regardless, I decided to listen to the Midnight Sun audiobook.

Immediately, from the first page, I was re-immersed in the twilight-verse. We find Edward, the 104-year-old vampire, bored and brooding in the cafeteria of the Forks, Washington area high school. From his thoughts, it is clear that the teenage heartthrob is both a man and a monster. We are quickly introduced to the other adolescent members of Edward’s family (Rosalie, Emmet, Alice, and Jasper) and hear rumors about the new girl, Isabella (Bella) Swan, through Edward’s ability to read minds.

To me, the novelty of this book is the fact that the reader can experience all the action of Twilight through Edward’s point of view. This unique aspect, in my opinion, loses its luster only after a few chapters as we realize 90% (my opinion, not an actual calculation) of Midnight Sun is a retelling of the Twilight book. So, if you are a fan of the original series and you read Midnight Sun, you are already expecting the scene with Tyler Crowley’s truck in the school parking lot, the night out in Port Angeles, and the baseball game with the Cullen family. All of the events that were surprising and dramatic in Twilight are expected and anticipated by the reader in Midnight Sun. Knowing what happens when leaves little for the reader to get excited for.

Midnight Sun does have some nice additions. Without giving anything away, I will say that because Edward and Bella are not literally joined at the hip for the entire first book, there are plenty of instances where we observe an independent Edward and his dealings. Additionally, there is some action that Bella is completely absent from in Twilight that play out in great detail in Midnight Sun.

Knowing the overarching plot of Midnight Sun in advance of reading it allowed me to focus on (read “get distracted by”) some extra-scenario elements of the book. For example, I thought a lot about Edward’s thought process. In my opinion, he overthinks things and is a worrier. He questions and examines everything concerning Bella always. Another thing I noticed was the overuse of the word “agony.” This one stood out to me strongly because the Midnight Sun audiobook reader says the word “agony” like “egg-ony” every single time….

If you are just thirsting for another Twilight book, then you should check out Midnight Sun! If not, you won’t be missing anything significant.

Happy reading!

Love,

Raven