Life and Death by Stephanie Meyer // Review

2015 marked the 10th anniversary of the release of Twilight, the first book in the highly popular Twilight Saga series.

To commemorate this occasion Stephanie Meyer decided to write a gender-swapped version of the original novel, with the vampire Edward now being female, Edythe, and human Bella now male, Beau. The gender-swap was true for all main characters in the book, except for Charlie and Renee.

The story is the similar to the original, with only a few changes yet these are are suitable for the gender swap, and in fact gives the book a new breath of fresh air. The original story has been extremely popular since it’s first release in 2005, leading the announcement of a retelling to be met with much excitement.

The new book is still as exciting as ever, with the same love story but the difference in gender of the characters is refreshing, and in a way makes you feel like you’re reading an entirely different story but still with the familiar feel of the original. With a twist ending too, it really does change the perspective of Twilight, those who read the original a purpose to read this new book, as they aren’t just re-reading the same old story.

The new release isn’t the Edward point of view novel Meyer promised fans, and it’s not a sequel to the four books prior. It may not be exactly what we expected or wanted for the 10th anniversary, but overall the retelling experiments with a new perspective on the story, allowing fans of Twilight to enjoy the book for what it is, and not be bored by the same story over again.