From the Ashes - New Moon

From the Ashes is a somewhat regular feature here at Somewhere Only We Know. I don't schedule these posts weekly or monthly, just do them as the situation fits. From the Ashes is my way of reviewing books I've read before I started my blog and therefore have not been reviewed on Somewhere Only We Know before. I am re-reading these books before my From the Ashes review.

So without further ramblings, today's From the Ashes review is of New Moon (Twilight, # 2) by Stephenie Meyer. (Here is my From the Ashes review of Twilight.)

****There will be spoilers for those who have never read New Moon****

New Moon (Twilight, # 2)

By: Stephenie Meyer

Published: September 6th 2006 by Little, Brown and Company

563 pages

Source: Personal Library, Own Hardback & Audiobook

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Goodreads description--For Bella Swan, there is one thing more important than life itself: Edward Cullen. But being in love with a vampire is even more dangerous than Bella ever could have imagined. Edward has already rescued Bella from the clutches of one evil vampire, but now, as their daring relationship threatens all that is near and dear to them, they realize their troubles may be just beginning....

Legions of readers entranced by New York Times bestseller Twilight are hungry for the continuing story of star-crossed lovers Bella and Edward. In New Moon, Stephenie Meyer delivers another irresistible combination of romance and suspense with a supernatural spin. Passionate, riveting, and full of surprising twists and turns, this vampire love saga is well on its way to literary immortality.

As I did in my From the Ashes review of Twilight, what I focused on the most with New Moon this time through was things that I'd forgotten or things that hit me specifically through this reading of New Moon.

I've lost count, but I do believe this is my 7th or 8th time reading through New Moon, but it's been probably 4 or 5 years since the last time I read it.

Here are the things I didn't remember or hit me during this reading:

1) Despite knowing and understanding WHY Bella feels the way that she does (hating to get older while Edward is frozen at the same age), the whining about her birthday was a bit much for me this go ‘round. And while I understand not wanting to celebrate your growing age, geez, just get over it already and enjoy some birthday cake and presents. Sheesh!

2) I totally missed most of Edward’s speech before he left Bella in the forest because I was listening to the audiobook version at work and my attention was being pulled away. :(

3) The formatting of the months passing by still brings me chills. I remember the first time I saw it while reading New Moon and thought it was brilliant. It’s still brilliant and has just as much impact on the audiobook. They space the reading of each month out just far enough so you can feel the void each passing month brought to Bella. Extremely well played.

4) And despite having been through this series more than a half a dozen times, this was the first time I realized that Bella and Jessica go see the “twilight showing” of the zombie movie in Port Angeles. I LOVE IT! (I’m sure most of you picked up on that much sooner than I did.)

5) I always crack up when Bella meets Quil and Embry for the first time. What with the muscle flexing and all. It’s the little things.

6) I forget how big Jacob was in the books too. Not just buff, but tall. Bless Taylor Lautner's heart, he's just not very tall.

7) Something I might have noticed before, but definitely noticed this time…After the illustrious papercut incident which we all know put into motion the series of events for New Moon, Edward tells Bella that if she’d gotten hurt with any of her normal friends it wouldn’t have been a big deal. Right? Yes, we all know that. So then Bella totally cracks her head learning how to ride motorcycles with Jacob and he asks her “why are you apologizing for bleeding?” Well not that Jacob believes the vampire stories at this point (“it’s just a scary story.” BAHAHAHAHA—my real life friends will get that and hear my mocking voice), but it’s still a huge contrast between what Bella can do around Jacob versus what she could do around Edward. Why was she apologizing for bleeding, Jacob? Well because just a few short months ago, she was hanging out with peeps who wanted to suck her dry without even seeing a drop of her blood. Of course she’d be in the habit of apologizing for doing the very thing that once ripped her life apart. Bleeding.

8) Love the double meaning conversation before Bella, Mike, and Jacob go to the movies. Jacob asks if Mike still confused about being Bella’s boyfriend. Bella says some people are hard to persuade (meaning Jacob and Mike both), and Jacob changes strategy and says that sometimes persistence pays off. BAHAHAHAHA! Nice!

9) I'd forgotten how Bella couldn't know that her reunion with Edward was just as welcome on his side as it was for her because she thought he didn't want her. In the past, I found it unbelievable that she couldn't see the truth of it all and know that Edward wouldn't go off and commit suicide because he didn't care about her and just because he felt guilty and all. But this time around, I understood more of how she might think that way.

10) I'd also forgotten that Marcus had a gift too--of seeing relationships.

11) And I guess finally, New Moon used to be my least favorite Twilight book, and I'm sure many people would say the same. Why? Well because there is very little Edward. But I've come to really appreciate New Moon. Bella grows the most as a character in New Moon, more than in any other book. Edward and Bella both come to realize how much they truly feel for each other because that love is tested by fire--granted it's a fire from Edward's own making, but still. New Moon still might not be my favorite, but it's not my least favorite for the same reasons as it used to be. There's much more to it than meets a first glance.

So that's it for my From the Ashes review of New Moon. New Moon gets 4 Stars from me at this point. What do you guys think? Was New Moon your least favorite Twilight book? Have you re-read it? And if so, did that change your opinion? Let me know!