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Breaking Dawn

by Stephenie Meyer · 2000

Breaking Dawn is the fourth and final novel in Stephenie Meyer's Twilight Saga, published by Little, Brown and Company in 2008. It follows human Bella Swan as she marries the vampire Edward Cullen and, on their honeymoon… more

First published 2008 · 756 pages · English

30 quotes ★ 3.76 (1,902,898) Fantasy

Quotes from the Book

Did you know that 'I told you so' has a brother,Jacob?" she asked cutting me off. "His name is 'Shut the hell up'.
Hey, Rosalie? Do you know how to drown a blonde? Stick a mirror to the bottom of a pool.
Life sucks, and then you die...
You nicked-named my daughter after the Lock Ness Monster!
Now you know," I said lightly, and shrugged. "No one's ever loved anyone as much as I love you.
I know - I'll play you for it," Alice suggested. "Rock, paper, scissors." Jasper chuckled and Edward sighed. "Why don't you just tell me who wins?" Edward said wryly. Alice beamed. "I do. Excellent.
Why am I covered in feathers
You're awfully small to be so hugely irritating.
You could run from someone you feared, you could try to fight someone you hated. All my reactions were geared toward those kinds of killers – the monsters, the enemies. When you loved the one who was killing you, it left you no options. How could you run, how could you fight, when doing so would hurt that beloved one? If your life was all you had to give your beloved, how could you not give it? If it was someone you truly loved?
I was stronger than Edward. I'd made him say ow.
Leah: "That is easily the freakin’ grossest thing I’ve ever heard in my life. Yuck. If there was anything in my stomach, it would be coming back." Seth: "They are vampires, I guess. I mean, it makes sense, and if it helps Bella, it’s a good thing, right?" Leah and Jake stare at Seth. Seth: "What?" Leah: "Mom dropped him a lot when he was a baby." Jake: "On his head apparently." Leah: "He used to gnaw on the crib bars, too." Jake: "Lead paint?" Leah: "Looks like it." Seth: "Funny. Why don’t you two shut up and sleep?
What do I look like? The Wizard of Oz? You need a brain? You need a heart? Go ahead, take mine. Take everything I have.
Why am I covered in feathers?" I asked, confused. He exhaled impatiently. "I bit a pillow. Or two...
What's so funny?" Bella mumbled. "I got food in her hair," I told her, chortling again. "I'm not going to forget this, dog," Rosalie hissed. "S'not so hard to erase a blond's memory," I countered. "Just blow in her ear." Get some new jokes, "Rosalie snapped.
I'll meet you at the altar" "I'll be the one in white!
Ew. Someone put the dog out, "Rosalie murmured wrinkling her nose. Have you herd this one, Psycho? how do a blond's brain cells die?" She didn't say anything. Well?" I asked."Do you know the punch line or not?" She looked pointedly at the TV and ignored me. Has she heard it?" I asked Edward. No." He answered. Awesome. So you'll enjoy this, bloodsucker--a blond's brain cells die alone.
I’m a little worried about Edward… Can vampires go into shock?
How dare you imprint on my baby? Have you lost you mind?
I want you, and I want you forever. One lifetime is simply not enough for me.
So this was different. I was amazing now - to them and to myself. It was like I had been born to be a vampire. The idea made me want to laugh, but it also made me want to sing. I had found my true place in the world, the place I fit, the place I shined.
Momma, you're special," Renesmee told me without any surprise, like she was commenting on the color of my clothes.
I'm not dangerous at all I never hurt Grandpa or Sue or Billy. I love humans. And wolf-people like my Jacob."Renesmee dropped Edward's hand to reach back and pat Jacob's arm.
For one half second, I wondered what it would feel like to put my hand in the fire. What it would feel like when I burned....
It was not going to be the end of the world. Just the end of the Cullens. The end of Edward, the end of me. I preferred it that way – the last part anyway. I would not live without Edward again; if he was leaving this world, then I would be right behind him.
You gonna back down so easy, little sister?. Not much wild about you, is there? I bet that cottage doesn't have a scratch. Did Edward tell you how many houses Rose and I smashed?
Do you want me to sing to you? I'll sing all night if it will keep the bad dreams away.
By the way, I love you.” “That’s why we're here.
Life sucks, and then you die. Yeah, I should be so lucky.
Hey, do you know what you call a blond with a brain?" I asked, and the continued on the same breath, "a golden retriever." I've heard that one, too," she said, no longer smiling. I'll keep trying." I promised.
Fire and ice, somehow existing together without destroying each other. More proof that I belonged with him.

Did you know?

  • It is the fourth and final book in the original Twilight Saga.
  • The novel is divided into three parts or 'books,' with the middle section narrated by Jacob Black rather than Bella.
  • It was published on August 2, 2008, with midnight release parties at bookstores.
  • The story introduces Renesmee, the human-vampire hybrid daughter of Bella and Edward.

About Stephenie Meyer

Stephenie Meyer is an American author best known for creating The Twilight Saga, a paranormal romance series that became a global bestselling phenomenon in young adult fiction.

More about the author →

About the book

Breaking Dawn is the fourth and final novel in Stephenie Meyer's Twilight Saga, published by Little, Brown and Company in 2008. It follows human Bella Swan as she marries the vampire Edward Cullen and, on their honeymoon, discovers she is pregnant with a fast-growing hybrid child whose gestation threatens her life. After a dangerous birth, Edward transforms Bella into a vampire, and the family must protect the newborn Renesmee when the ruling Volturi mistake her for a forbidden immortal child.

Structured in three parts, the novel shifts narration from Bella to the werewolf Jacob Black and back again, widening the perspective of a series that had previously been told entirely in Bella's voice. Its central themes are the culmination of Bella's choice between mortal and immortal life, the transformation of romantic devotion into marriage and motherhood, and the bonds of a chosen family confronting an outside threat.

As the conclusion to a paranormal romance phenomenon that sold tens of millions of copies worldwide, Breaking Dawn drew intense fan anticipation and sharply divided reactions to its darker turns and resolution. It was adapted into two feature films directed by Bill Condon, released in 2011 and 2012, which closed out the blockbuster Twilight film franchise.

Key characters

  • Bella SwanProtagonist who marries Edward and becomes a vampire
  • Edward CullenBella's husband, a vampire
  • Jacob BlackWerewolf and narrator of the novel's middle section
  • RenesmeeThe half-human, half-vampire daughter of Bella and Edward
  • Charlie SwanBella's human father
  • Carlisle CullenPatriarch of the Cullen vampire family
  • The VolturiRuling vampire coven that threatens the Cullens

Book details

First published
2008
Length
756 pages
Reading time
14 hours
Genre
Fantasy
Goodreads rating
3.76 (1.9M ratings)

Series & reading order

  1. 1 Twilight
  2. 2 New Moon
  3. 3 Eclipse
  4. 4 Breaking Dawn

Movie & TV adaptations

  • IMDb
    The Twilight Saga: Breaking Dawn – Part 1 2011

    Film directed by Bill Condon covering the first half of the novel

  • IMDb
    The Twilight Saga: Breaking Dawn – Part 2 2012

    Film directed by Bill Condon concluding the saga

If you liked this, read…

  1. 1
    EclipseThe immediately preceding Twilight Saga novel
  2. 2
    The Vampire DiariesAnother popular young adult vampire romance series

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