April read and liked Jessica's review of New Moon (Twilight, #2):

"(Eclipse spoilers also)
At the beginning of New Moon, the relationship between Bella and Edward is extremely unhealthy.

Edward HATES himself. He refers to himself over and over as a monster and truly believes that Bella's life is wors...more (Eclipse spoilers also)
At the beginning of New Moon, the relationship between Bella and Edward is extremely unhealthy.

Edward HATES himself. He refers to himself over and over as a monster and truly believes that Bella's life is worse off now that he is involved in it. He has tried to keep distance from her for her own good, but he was too drawn to her, and too selfish to stay away. They fall love and can't bear to be apart, however, he never gets over believing that he is a horrific creature who is making Bella's life worse by existing. Edward is appalled with himself and sickened that he keeps putting the girl he loves in the face of death, and he can't reconcile his desire to keep her safe and his knowledge that his place in her life will keep putting her in danger. Edward can never fully commit to loving Bella if he is always thinking he is no good for her, he is making her unsafe, or her life would be better off without him in it.

Bella, in turn, does not think she is worthy of Edward. She easily believes him when he leaves because she has been expecting it, in the back of her mind, all along. She mentions time and again when she looks at Edward that she can't believe this perfect creature is here for her, is in love with her. At the beginning of New Moon, even after six months of being his girlfriend, she "still couldn't believe that [she] deserved this degree of good fortune." She thinks over and over that their relationship is off balance because he is so beautiful and smart and strong and she brings nothing to the table. She can't accept the fact that Edward loves her because she can't understand how or why he possibly could.

Neither one feels he or she is good enough for the other, and neither one can understand why the other feels that way. This is not a healthy way to develop a relationship.

So, Edward decides to leave Bella, to make it "as if he never existed," thinking it will be the best thing for her. He thinks if he removes the danger from her life she will be able to live as a normal human and have the life he feels she should have. Edward is very all-or-nothing, so he truly sees this as the only option for Bella to stay safe and, eventually, be happy. Edward honestly thinks she will get over it. He has been able to hear the thoughts of human teenagers for almost 100 years. He knows what they think when they think they are in love and that, although it is hard for them at the time, they get over it eventually and move on. He can't help but assume that Bella's feelings for him are the same as these other teenagers. As much as he loves her, he does not think that her feelings even come close to matching his, and honestly thinks she will forget about him and move on eventually, which he feels would be the absolute best thing for her. When he removes himself from the picture, she will be able to live a normal life, with a normal man. He has no idea that his leaving will have such a profound effect on her because, due to the fact that he can't read her mind, he does not fully comprehend the depth of her feelings for him, and he naively assumes that her feelings are like those of any human teenager.

When he leaves, he knows HE will suffer greatly, but he truly thinks he is the only one who will suffer. He knows that his existence will never be the same without Bella, and that he will spend the rest of his days feeling incomplete and depressed. However, because he is sure she will get over it, he leaves her anyway, knowing that he will never recover. This is such a selfless move. He is willing to damn himself to an eternity of suffering because he feels it is better for Bella, even knowing he will be in pain every second. What he does not realize, what he does not factor into his decision, is the depth of Bella's love for him. He does not see himself as she sees him, as the other half of what makes her whole. He only sees himself as something terrible that is ruining her life. He does not know the impact he has made on her, does not take his influence on her into consideration, and has no way to even understand or predict the amount of pain she will go through without him.

As Bella goes through life without Edward, she compares her emotions to "waves of pain" that "reared high and washed over my head, pulling me under," and from which she is not able to resurface. She struggles through every day, feeling literally torn apart from the inside without him. Surely, if he knew that his absence would cause her more pain than his presence ever did, he would not have left her the way he did, but he didn't have the proper frame of reference, and could not have predicted this reaction. As she tries to work through her pain, she turns to Jacob and, without even realizing it, she falls in love with him. It's not unnatural to fall for the person who is there for you as you attempt to piece your life back together after a trauma. Jake is exactly this for Bella. He listens, he's quiet when she wants him to be, he's supportive and happy and friendly. As she says, he is her sun, helping her to get light and warmth to that place in her that is submerged in water. Despite herself, she lets him in, and, as she is just about to make the decision to try to move on, to try to find happiness elsewhere, even though she knows it will never be a fraction of the happiness she had with Edward, the phone rings, and her life is changed again.

Falling for Jacob does more than just lead to the Eclipse love triangle. By developing such intense feelings for him, Bella is able to make an educated choice about whom and what she really wants. Because Edward has left, and because she lives without him, she knows what her life is like without Edward and realizes that she really CAN'T live without him. She thinks of this when making her decision in Eclipse, wondering "if I would have wavered, if I hadn't lost Edward once. If I didn't know what it was like to live without him. I wasn't sure. That knowledge was so deep a part of me, I couldn't imagine how I would feel without it." If Edward hadn't left, and Bella hadn't felt that physical pain every day from the hole in her chest, felt the ache and the loss of her one true love, she might have considered a life with Jacob. Truthfully, Jacob is a very good option for her. The love she develops for him is natural and easy, and it feels good and makes her feel good. Her love for Edward is tumultuous and dangerous and intense, and the feelings involved are to such extremes, but she realizes when he is gone that that's what she wants and that's what she needs. At the end of Eclipse, she chooses Edward, which is not a choice she could have made as easily had she not lived through the pain of being without him.

Bella is actually able to prove the depth of her love for Edward by going to Italy to save him, even though she thinks he will still leave her again. What a sacrifice this is for Bella, though she hardly even gives it any thought, thinking only that seeing him after missing him so desperately, and then having him leave her again "was the price I had to pay to save his life. I would pay it." Her love for Edward is that ingrained in her; if he is in trouble, she will do anything to save him, even if it could mean death to her, and even though she is convinced that he doesn't want her and doesn't love her. Just like the selfless act Edward performs at the beginning of the novel, this is a selfless act on her part. In her eyes, she has absolutely nothing to gain. The only thing she thinks is that it is quite possible that she will die in her attempt, but she does it anyway, to save his life. His existence, whether he loves her or not, is worth this much to her, is worth her own life, and she is able to show this to him through her rescue. Through this unselfish action of Bella's, Edward is finally able to see his own inherent goodness through her eyes. He's able to see how much she truly loves him, and see how she sees him – not as a monster, but as someone completely worthy of her love.

In turn, by staying with her and explaining why he did what he had done and what he has been through when he was away, he is able to prove to her how much she loves him. She finally has her epiphany. She sees what he went through for her, and that he truly, unselfishly thought he was doing what was best for her. Bella is also able to see that Edward has flaws. Until this point, she has really thought of Edward as being perfect. Flawless. She's finally able to see that he is not perfect, and that he has some major character flaws, such as being irrational, driven to extremes, over-emotional, and over-protective. By becoming aware of these flaws, and really seeing the impact they can have on her, she is able to see him more as a real "person" (for lack of a better word, and less as a fantasy man she is dating in some dream world. His flaws, which she has had a hard time seeing until this point, because she has been so blinded by his amazing qualities, make him more accessible, more normal, and Bella is more able to see the hows and the whys of his love for her. This helps her accept herself as a worthy candidate for his affection.

Therefore, although it is terrible and heartbreaking for everyone involved, Edward's leaving Bella in New Moon only serves to make their relationship stronger. It does not go at all as Edward planned, and it causes both of them a tremendous amount of pain. However, actions speak so much louder than words, and no amount of I love yous could have made their relationship equitable, or make them see the goodness that the other one sees. So, as horrible as it is for everyone, Edward leaving ends up being a very good thing for his relationship with Bella. It is heartbreaking, but sometimes heartbreak is exactly what is needed to build a solid and healthy relationship…a relationship that can stand the test of time.(less) "