Books in the series (in order of release):
Twilight
New Moon
Eclipse
Breaking Dawn
Note: I am not including Midnight Sun in this review
Summary (of the first book)
Isabella Swan is not what you would call a fan of Forks, Washington, a rainy and always cloudy town. She's not too happy when she has to move there to live with her father, Charlie, who, like her, is quiet and distant. Before that point, she'd only seen him for a couple of weeks in the summer. She truly doubted how long she'd be able to last in this town when comparing it to her old town of Phoenix, Arizona.
Bella almost surrendered herself to her gloomy fate until she met the mysterious, and VERY gorgeous, Edward Cullen. With his pale, porcelain skin and his beautiful golden eyes, she felt immediately drawn to him and his equally beautiful family. What she didn't realize, however, is that they had a dark secret. One that could cause many problems and a lot of suffering for Bella.
As she begins to uncover the secrets, she starts to understand their appearances and odd behavior. She even starts seeing the danger. Despite all the warning signs and Edward himself telling her to not trust him, she couldn't help falling in love with him. Him, and all the problems he brought.
Opinion
Scale of 1-10:
9
If you've read any of my previous articles on these books, then you know that I am a HUGE Twilight fan. I am so devout that I even enjoy watching the movies! There are only a few things that I saw while re-reading this series that I didn't really enjoy about it. Despite those things I didn't like, I still think they did add to the drama, which is something that I absolutely LIVE FOR!
My favorite books out of the whole series are the first and the last books. The two in between were great but there were major aspects I didn't like. In the second one, Bella was insanely mopey to the point of the story-line getting boring for a little bit (that is until she started hanging with Jacob). It picked back up again though as we got further into the book. The third book was a lot better but still had one major thing I disliked. I am a big fan of Edward but in this book, he kind of got on my nerves. He was very protective of Bella to the point of it getting a little controlling. Of course, Stephenie Meyer made it clear to readers through Bella's thoughts and comments, that what he was doing is wrong so that young female readers won't think it's okay for a guy to be doing that. Not every guy in the real world has good intentions when they are controlling! Edward was thinking only of her safety but the way he went about it was poor. This did a good job of showing, though, that not even Edward was perfect. Edward's protectiveness got a lot better as the story went on so it made it a lot more entertaining.
I absolutely LOVED the last book in the series. It's even better than the first one in my opinion and I'm just so satisfied with the ending of this amazing and classic series. I liked seeing how Bella and Edward's relationship changed as they entered this whole new chapter of their lives together. I also really enjoyed how Jacob fit into their lives and how this book showed the whole reason for his attachment to Bella in the first place.
This series is something I always plan on telling people they should read. If you love fantasy and romance then this is definitely the series for you. Stephenie Meyer does an excellent job of making this a series for a large age range so many can enjoy it!
Age Rating
I will be including an age rating for each individual book in the series because I believe that the books have a varying rating:
Twilight
12+
This is surprisingly pretty appropriate for preteens. I think that if your child reads above their reading level, they could read this book, but 12+ is meant more for the average kid.
Language:
The only words said literally only a couple of times are "damn" and "hell". Again they aren't said more than twice in the book which I find refreshing that those are the only words.
Sexual Content:
There isn't a lot of sexual content. There are a couple of scenes where Bella feels a very intense attraction to Edward, especially when he kisses her. It's pretty much just feeling the need to have him closer to her, despite him not wanting to endanger her life.
Violence:
Violence is another thing that's kept to a minimum in the Twilight book. Blood is obviously a huge concept of the story and it's mentioned. Edward discusses hunting animals. It isn't until the end of the book that you really see any violence. Bella is attacked and many of her limbs are broken and it's said that there is blood everywhere but it's not graphically detailed.
New Moon
I believe that New Moon is overall the same when it comes to language, violence, and sexual content compared to the first book of the series. If you want to know specifics of what happens in this book then go see my article for New Moon. I will tell you though, it's virtually the same stuff as Twilight.
Eclipse
12-13+
This third book of the series is only slightly more mature than the previous books in my opinion because it touches more on the topic of sex. Despite that, I still kind of think it's perfectly fine for a kid to keep reading the series up to this book.
Language:
The only language that's sprinkled throughout the story are the words "damn", "hell", and "piss".
Sexual Content:
There is a little more sexual content in this book than the two previous books. There are the inevitable kissing scenes. They get pretty intense in this book, though. There is one scene where Bella and Edward talk about having sex but after some discussion, Edward refuses to do it until they are married. At the end of the book, they talk about it more and still come to the agreement to wait. There is also a part where Charlie, Bella's dad, tries to have the sex talk with her but it goes terribly and it's insanely awkward. Honestly, I think that scene was meant for mainly comical purposes.
Violence:
There is also quite a bit more violence in this book than the previous ones. There is a lot more fighting between vampires and between vampires and werewolves. There is a part where Bella cuts her arm to distract a bad vampire. There is a scene where vampires and werewolves are tearing apart other vampires who are trying to harm Bella. It describes the act of them tearing it apart. Since vampires don't have blood, it's not too disgusting to picture, in my opinion. Characters also sustain other injuries but it's nothing too graphically described.
Breaking Dawn
13+
Because of the more sexual content, I believe that 13+ is an appropriate age for the average reader. Stephenie Meyer never gets too graphic with her scenes so if you're confident with the maturity level of your child, then this book is perfectly fine for younger audiences.
Language:
There is never a lot of language in the Twilight books but there is every now and then. Those words are usually "damn", "hell", and "piss". These are especially evident when hearing from Jacob's POV because apparently he has a mouth on him.
Sexual Content:
Out of all four of the Twilight books, Breaking Dawn has, in my opinion, the most sexual content of them all. For the record, it is NEVER graphic in any way and she never shows anything beyond kissing. It is just discussed and Bella talks about how she feels after the fact. One character, Emmett, make multiple jokes about Edward and Bella's sex life, as well.
*SPOILER*
After Bella and Edward are married and their on their honeymoon, Bella is not yet changed into a vampire so becomes pregnant with a child that is half-vampire.
Violence:
Violence is almost nonexistent until right around the middle of the book when (spoilers!) Bella is giving birth to her and Edward's child. There is a lot of pain and blood is described to be everywhere. Bella's stomach must be cut open for the baby to get out. This is kind of a gruesome scene and it just honestly sounds painful when reading it.
Here are the links to each book on Goodreads:
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