review - Shadow Kiss by Richelle Mead

Title: Shadow Kiss (Vampire Academy #3)

Author: Richelle Mead

Published: November 13th 2008 by Razorbill

My rating: 

My summary:

Ever since Rose Hathaway (to- be graduate of St Vladimir's) got her first two Strigoi kills, she hasn't been well. She's behaving erratically, having dark thoughts, and worst of all: she's seeing the ghost of Mason, her good friend who called killed only a month or so before.
While Rose questions her stability, Lissa starts to experiment with Spirit, the power that took her to the point of attempted suicide when she used it a few months ago, and the man who tortured her to her to use on him, Victor Dashkov, may be set free. And, to make things even worse, Rose is stuck guarding Christian Ozera for six weeks for a training exercise set my the Academy.
Much to Rose's delight, her and Dimitri's relationship starts to heat up again, but just as it does, an unexpected threat puts the whole Moroi and Dhampir world in a spin, and Rose and Dimitri must put their lives on the line - and Rose must chose between the two people who mean the world to her.

My thoughts: 

For those who've never read the book there are spoilers ahead!

When I first read Shadow Kiss, it made the series for me. This was the definitely the best of Vampire Academy I'd read so far and it was when my obsession of the books officially began.

I know I've said that books I've read have made me very emotional, and that's true, but never as this book did. I swear (and this is very embarrassing tot say, mind you), when I was reading the last few chapters tears welled in my eyes. I was listening to sad music at the time, that mustn't of helped, but still. The end of this book is very upsetting, yet so amazing.

The book starts with Rose finding out that Victor was going on trial, and wasn't just being locked up straight away, which she's very angry about. Adrian gets Lissa and Rose to the trial, and when they're at the court, Rose starts to see ghosts.
Adrian's character is developed more in this book, making me like him more and more. Dimitri actually not so much. He acts like a total dick for the first part of the book, which really upset because I'd liked him a lot in the first two books, but I think it was done of purpose.
That clears up though and you like him again, so you can imagine how absolutely shocked I was when he turned into a Strigoi at the end. I couldn't believe Richelle Mead did that to him!
But as sad as it was, it really made the series suddenly a lot more interesting.
In the first book Dimitri told Rose if he ever turned Strigoi he'd want someone to kill him, so in the end Rose chooses to leave St Vladimir's (and Lissa) to hunt down Dimitri and kill him.

Richelle Mead has really done this story justice with this book. The battle scenes in the end of the book are so suspenseful. The plot thickens and the character develop more.
This definitely was my favourite of the first three books in the series.

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House Of Night review

Title: Marked (House of Night #1)

Author: P.C. Cast, Kristin Cast

Published: October 16th 2012 by Atom

My rating: 

My summary: 

Zoey Redbird is an ordinary teen going to an ordinary school and has an ordinary life. Until the day she is 'marked'. Zoey and her friends have always known vampyres are real, though they never dreamed they would become one themselves. 
Because of the mark, Zoey soon changes into a vampyre and can no longer live among humans. 
She must leave her family and friends and join The House of Night, a school for young vampyres, learning on a nocturnal schedule.
But Zoey is no ordinary vampyre. She is chosen by the vampyre's goddess, 
And at The House of Night there is something wrong. Vampyres aren't using their powers to do good. 
With help of the powers Nyx gave her, and her new friends at House of Night, Zoey must stop those who are going against everything the goddess has taught them.

My thoughts:

The House of Night is co authored by a mother and her daughter. Their creativity leaps of the page in this book. They have captured every character so well and made every detail believable. This novel gives a new twist to vampires that I have never come across before. 
The mixture of goddesses and vampyres really works for me as it is refreshing to read something so different to most young adult paranormal romance fiction.

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Frostbite review

Title: Frostbite (Vampire Academy #2)

Author: Richelle Mead

Published: April 10th 2008 by Razorbill

My rating: 

My summary:

Winter break has arrived at St Vladimir's but Rose feels anything but celebratory. Her badass mother punched her in the face, a guy she could never like has a massive crush on her, and she keeps getting stuck in the mind of her best friend Lissa while she's making out with her boyfriend.
And as if Rose's problems aren't enough, the academy is crawling with guardians after a recent Strigoi attack, and the landscape of the beautiful posh Idaho resort all the students are sent to is only an illusion of protection.
When a few of her friends sneak off to make an attack on the deadly Strigoi, Rose joins forces with Lissa's boyfriend to save them. 
But as Rose soon finds out, heroism isn't as easy as it may seem...

My thoughts:

***caution spoilers ahead, read with caution***
In Frosbite you learn more about the powers of Spirit, and we get introduced to Adrian Ivashkov, another Spirit user, like Lissa.
He's a rather complex character, a bit of a wreck, but I instantly liked him. He had good sense of humour and even though Rose didn't like him, and he wasn't such a big character, I knew he'd become a bigger, because he had a certain likable quality in him.
We also learn more about Mason in this book and I was liking him more and more and was really upset when he was killed. He had a massive crush on Rose and they had a fight, which was why he left to find the Strigoi nest, so Rose blamed herself for his death, which is sad.
Dimitri and Rose's relationship doesn't deepen in Frostbite as Dimitri has his eye on someone else, which tears Rose up.
Later on in the book when Rose and Christian (that's Lissa's boyfriend) go to rescue Mason, Mia, and Eddie when they try and seek out the Strigoi's nest, they find them, but they can't rescue them. The Strigoi capture them all, and hold them captive, feeding off Eddie. 
They do manage to escape with the help of Christian's fire power and Mia's water power, and Rose ends up killing two Strigoi (with a blunt sword by the way, which is skilled) but Mason is killed.
In the process of this, Mia and Rose bond, and the old hatred between them dies. So from you go from hating Mia at the beginning of them book to thinking she's epic at the end. That's pretty clever of Richelle Mead.
In the end, Rose's worries of Dimitri liking someone else is relieved as he tells her he couldn't love anybody else apart from her. So sweet :')
Overall, I loved this book maybe even more than the first in the series, and Richelle Mead has done a wonderful job of making me love the characters even more (if that's even possible?)

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The Golden Lily review

Title: The Golden Lily (Bloodlines #2)

Author: Richelle Mead

Published: June 12th 2012 by Razorbill
Rating: 

What it's about:

All Sydney Sage wants to do is go to college, to be normal. But instead she's stuck in a life of undeserved loyalty and secrets. She's an alchemist, one of a group of humans who work to keep the vampire world from the humans, keeping them safe.

Sydney's current assignment is to keep Princess Jill Dragomir safe from assassins who want to create a civil war at high court, at a boarding school in Palm Springs. She's praised for her loyalty and obedience, and is held as an example of a commendable alchemist.

Sydney had always wished for such a title, believing that what she did was important, and that all vampires are bad, but as she gets to know Jill, Eddie, and most of all, Adrian, she discovers that maybe what the alchemists say about the creatures are wrong -- that maybe vampires can be good after all.

And then a shocking discovery is made: Sydney's blood may be a prevention to the coming of the Strigoi -- the most powerful and dangerous of vampires, those that don't die. She knows she should let tests be done on her blood, but what if it's true? What if her blood really is special? What if it's ... magical? That's exactly what Sydney fears most.

But when her loyalties are tested once again, Sydney finds herself torn.

Should she follow the alchemists ... or her heart?

My thoughts:

I love this book! A little too much, I think. I've been a fan of Richelle Mead's books forever, but this one just proves how amazing she is. The Vampire Academy series was always a bit predictable (apart from the ending in Shadow Kiss, of course -- that was totally unexpected) but Bloodlines is completely new, and The Golden Lily (the second book in the series) had me hooked from the very first page. It leaps right into the story, and even though it might seem a bit slow in places, every part is crucial for the story.

We get to know Sydney more, and love her even more, in this book, which is great. Other characters we love from the Vampire Academy series are present, like Dimitri, Sonya, Angeline and the usual suspects from Bloodlines: Adrian, Eddie, Jill and Trey. We're introduced to Brayden, who at first seems to be Sydney's perfect match; he loves intellectual chats and appreciates everything she does. However, the more I got to know him the more I disliked him. He comes across full of himself, a bit of a know-it-all, and he's just plain annoying.

I love the friendship that develops between Sydney and Adrian. Adrian is a great character. He's hilarious and has a sarcastic wit, which I love. He wrote this email to Sydney when he was staying with Dimitri and Sonya:

Day 24. Situation is growing worse. My captors continue to find new and horrific ways to torture me. When not working, Agent Scarlet spends her days examining fabric swatches for bridesmaid dresses and going on about how in love she is. This usually causes Agent Boring Borscht to regale us with stories of Russian weddings that are even more boring than his usual ones. My attempts at escape have been thwarted thus far. Also, I am out of cigarettes. Any assistance or tobacco products you can send will be greatly appreciated.
--Prisoner 24601

So funny! I love the reference to Les Misérables. Adrian's definitely my favourite character.
A lot of people don't like reading about Sydney as much as the other characters, but I do. Unlike feisty Rose from Vampire Academy, Sydney is studious and responsible and dedicated, although not always ... Adrian and Sydney spend most of their spare time together, and even though she keeps reminding herself that she's doing it because it's part of her job, it's obvious that Sydney just wants to spend time with him, which she feels guilty about all the time.

The story is far more intriguing than Bloodlines, and it's really starting to take off now. Pieces are connecting together, and I know they will even more so in the next book. And don't hate me for saying this, but I actually enjoy reading about Adrian a teensy bit more than I do Dimitri.

I was glued to the pages of The Golden Lily for two days straight until I finished it, and I wasn't disappointed. The cliff hanger is massive, so now I'm counting down the days until the next book, The Indigo Spell, comes out.

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                     On sale now!                     Expected publication: 12th of February, 2013

                    

                                                              

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Vampire Academy review

Title: Vampire Academy (Vampire Academy #1) 

Author: Richelle Mead

Published: August 16th 2007 by Razorbill

Rating: 

What it's about:

In a world with two races of vampires, there are those who have to protect the good from the evil. They are known as the Dhampir (half human, half vampire) and they train their whole lives to protect the Moroi at hidden academies across the world, academies just like St Vladimir's.

Rose Hathaway is a 17-year-old Dhampir and bodyguard of her best friend Lissa, a Moroi. They were on the run, but were caught and dragged back to St Vladimir's Academy -- the very place they were running from. Soon, Lissa finds herself tied to the academy's ruthless social life, Rose to a forbidden romance, and both of them to whispers of a secret magic with the power to drag Lissa down to the point of self-hatred and grief.

My thoughts:

I love the new twist to vampire stories. Usually it's a girl-meets-boy and girl-finds-out-guy-is-vampire kinda book, but Vampire Academy isn't like that at all.

I first read Vampire Academy when I borrowed it from my local library, and I was instantly hooked. I loved how it starts in the middle of the story and how, as I read the book, I had to figure out what had happened -- what had caused the girls to run away.

The main character, Rose, was born into the society of the Dhampirs and Moroi, and it's all she's ever known. She's stubborn, aggressive, feisty, and loves making witty quips. Lissa, on the other hand, is a sweet girl who would never harm anybody, although when she uses her Spirit powers, it drags her down and she manipulates it, and uses people. Another main character is Dimitri. He's a Dhampir, like Rose, but a guardian. Both he and Rose were going to be Lissa's guardians when they graduated.

All of the characters are well developed, and the plot is packed with action that is suspenseful and exciting. Although they are living in another world and dealing with supernatural stuff, the characters are totally believable. 

Overall, I loved Vampire Academy. Richelle Mead has written an amazing book. She creates an entire world that is original, and she takes vampire fiction to a new level.

Evernight review

Title: Evernight (Evernight #1)

Author: Claudia Gray

Published: February 10th 2009

Rating: 

What it’s about:

Bianca Oliver knew her life had changed when her parents uprooted her from her small hometown, her old friends, her old life, and sent her to Evernight Academy. Everyone at the eerie gothic boarding school is different to Bianca. They’re sleek, elegant, and almost … predatory.

Then Bianca meets Lucas. He’s like her: an outcast. And he likes it that way. He ignores the rules, stands up to snobs, and cautions Bianca to be careful—especially about fitting in.

But then Bianca finds out that she actually does fit in. That she’s the ‘Evernight type’ after all. Despite this, she is determined to make it work with Lucas. But her dark secret is destined to tear them apart … and Bianca soon finds out that Lucas was hiding something life-changing himself.

My thoughts:

Evernight is one of my favourite books. It was one of the first paranormal romance novels I read (before I even readTwilight). I first borrowed it from my school library a couple of years ago, and I read it in less than a day. My friend at the time and I went around the library picking out random books and borrowing them for each other, and my friend picked out Evernight and borrowed it for me, daring me to read it. So, like the daredevil that I am, I read it. And boy, did I love it. I ended up borrowing the sequel and counting down the days until the next book came out.

Bianca is a very nice character. She’s lived her whole life in the same town, and suddenly she’s being sent to a strange, scary boarding school where she knows no one and doesn’t fit in.

When I first read this book, I thought it would be the usual idea of the girl finding out the guy is a vampire and her whole world turning upside down. But Evernight is much different. It has an amazing twist that just makes the story immediately much more exciting. The whole idea of two people who come from completely different worlds falling for each other yet being torn between living the life they’ve always known and being together has always enticed me. Evernight shows this wonderfully, and that’s probably one of the reasons I love it so much.

I was very surprised twice during this book. It’s hard for an author to shock me once, let alone twice. I think this happens to everyone who reads it. The reader assumes they know what’s going to happen, but Claudia Gray is a great writer and manages to shock everyone when a secret is told.

Gray creates wonderful characters and an action-filled plot that makes you want to read more.

Blue Bloods review

Title: Blue Bloods (Blue Bloods #1)

Author: Melissa de la Cruz

Published: March 1st 2010

My rating: 

What it’s about:

In 1620, the Mayflower set sail, and it carried the men and women who would shape America: John Alden, Miles Standish, Constance Hopkins. But among the Pilgrims, some were not escaping religious persecution.  In fact, they weren’t human at all. They were vampires, who settled into the New World and rose to great power, wealth and influence. They were known as the blue bloods of American society.

The blue bloods had sworn to keep their kind a secret for centuries and, until now, it had been kept hidden. But, in New York City, it’s now finally beginning to seep out. Schuyler Van Alen, a sophomore at a prestigious private school where all her peers wear Prada heels and pearls, is a loner. She lives in a neglected mansion with her unsociable grandmother, and prefers wearing baggy vintage clothing to what everyone else wears. She’s happy with being a loner, and she doesn’t feel like she’s missing out on anything. But then suddenly, when she turns fifteen, things start to get strange. Rippling blue veins turn up along her arms, she starts craving raw meat, and she has flashbacks of herself in ancient times.

Then a popular girl at school turns up dead, fully drained of blood. Schuyler can’t help but hear what everyone’s saying: It’s not possible—she can’t be dead. And Jack Force, the most popular boy in school, believes it too. He thinks she was murdered, and he convinces Schuyler into helping him find the murderer, and uncover secrets they think the blue bloods are keeping. But what Jack and Schuyler don’t realise is that she herself is in danger …

My thoughts:

I first read this book just over a year ago and I loved it. But, reading it again recently, I’m not so enthusiastic. But still … Blue Bloods is an interesting take on vampires. Melissa de la Cruz’s ideas about vampires being an elite society is intriguing, although she writes more about what the students are wearing than deepening the plot and building the characters. The book is written in third person, from the point of view of three main characters: Schuyler, Bliss, and Mimi.

Schuyler (despite being the main character in the book) is the hardest to figure out of the three. Mimi is an unpleasant and jealous person, whereas Bliss is a kind girl with a little sass, who wishes she could be more. At times throughout the novel, Schuyler seems to despise the blue bloods and not want anything to do with the elites, yet at other times she seems as though she wishes she was part of them—she gets into modelling and befriends Bliss, the most popular girl’s best friend.

There are some strange ideas in Blue Bloods, though, like the fact that vampires are not only vampires but also angels. What the … ?

Having said that, Melissa de la Cruz writes well, and (despite its couple of oddities), I’ll be following the series.