Life and Death: Twilight Re-imagined by Stephenie Meyer
Reviewed by: Carey Gibbons, Reference Assistant
Genre: Paranormal Romance
Suggested Age: Teens, Adults
What is the book about?: Life and Death is a retelling of the first book of Meyer’s Twilight series but with most of her characters now of the opposite gender. Bella is now a human boy named Beau, Edward is now a female vampire named Edythe, and Jacob is now a young lady werewolf named Julia. In her introduction, Meyer states that she wrote this new version because she wanted to show that in the original series, Bella was not a girl in distress, but a person in distress. Meyer attempts to show with this book that young men are just as prone as young women to the lures of immortality and first love at the cost of all else. And so, Beau falls for Edythe much the same way as Bella fell for Edward and they leave the rest of the world behind as they are consumed by each other. Oh, and they also have to defeat some evil vampires but that doesn’t really come up until the end.
My Review: Meyer gets a gold star for trying something new with this gender-bent version of Twilight, but the result is more often silly than profound. No matter what gender Bella/Beau presents, she/he is still portrayed as needy, terminally co-dependent, and selfish. This book was a slog for me, but I was curious. I appreciate the stories Meyer could have told but chose not to – for example, the back story of every character in this series who isn’t Bella/Beau or Edward/Edythe. I also appreciate the alternative ending to Life and Death, which was a necessity with the gender swap. As much as I did like the alternative ending though, it negated Meyer’s attempt to make gender a non issue. Unless you’re a die-hard Twilight fan, this is probably a title to skip.
Rating: 2/5
About FDL Reads
Welcome to FDL Reads, weekly book reviews from Fondulac District Library. Librarians (and possibly some other guest reviewers) review all types of books, from children’s picture books, young adult favorites, to the latest adult thriller, and share their thoughts each week at fondulaclibrary.org. If the book is owned by Fondulac District Library (or another local library), you’ll see a direct link to the catalog entry and whether or not it is available. If it is checked out or at another local library, you will be able to place a hold as long as you have your library card and PIN numbers. As with any book review, these are our opinions…we disagree amongst ourselves about books frequently. We all have different likes and dislikes, which is what makes the world an interesting place. Please enjoy, and keep on reading!