Eclipse Special Edition (The Twilight Saga) | 
 enlarge | Author: Stephenie Meyer
Publisher: Little, Brown Young Readers
Category: Book
List Price: $19.99
Buy New: $9.00
You Save: $10.99 (55%)
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Rating:  893 reviews
Sales Rank: 1386
Media: Hardcover
Edition: Special
Reading Level: Young Adult
Pages: 672
Number Of Items: 1
Shipping Weight (lbs): 1.7
Dimensions (in): 8.3 x 5.8 x 2.2
ISBN: 0316036293
EAN: 9780316036290
Publication Date: May 31, 2008
Availability: Usually ships in 1-2 business days
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Product Description
In the dead silence, all the details suddenly fell into place for me with a burst of intuition. Something Edward didn't want me to know. Something that Jacob wouldn't have kept from me...It was never going to end, was it?
Readers captivated by Twilight and New Moon will easily devour Eclipse, the third book in Stephenie Meyer's riveting vampire love saga. This Special Edition of the #1 New York Times bestseller includes:
- The first chapter of Breaking Dawn, the highly anticipated final book in the Twilight Saga.
- A limited-edition, full-color print
- Two exclusive Eclipse-inspired t-shirt transfers.
Give in to temptation...
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| Customer Reviews: Read 888 more reviews...
 Eclipse brings us back to Forks and Twilight August 7, 2007
Amy Wallace (San Rafael, CA United States)
184 out of 217 found this review helpful
Twilight introduced us to Bella Swan and the mysterious Cullen's a family of vampires. New Moon pulled Bella and Edward Cullen apart, and tested their love and introduced us to Jacob and the battle between wolves and vampires. It also left us hanging with a decision about Bella and immortality: when?
Eclipse is different. We return to the town of Forks and find that nothing much has changed. Graduation is closer than ever (after which, the Cullen's have agreed to make Bella a vampire) and a serial killer is loose in Seattle. Bella cannot see Jacob, her best friend because he is a Werewolf, and due to her ties to the vampires, it would break treaties and bonds made between them.
As the days go by, and graduation gets closer and closer, Bella must choose her fate. She wants to become immortal and be with Edward, but she must give up her family to do so. She is also worried about the change: will she be able to be "vegetarian" like the Cullen Family, and refrain from human blood? Or will her new blood lust cause her to kill innocent people?
The serial killer that is in Seattle turns out to be supernatural: newborn vampires on the loose. This brings up even more issues for Bella and her decision to become immortal. Not that anything could ever persuade her to give Edward up, but it makes the choice more difficult by showing her the realities of becoming a vampire.
Without spoiling the plot: Jacob wants more from Bella too, which makes the choice even more difficult. Must Bella choose between the love of her life and her best friend?
Eclipse is yet another installment of a series I desperately hope will continue. I want to continue watching the characters grow and change, and find out what their lives will unfold to be like. I am already anxious for the next in the series! Write more, Stephenie Meyer!
Melts in your mouth August 7, 2007
J. Schmidt (USA)
119 out of 148 found this review helpful
Reading the third installment in the Twilight series was as satisfying to me as munching through a bag of dark chocolate M&Ms. The big ones.
Because, after all, Eclipse is BIG--629 pages--and in this volume of the story about Bella Swan, a mortal teenager, and vampire Edward Cullen, several big What If questions are explored: What if Bella decides once-and-for-all to become a vampire like Edward; how can she possibly know when she's ready? What if Edward relents and redraws his "many careful lines" for his physical relationship with Bella? What would it look like if something so evil were to terrorize the Olympic Peninsula that Bella's good vampires and her werewolf friends had to try to unite to fight it, despite their ancient animosity? And how would Bella's closest friend Jacob, probably the swiftest of the Quileute werewolves, compete with her supposedly true love Edward for her eternal devotion?
Once again, Stephenie Meyer has written a compelling and often humorous sequel set in the lush environment surrounding the small town of Forks, Washington. Her colorful characters feel like real people rather than types--a big thing for me. And what situations could've been written morosely or indelicately came off instead as, well, as a kind of sensuous elegance. Even though the more private moments of pain or pleasure were described honestly, with realistic detail, they weren't stripped of their intimacy by such telling. That impressed me. And there are lots of these kinds of moments throughout the book. I just ate it up.
One thing that might bog down readers is the tremendous amount of backstory that must be covered in order for the action and some characters' points of view to make sense. It makes for a lot of exposition (as opposed to plain ol' action), even when the stories are coming out of the characters' mouths. But at least the stories are told in varied styles, according to the characters relating them, so monotony is not an issue. It's just a LOT of information to keep straight.
Even so, unlike a bag of M&Ms, Eclipse did not give me a bellyache once I finished it. It has left me wanting more. And so I wait for book four...
Obsession- Preface of Breaking Dawn and First Chapter June 1, 2008
4ever1 (NOVA,)
67 out of 68 found this review helpful
This review is about the first chapter and preface of Breaking Dawn - sold in the special edition of Eclipse. Stephenie Meyer gives us a sneak peak into what looks to be another wonderful addition to the Twilight series. The preface is intriguing and makes us wonder who Bella is with while she is thinking such dark thoughts. Clearly, this is another book about obsession. The first chapter is awesome. We see Bella has matured and is walking toward her chosen path trying to keep her head held high. The first chapter was unexpected as well. What is great about the first chapter is that Bella is alone outside her house engaged in an activity. Bella hasn't been alone since the middle of New Moon so this was an interesting scene.
This sneak peak also gave us the reactions of Charlie and Renee to Bella and Edward's news and through Bella's memories we see how Charlie reacted when Bella and Edward told him of their plans. Unexpectedly, we see a friendship has formed between Esme and Renee amidst all the planning and Seth and Edward have remained friendly.
We also get a bit of information about what Jacob has been up to since receiving Edward's invitation at the end of Eclipse. For Jacob fans this might be upsetting. There is enough vagueness to make one think Jacob will have a pivotal role in the fourth book in the series and the last book from Bella's perspective.
It is disappointing that the publisher won't allow the author to post these chapters to her website which is seemingly related to them trying to get teenagers and adults to purchase Eclipse a second time. This marketing ploy is a tad upsetting. These books have sold very well on the first round and to try and get people to buy the book a second time because "we" are obsessed with these characters is a bit over the top and it appears a bit unethical. Actually, the behavior of the publishing company is a bit predatory. Personally, I went to the book store and read the chapters there and I recommend you all do the same. Breaking Dawn will be out soon enough and why pay for the first chapter twice and Eclipse twice?
I work hard to earn my money, don't you?
A bizzarre love triangle; or, Bella finds her groove August 10, 2007
T. Burger (Chicago)
16 out of 24 found this review helpful
My favorite moment in Eclipse occurred on page 10. Charlie says to Bella, "For a teenager, you're amazingly non-whiney." Given that the majority of complaints people have about Twilight and New Moon revolve around Bella being whiney and possessed by an extraordinary amount of angst, I found Ms. Meyer's tongue-in-cheek reaction to her critics marvelous. If that's not a perfect example of someone who doesn't take themselves too seriously and can laugh at (perhaps) their own shortcomings, I don't know what is. Charlie's comment brought a smile to my face, and renewed the respect that I have for Ms. Meyer.
One thing that is very much appreciated is the conspicuous absence of Bella being a complete and utter clutz. While cute and endearing for a time, it grew old with even the staunchest fans. In this book she isn't falling all over herself and causing flash avalanches (to speak figuratively). That said, virtually everyone still growls and glowers. That should be addressed. Not every character is going to react the same way.
In Eclipse, we are brought back to Forks, and given the events of New Moon and the return of Edward, we know immediately that we're going to be in for some leg hiking and territory-marking. And, wouldn't you know, there's gobs of it.
In between the "spraying", we get a lot of back history. We learn about how Jasper turned, how Rosalie turned, how the werewolves came to be - and much more. For the first three hundred pages the book reads more like what I'll call "fun homework". Some setup occurs, with regard to the eventual plot and conflict, but the setup is mentioned almost in passing and in very soft hints. If what Ms. Meyers was telling us wasn't already information we were dying to know, we might have been bored (I assume that some people were). I wasn't, although I did find myself snapping my fingers, saying, "OK, point made...let's get going."
One plot line that begins to develop isn't so much a plot line as it is realization. Jacob is in love with Bella. We've known this since Twilight; it's no secret to us. It's also no secret to everyone in the books whose name isn't Bella. She has chosen to pretend that the Jacob she got to know in Twilight, and the one who was there to pick up her pieces in New Moon when Edward left her, is still the Jacob of Eclipse and that's not the case. Jacob has had time to ponder his emotions and feelings, and to probe their depths. He's also learned how to play dirty, and is very manipulative with Bella. We spend a disproportionate amount of time examining his feelings for her, as well as - gasp - her feelings for him!
That's where I ran into trouble. I read Twilight (more like devoured), and sped through New Moon. Like everyone else, I knew what Jacob felt. What I didn't know - and what I still am having difficulty believing - is that Bella loved Jacob back. The Jacob in this book was a sad shadow of the immensely lovable teen we met in Twilight. The wolf has wound its tendrils into his soul, and he is changed. It's not for the better. I'm not sure what this says about the werewolf in general, and for as much backstory that we received about how they came to be, I still felt (as I did in New Moon) that I didn't "see" the werewolves as clearly as I did the vampires. When that occurs in fiction, it's often the result of the author feeling much more in tune with one or the other. The vampires we know. Everything about them, from their impossible beauty (is everyone that's bitten/turned truly model material?) to their individual talents and idiosyncrasies. Since we spent so much time with the wolves in New Moon, and again here in Eclipse, something more than their pack mentality and the different colors of their fur would have been helpful.
Realize, please, that I'm not saying that the werewolves were a failure. I'm saying that they're not as fully realized as the vampires, and I wish they were. They come across to me as two-dimensional, whereas the vampires are multi-dimensional.
Ms. Meyer tells a terrific story here. It's a carryover from New Moon with a fascinating twist that gives further depth to the vampires: someone is creating *new* vampires in Seattle, and they are going on a killing spree to rival the Green River Killer. Bella plays an interesting role, although it leads to expressions of angst that some may find off-putting. (I didn't.) Eventually the realization is made that in order to quell the problem in Seattle before the Volturi become involved, the Cullens need to take action. But they won't be enough. They'll need the help of the wolves.
That's where the true genius of this story lies. Vampires and werewolves are often (if not always) depicted as blood enemies, so to force them to work together, even if it is against a common enemy, takes quite a bit of doing. Thankfully, Bella is able to supply the motivation. Seems that everybody wants a piece of her. Figuratively and literally. The resultant action sequences are tense and well told.
And during this action, there's quite the love triangle. Imagine Bella sleeping in a tent with Edward and Jacob, and in this tent is a sleeping bag. Put Jacob and Bella in that sleeping bag. Put Edward outside of it. Something he does willingly. Tricky stuff, yet deftly and well handled by Ms. Meyer. Frankly, I can't say enough good about how she handled the varied love interests (even if I don't buy the reasoning behind it).
So, what's wrong with Bella loving Jacob? Well, she loves Edward. And that's pretty much all we've heard for the last two books. Edward is her heart, her soul, her eternity - and I have a hard time buying into the belief that there would be room for anyone else inside of her heart, other than a very good friend. But, that's just my opinion.
Bella's angst in the later chapters have to deal with her decision to become a vampire. I think that Ms. Meyer is handling this extremely well. Other writers, impatient to move their story in a direction that perhaps it isn't ready to go in yet, would have had Bella turned in the first 300 pages. Ms. Meyer proved to be a true storyteller, true and honest to her craft.
I can't WAIT to see what she has for us next.
The Epilogue was a brave departure from a series that so far has been told from the inside of Bella's head. I'll leave it at that, though I will note that there are some serious issues that could arise from what happens there. (EDIT: After having read Breaking Dawn, this wasn't so much brave as it was ill-advised. I wish she hadn't of done it.)
eclipse August 18, 2007
Sarah Banks (Madison, MS)
2 out of 9 found this review helpful
"Eclipse" doesn't quite live up to "Twilight" & "New Moon," but I still give it 5 stars because it is far superior to many books out there right now (in this genre). My main problem with "Eclipse" is that the magic between Edward & Bell seems to be gone. She has all but decided to become a vampire, so the tension isn't as thick as it was in the 2 previous books. I'm also very disappointed in Bella's treatment of Jacob. She is downright selfish in her motivations with him. Bella is also pretty selfish in her motivations to become a vampire; she should spend a little more time thinking about the effect her turning will have on Charlie & Renee.
**Spoiler Alert**
Though there are some flaws in "Eclipse," the good far outweighs the bad in my opinion. Meyer has created a love triangle that I see no way out of. I am very interested to find out how she resolves Bella's love for Edward & Jacob in the next book. Also, the question of Bella's turning into a vampire is one that will likely divide readers. I'm literally waiting on pins & needles for the answer. Another high point was the back stories of some of the Cullens & the werewolves.
I did feel that "Eclipse" was a little sluggish, and the reason for that could be that there is one more book in the series. Meyer honestly could have ended Bella's story in 3 books, so some of "Eclipe" felt like a filler just to get a certain number of pages out of the book. Overall, "Eclipse" was satisfying, & I will be first in line to buy "Breaking Dawn" new year.
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