The Short Second Life of Bree Tanner by Stephenie Meyer

Summary:

Fans of The Twilight Saga will be enthralled by this riveting story of Bree Tanner, a character first introduced in Eclipse, and the darker side of the newborn vampire world she inhabits.

In another irresistible combination of danger, mystery, and romance, Stephenie Meyer tells the devastating story of Bree and the newborn army as they prepare to close in on Bella Swan and the Cullens, following their encounter to its unforgettable conclusion.

Bree Tanner can barely remember life before she had uncannily powerful senses, superhuman reflexes and unstoppable physical strength. Life before she had a relentless thirst for blood... life before she became a vampire.

All Bree knows is that living with her fellow newborns has few certainties and even fewer rules: watch your back, don't draw attention to yourself and, above all, make it home by sunrise or die. What she doesn't know: her time as an immortal is quickly running out.

Then Bree finds an unexpected friend in Diego, a newborn just as curious as Bree about their mysterious creator, whom they know only as "her". As they come to realize that the newborns are pawns in a game larger than anything they could have imagined, Bree and Diego must choose sides and decide whom to trust. But when everything you know about vampires is based on a lie, how do you find the truth? (from Goodreads)

Review:

Don't hurt me, but I've decided to read and review The Short Second Life of Bree Tanner. The funny thing is, had this book come right out after Breaking Dawn was published, I would have been all over it. I will not deny that I used to be a pretty big Twilight fan. Granted, I started reading this series before there was any mention of a movie (to be specific, it was before Eclipse was even published). Not that there's wrong with bandwagon fans, but you know, they can get a little crazy sometimes. Anyway, had this been two years ago, I would have definitely bought it but this time I got it from my library. Times have changed.

Onto the review. As I've began to read more and more YA, I had the revelation (that many other people have also had), that Stephenie Meyer is not that great of an author, nor are her books anything special (well, actually The Host was pretty good). TSSLoBT read the same way as all the other novels in The Twilight Saga. Also, Bree sounded like a more intelligent version of Bella. Bree was a likable character, but was basically personality-less. Stephenie Meyer says she likes to make her characters open so anyone can relate to them, but this just leaves them sounding pretty boring on page.

TSSLofBT is very very short, and probably would have been a lot better if it was longer. Most the time, it's Bree thinking and trying to figure stuff out. I would have liked to seen more the newborn vampire life, but it was presented minimally in the story. And we still don't get to see the big fight scene at the end of Eclipse, because Bree is off looking for Diego. As for Diego, he was also a likable character, but if you're looking for any type of romance, you won't find it here. There was also a pretty big twist at the end, dealing with the Volturi, which I actually found interesting. So well done there, Mrs. Meyer.

All in all, I didn't hate The Short Second Life of Bree Tanner. I read it fast and it wasn't a bad book, but nothing spectacular. Die-hard fans of The Twilight Saga will enjoy this, but don't expect any type of Bella/Edward romance because you won't find it here.

Rating: 6.5 out of 10.

FTC: I borrowed this from my library.

2010/ Little, Brown/178 pages