In Which I Beg for Sweet Release From Breaking Dawn: Chapter 13 -- Good Thing I've Got a Strong Stomach · 12:21pm Jul 4th, 2018
Good thing I’ve got a strong Bullshit Sensor (or so I hope…).
Rosalie runs off to put some blood in a cup for Bella. As everyone else waits, Jacob sees the way Bella and Edward look at each other and realizes he’s in the same situation as Leah: in love with someone who’s more in love with someone else. He says to himself that he’ll never blame Leah for lashing out at others again. It’d be a bit more meaningful if we’d ever seen Leah “lashing out” rather than making a few snide remarks. Heck, everyone lashes out more at her than vice versa.
Rosalie comes back with her cup full of blood. Bella sniffs at in and is shocked to find that it smells good. Even though she was ready to vomit at the smell of blood back in the first book. I guess it’s supposed to show that the baby needs blood, but why would Bella find it appealing? Like I said last time, she’s still a normal human. Whatever. Convenient plot device is convenient. Bella drinks some of it and finds that it tastes good. She drains the rest of the blood and feels better, wanting more.
Hey. You know what’d be nice and dramatic? If Bella was still horrified by the smell (and taste) of blood, but felt better after forcing some down, realized the baby liked it, and then continued drinking it for the baby’s sake. But no. That would require sacrifice. And we can’t have Bella do anything she doesn’t want to.
Bella manages to sit up, something she couldn’t do an hour before because she was so weak, and notices that Jacob looks terrible; it’s been a long time since he last slept. Jacob leaves the house to sleep away from the smell of vampires, but hears Seth and Leah howl. He reluctantly phases into a wolf and gets the situation: four werewolves from the old pack are approaching and they want to talk under a truce. Three of them are staying as wolves, but Jared is a human so he can communicate. The other group wants Jacob and the others to return to Sam’s pack; Sam has calmed down and is willing to let Bella’s pregnancy play out. Leah guesses that they’re counting on Bella dying anyway, and with Jacob on their side, he’d lead the attack.
Jacob puts on his human form to talk with Jared. They debate a little on Jacob returning, but Jacob refuses for multiple reasons. Jared also tries to persuade Seth and Leah to return, which also doesn’t work out. Sam’s group leaves without further incident.
Still tired, Jacob asks Seth to keep an eye on things so he and Leah can sleep. He’s going back to the Cullens’, both to tell them what happened and to check up on Bella. Leah’s squicked out at the idea of Bella drinking blood, but Seth…
«They are vampires,» Seth allowed after a minute, compensating for Leah’s reaction. «I mean, it makes sense. And if helps Bella, it’s a good thing, right?»
Both Leah and I stared at him.
«What?»
«Mom dropped him a lot when he was a baby,» Leah told me.
«On his head, apparently.»
«He used to gnaw on the crib bars, too.»
«Lead paint?»
«Looks like it,» she thought.
Seth snorted. «Funny. Why don’t you two shut up and sleep?»
Jesus. Seth is happy that a friend of a friend has found a treatment that works for her and helps her feel better, and Jacob and Leah start joking that that means he’s mentally handicapped. Why are so many people in this series terrible entities?
Clinginess Meter: 26 x 2
I feel like I should say something here, but so far, this book is either incredibly disturbing or incredibly boring. Stuff’s happening (technically), but I don’t care in the slightest. It’s dull, even compared to the other books in the series. I mean, it wasn’t until chapter 7 that there was even a hint of conflict, and the conflict that does exist is pretty small-scale and unengaging. Remember in Eclipse, which had a vampire driven by revenge who created an army to enact that revenge? And this is… Bella’s baby is killing her. Weak. I don’t care.
This... almost makes sense? Same principle as pregnancy cravings; the need for certain nutrients warps the mother's usual flavor preferences. Of course, that doesn't explain why Bella's still human body is physically incapable of absorbing those nutrients from anything but blood on a cellular level. Grargh.
And in the movie of Breaking Dawn, one of the best parts of the series, where a lot of people die and I think Edward gets his head ripped off is all just a vision from Alice