This October, I was having a bit of a reading slump. I need to hit my reading goal for the year, but haven’t had any particular craving for a book lately. I am in what us nerds call a ‘fandom burnout’. There are so many shows on the list to watch, movies to go see, and books that have been piling up on my shelves that sometimes it gets a little overwhelming. What I needed this fall was something easy—something entertaining. Something to read (and audiobook) that would help me get back into the groove of consuming the media I like to.

My eyes then landed on Twilight. Yup, it was the perfect choice, and to everyone’s nerdy surprise, something I’ve never read before. Somehow, even in the tweenage and teen years of my life surrounded by dystopian and fantasy series, I never once read the most iconic vampires vs. werewolves love story there is. I will admit that I have watched all of the movies, but also didn’t get to those until a few years ago. So, this month, I can say that I have finally read, for the very first time, Twilight. And wow, what a journey.

Stephenie Meyer, you wrote some of the most awful shopping-list narrative descriptions I’ve ever had the pleasure of reading. But dammit, you somehow put crack into this book. I’m torn over good English-major minded literacy, awkward young adult writing, and the existence of Charlie Swan. I’ve been bitten—bitten by the Twilight bug.

“About three things I was absolutely positive. First, Edward was a vampire. Second, there was a part of him—and I didn’t know how potent that part might be—that thirsted for my blood. And third, I was unconditionally and irrevocably in love with him.”

OK, WHO ELSE THINKS THE CULLENS WENT AND SAW “INTERVIEW WITH THE VAMPIRE” IN THE THEATRE WHEN IT CAME OUT AND THOUGHT IT WAS HILARIOUS?

Let me start and disclose that I had to do a lot of research for this article. I don’t want anyone checking my search history for a while, okay? My Googling right now ranges from “what year was Edward Cullen born” to “vampire lore and trends in the 80s” to “do vampires need vaccines”. I’m honestly curious if Edward would have a little PTSD from dying of the Spanish Influenza and maybe want to get his flu shot? Just in case. . .

Needless to say, the idea of vampires is pretty captivating. I can see why something like Twilight took over so incredibly well in the 2000s. While I may not have grown up reading the series myself, but I did have an older sister who did. I can remember her reading and re-reading the books, talking about the movies, and burning discs with the music from the movie. The soundtrack from Twilight is honestly probably one of my most listened to albums because we played it in car so often—admittedly, it is a fantastic soundtrack. To and from school, the grocery store, running errands; that Linkin Park song followed us everywhere (I am referring to “Leave Out All The Rest”, of course).

I audio-booked Twilight to and from work, while cooking, doing chores, anything that gave my mind some space to listen. The most common reaction I had to this book while listening, honestly, was laughter. Not because it was bad, but because it was so bad that it was good. I was fully entertained listening to Bella’s rambles, hearing about how Edward “smiled her favorite crooked smile”, and raising eyebrows about how quick this relationship moved. Teens fall fast, I guess. Or in Edward’s case, 100 year-old men know when they’ve met the one.

JACOB VS. EDWARD . . . THERES NO OTHER OPTION, HONESTLY

I forgot that when you read a book series, it takes a lot of world building. The only thing I knew about Twilight before watching the movies, or reading the books, was that it was about a love triangle between Kristen Stewart, a vampire, and a werewolf. Yet, the first book of the series doesn’t really cover that triangle. It doesn’t even mention werewolves. Now, because I know that werewolves are going to be present eventually, I can see the foreshadowing and presence of them. However, when reading Twilight, I had to throw those expectations out of my mind and just get ready for an elusive, awkward girl to capture the attention of an elusive, awkward vampire.

Jacob, who is introduced in the first novel, is only a young teenage boy who follows the orders of his father, Billy, with no questions asked. He is too young to know anything about vampires, or werewolves (I think). He likes Bella, that much is clear enough that even Bella catches on to his feelings. At this point in the series though, there’s not really any competition between him and Edward. The two don’t like each other, but Jacob really isn’t a threat to Bella’s love life. She is very much infatuated with Edward, so much so that she even uses Jacob for information, knowing his feelings for her.

p.s. — I still can’t believe that I’m analyzing these things about Twilight 20 years after it was first released. No joke—Twilight was published and released on September 27th, 2005. Happy 20th anniversary!

TWENTY YEARS OF THE LAMB AND THE LION

“‘And so the lion feel in love with the lamb….'” he murmured. I looked away, hiding my eyes as I thrilled to the word.

“What a stupid lamb,” I sighed.

“What a sick, masochistic lion.”

My final thoughts on reading Twilight: it was fun, it was easy to digest, entertaining, and yes, I will be continuing on and reading New Moon next. There were definitely certain chapters of Twilight that were hard to listen to, mostly because these are books written for teenagers and not grown women like myself, and Bella was giving me second hand embarrassment. Chapter 23 of the book, wherein Bella thinks she is dead and believes Edward is an angel was particularly hard to listen to, with myself cringing every minute, but we persevered!

I’m definitely someone who is interested in lots of lore, so I am looking forward to reading New Moon and finding out more about the existence of vampires, werewolves, and of course, the Volturi. I’m sure we’ll find out more about the nonsense that exists in Forks, and also more about how Jacob becomes the next love interest (movie spoilers). Is this the book where he gets his haircut? Why does Edward decide to leave Forks? I honestly can’t remember, but I’m sure it’s for some self-sacrificing reason because him and Bell match each others crazy. Will Charlie Swan get more dialogue and development besides baseball and fishing? Fingers-crossed the answer is yes.

Find out more on my thoughts as I continue to read the Twilight series!

“Twilight, again. Another ending. No matter how perfect the day is, it always has to end.”