Level: YA
Recommended Age: 15+
Genres: Paranormal, Romance
Tags: Paranormal, Romance, Vampires
Mature Content:

  - -Moderate violence: Physical attacks, details of injuries, allusions to rape and murder.

  - Moderate sexuality: Kissing scenes and allusions to sex.

  - Mild language: Minimal swearing.

Edward and Bella’s love story is now told from Edward’s perspective, with more insights into the Cullen family and vampires. Edward has never really connected with humans, not since becoming a vampire over a century ago, and graduating high school way too many times hasn’t changed that.

Until he meets Isabella Swan.

How can anyone be so fascinating and yet so utterly tempting? Edward has never been interested in any girl, and to fall in love with a human is a true mark of insanity. Midnight Sun explores Edward’s constant internal struggle over his love for Bella and his desire to protect her, despite being a little behind on modern social norms. In this version of the romance that sparked a new interest in paranormal romance, we get to delve into Edward’s reasons behind his actions and how Bella changes his immortal life.

Review:

This story is much more interesting from Edward’s point of view, mostly because of the additional backstory with his family and their past. I don’t remember Twilight perfectly, it’s been a solid decade since I last read it, but Edward and Bella’s romance seems a good bit different in this version. One thing is very clear, Edward is a vampire who not only can’t figure out how to be human again but never moved past the mind set of the early 1900s. So essentially he is a grandpa immortal teenager with serious social anxiety.

It’s a long and introspective read full of Edward thinking in circles and mentally torturing himself while being in love. The scenes with Bella are padded with Edward’s internal monologue, as well as bits and pieces of the Cullen family’s background. This helps differentiate Midnight Sun from Twilight in a way that makes it a new story.

Edward and Bella are both very serious and intense, so it’s fun to read more about other characters to provide more humor and quirks. Because Edward can read minds, we get to understand everyone a bit better. Bella’s friends are equally interested in her as the new kid in town, and jealous that the untouchable Cullens notice her as well. But most of all, it’s interesting to read about Edward interacting with his siblings in a mix of thoughts and spoken words. He can see the visions that pop into Alice’s head as they happen. He knows when Jasper is struggling with his diet or Rosalie is plotting revenge. This family has been together for close to a hundred years, sticking together and choosing to live among humans despite the fact that they cannot possibly pass as normal.

It’s an interesting dynamic, even more so than the sweeping romance that this series is famous for. There is so much that Edward protects Bella from, and so much that he thinks that he does not say. His moral dilemma and anxious nature make this a much longer book than expected, though the glimpses into everyone’s thoughts and extra details on the Cullens helps mix things up. Anyone with anxiety might struggle with this one, Edward’s mind is not for the faint of heart. But it’s a fun nostalgic read for anyone who was entrenched in the Twilight era 15 years ago, especially for Team Edward fans.