Review- Last Sacrifice by Richelle Mead

Summary-

Rose Hathaway has always played by her own rules. She broke the law when she ran away from St. Vladimir's Academy with her best friend and last surviving Dragomir princess, Lissa. She broke the law when she fell in love with her gorgeous, off-limits instructor, Dimitri. And she dared to defy Queen Tatiana, leader of the Moroi world, risking her life and reputation to protect generations of dhampir guardians to come.

Now the law has finally caught up with Rose - for a crime she didn't even commit. She's in prison for the highest offense imaginable: the assassination of a monarch. She'll need help from both Dimitri and Adrian to find the one living person who can stall her execution and force the Moroi elite to acknowledge a shocking new candidate for the royal throne: Vasilisa Dragomir.

But the clock on Rose's life is running out. Rose knows in her heart the world of the dead wants her back...and this time she is truly out of second chances. The big question is, when your whole life is about saving others, who will save you?

Vampire Academy

Frostbite

Shadow Kiss

Blood Promise

Spirit Bound

Review-

Last Sacrifice starts two days after the shocking events which took place in Spirit Bound. Rose Hathaway has always found a way around the law and has gotten away with a lot of things but this time things couldn't be worse. Like every other book in the series we dive straight into the action.

Rose is in prison for a crime she didn't even commit. The whole situation is utterly dire. The Royal Court is in chaos and there is no way that Rose can help Lissa. But as resourceful as Rose and her friends are they find a way out. Through all this Rose has to accept Dimitri and Adrian's help.

I don't know how to say much about Last Sacrifice without spoiling the book but I shall try my best to summarize it. Rose is in prison for a crime she did not commit. She has to find that one person who can possibly stall her execution. Plus Lissa is the new candidate for the royal throne. She has to go through her own set of tests.

We get to see all the characters from the previous books in Last Sacrifice. Everyone comes together for the grand finale. I loved the romance between Rose and Dimitri. We get to see how they truly love each other. I hated to see Adrian's heart break but it was inevitable and he still has a lot of growing up to do. Christian, Eddie, Janinie Hathaway, Abe, Sydney, Jill, Mikhail and all others made for a great cast of characters.

Last Sacrifice was a very satisfying ending to Rose and Lissa's journey. Obviously all things are not settled as yet but for the most part this side of the story was concluded. I'm getting bittersweet feelings after Last Sacrifice. Rose was one of the best protagonists I've read and enjoyed. The whole series actually was one of the best ones. I will definitely be reading Bloodlines but for now I just want to bask in the glow of Vampire Academy.

Review- Spirit Bound by Richelle Mead

Goodreads Summary:

Dimitri gave Rose the ultimate choice. But she chose wrong...

After a long and heartbreaking journey to Dimitri's birthplace in Siberia, Rose Hathaway has finally returned to St. Vladimir's-and to her best friend, Lissa. It is nearly graduation, and the girls can't wait for their real lives beyond the Academy's iron gates to begin. But Rose's heart still aches for Dimitri, and she knows he's out there, somewhere.

She failed to kill him when she had the chance. And now her worst fears are about to come true. Dimitri has tasted her blood, and now he is hunting her. And this time he won't rest until Rose joins him... forever.

Vampire Academy series:

Sarika's review of Vampire Academy (Vampire Academy #1)

Janhvi's review of Frostbite (Vampire Academy #2)

Sarika's review of Shadow Kiss (Vampire Academy #3)

Janhvi's review of Blood Promise (Vampire Academy #4)

REVIEW:

The fact that Spirit Bound is Janhvi's favourite Vampire Academy novel makes it a little difficult for me to write this review. Not because of what she will think after reading my review, but because maybe I won't be able to do it as much justice as she would and perhaps I won't give it as much praise as it deserves. 
Like the other Vampire Academy novels, Spirit Bound also started out really slowly and seemed very dragged out to me. But there comes a certain point in these books where everything comes crashing down at once, the plot thickens, the book becomes rapidly unputdownable, you want to know what's going on and poof- it ends on a cliffhanger! Spirit Bound starts off with Rose and Lissa graduating from St. Vladimir's Academy and they actually step out into the read world and a death threat/love letter sent to Rose. By now we almost know how Rose's mind works with all the crazy ideas. And yet, she surprises us with her spontaneity. She and Lissa are staying at the Royal Court and so many things happen in the book that it's hard to say anything without giving away everything. 
Rose was her usual kick ass and awesome self. She's so hot and cool at the same time and it really is hard not to like and admire her. Lissa was just as amazing. She's really sweet and kind, a perfect contrast and match to Rose. Lissa's boyfriend Christian is amazing as well and he and Lissa are perfect together. I'm so glad they made up in this book.  I wish I could just say 'screw being Team Adrian or Team Dimitri, I wanna be Team Christian', but Adrian and Dimitri are just as beaut and just as good. Adrian is... He's got spunk, he's really cool. And Dimitri is simply excellent. The side characters in Spirit Bound were all just as important as the main characters and even though I like some and don't like some, they're all really good and well portrayed. 
Author Richelle Mead's writing, as always, is first class. She makes me want to know more and more. Rose's voice is awesome just like her. The way in which Rose reads through Lissa's mind is described meticulously. 
It's been a long time since I read a proper series made up of a solid six books. Like with all series, as excited and desperate I am to read Last Sacrifice, it's also sad that it's now the last book and the series will come to an end. Luckily, there's Bloodlines so hopefully we'll get to see all these rocking Vampire Academy people once again. 

RATING:

Review- Blood Promise by Richelle Mead

Summary-

Rose Hathaway's life will never be the same. 

The recent attack on St. Vladimir's Academy devastated the entire Moroi world. Many are dead. And, for the few victims carried off by Strigoi, their fates are even worse. A rare tattoo now adorns Rose's neck, a mark that says she's killed far too many Strigoi to count. But only one victim matters . . . Dimitri Belikov. Rose must now choose one of two very different paths: honoring her life's vow to protect Lissa—her best friend and the last surviving Dragomir princess—or, dropping out of the Academy to strike out on her own and hunt down the man she loves. She'll have to go to the ends of the earth to find Dimitri and keep the promise he begged her to make. But the question is, when the time comes, will he want to be saved? 

Now, with everything at stake—and worlds away from St. Vladimir's and her unguarded, vulnerable, and newly rebellious best friend—can Rose find the strength to destroy Dimitri? Or, will she sacrifice herself for a chance at eternal love?

Vampire Academy

Frostbite

Shadow Kiss

Review-

Blood Promise starts off right from where we were left in Shadow Kiss. After the devastating events which have taken place in the Academy Rose's life is not the same. So Rose leaves everything she has ever known behind and goes in search of Dimitri.

The first half of Blood Promise goes where Rose is in Russia in search of Dimitri. We get to meet Dimitri's family in this book. I loved getting a glimpse into Dimitri's life. His sisters, mother and grandmother were a great bunch and someone Rose needed to share her love of Dimitri with. Though I did feel that it was pulled a bit too long. I would have loved diving right in.

We also get to meet Sydney, the Alchemist. Even though Rose is far away from the Academy for almost the whole book we do get to see what is going on with Lissa and the gang in bits and pieces. I found Adrian hilarious, as always. I was totally satisfied to see Rose actually give him a real chance at the end of the book. We get to meet quite a few new characters is this book. Some felt necessary, some not.

And then we have Dimitri. Unlike the past books the romance takes the center point in Blood Promise. When Rose finally meets Dimitri he's still the same Dimitri but not in many ways. The love between them is so obvious but I did not like the way Dimitri treated her. Somewhere along the way Rose does lose her focus and becomes vulnerable but thankfully we get to see the bad ass Rose we love and know so well again.

Blood Promise is a great fourth installment in the Vampire Academy series. I still love and admire Rose with all her sarcasm and snarkiness. Her sense of humor is awesome. Rose and Lissa's friendship had taken a turn for the worse in the previous book but by the end of Blood Promise things are definitely looking more optimistic. Richelle Mead pulls of all the action wonderfully and I'm already eager to start Spirit Bound.

Review- Shadow Kiss by Richelle Mead

Goodreads Summary:

It's springtime at St. Vladimir's Academy, and Rose Hathaway is this close to graduation. Since making her first Strigoi kills, Rose hasn't been feeling quite right. She's having dark thoughts, behaving erratically, and worst of all... might be seeing ghosts.

As Rose questions her sanity, new complications arise. Lissa has begun experimenting with her magic once more, their enemy Victor Dashkov might be set free, and Rose's forbidden relationship with Dimitri is starting to heat up again. But when a deadly threat no one saw coming changes their entire world, Rose must put her own life on the line - and choose between the two people she loves most.

Vampire Academy series:

Sarika's review of Vampire Academy (Vampire Academy #1)

Janhvi's review Frostbite (Vampire Academy #2)

REVIEW:

I must admit that the third book in Richelle Mead's Vampire Academy series, Shadow Kiss seemed pretty dragged out to me, but honestly, that ending... The book was worth it all. I loved it. 
Shadow Kiss starts off with Rose seeing the ghost of Mason, her friend/ boyfriend who died in the Spokane incident in Frostbite. Rose is going through a hell lot in this one and with so much happening, she's so busy trying to protect those she cares about the most that she tends to forget herself and her feelings. I love her friendship with Lissa. They both rock, like seriously. They're awesome. 
When Lissa's uncle Victor Dashkov makes a reappearance in Shadow Kiss, I felt pretty scared for her. She comes across Adrian who also happens to be very much like her and they both set out to research and discover the power and use of the element of spirit. One of the best things that happened in Shadow Kiss is a lot of Adrian Ivaskov. Adrian is funny, smart, good looking and so cool. And we got to see a lot him. I loved him. 
When the senior Moroi at St. Vladimir's Academy get assigned a senior dhampir as their guardian for the dhampir's field experience, Rose is assigned Christian Ozera, Lissa's boyfriend. Although not the best of friends, the banter between Rose and Christian was great and they did care about each other, which was visible and obvious. Christian is amazing. He's so sweet and so crazy in love with Liss. I really really love that guy too.
There's also another person who is super sweet and that's Eddie, Mason's best friend who is assigned as Lissa's guardian. Rose, Lissa, Christian and Eddie, and Adrian as well, when together, were fun and I loved reading those parts. 
Rose's love interest and trainer Dimitri Belikov was again his beaut self in Shadow Kiss. He is strong and sensible. When the school is attacked by Strigoi, Dimitri performs  really really well, so well that... well, let it be. 
So we have Mason, Adrian Christian, Eddie and Dimitri.  Is it just me or are all the guys in this series swoon-worthy! 
The ending of Shadow Kiss was perfect but very sad, even for a cliff hanger and sad ending lover like me. But there obviously are three more books to go in the series, so I know for a fact that things are going to change for the better in the books to come. 
Author Richelle  Mead's writing is really excellent. Rose's voice is easy to understand and she is one kick ass girl. I am totally into the Vampire Academy series and I can't wait to know what happens next. 

RATING:

Review- Frostbite by Richelle Mead

Summary-

Rose loves Dimitri, Dimitri might love Tasha, and Mason would die to be with Rose... 

It’s winter break at St. Vladimir’s, but Rose is feeling anything but festive. A massive Strigoi attack has put the school on high alert, and now the Academy’s crawling with Guardians—including Rose’s hard-hitting mother, Janine Hathaway. And if hand-to-hand combat with her mom wasn’t bad enough, Rose’s tutor Dimitri has his eye on someone else, her friend Mason’s got a huge crush on her, and Rose keeps getting stuck in Lissa’s head while she’s making out with her boyfriend, Christian! The Strigoi are closing in, and the Academy’s not taking any risks... This year, St. Vlad’s annual holiday ski trip is mandatory. 

But the glittering winter landscape and the posh Idaho resort only create the illusion of safety. When three friends run away in an offensive move against the deadly Strigoi, Rose must join forces with Christian to rescue them. But heroism rarely comes without a price...

Review-

Frostbite starts off three weeks after the incidents of Vampire Academy. You can find Sarika's review of Vampire Academy here. In Frostbite we dive right into the action from the first scene itself. After a massive Strigoi attack the school has been put on high alert and it is affecting everyone.

My favorite character of this series till now is definitely Rose. She is a kickass girl. I love her sense of humor. Her recklessness is a part of who she is. She is what makes these books so enjoyable. But unlike last time we got so see a more vulnerable side to Rose's character. She is struggling after witnessing the Strigoi attack and on top of that we get to meet her famous mother, Janine Hathaway.

The relationship between Janine and Rose was rocky but as the book progresses they do reach an understanding. What I missed the most in Frostbite however was Rose and Lissa's friendship. I mean they obviously still do share their bond and have a lot of love for each other but I felt that Lissa was a bit wrapped up in Christian. Rose has a tendency to bottle up her feelings and always put Lissa first but this time Lissa kind of ignored her.

We also get to meet Adrian in this book. Now him, I was super excited for. Since the first page he comes in he takes over. He is all around awesome. For me, he is overshadowing Dimitri. Though Dimitri was there too and Rose obviously still pines after him. This time we get some more confessions from Dimitri as well though their happy ending is still nowhere in sight.

I love Richelle Mead's writing. Rose's voice is authentic and amazing. I am totally into the series and can't help but gobble up one book after the other. For people like me who can't rest until they get a happy ending it is hard to put down this series. If you still haven't read this series thinking this is like any other paranormal YA series let me tell you, you are completely wrong. These books are pretty awesome.

Review- Vampire Academy by Richelle Mead

Goodreads Summary:

St. Vladimir’s Academy isn’t just any boarding school—it’s a hidden place where vampires are educated in the ways of magic and half-human teens train to protect them. Rose Hathaway is a Dhampir, a bodyguard for her best friend Lissa, a Moroi Vampire Princess. They’ve been on the run, but now they’re being dragged back to St. Vladimir’s—the very place where they’re most in danger...

Rose and Lissa become enmeshed in forbidden romance, the Academy’s ruthless social scene, and unspeakable nighttime rituals. But they must be careful lest the Strigoi—the world’s fiercest and most dangerous vampires—make Lissa one of them forever.

REVIEW:

After reading the Twilight saga and the first 7/8 books of the House Of Night series, I had, out of choice, taken a break from vampires because it was getting too much and too similar. Then came the Bloodlines series and news about the Vampire Academy movie adaptation and Janhvi and I decided to dedicate an entire month to reading the Vampire Academy series. 
The first book in the series, Vampire Academy was so good. 

Author Richelle Mead's writing is just excellent. The character buildup and plot progression is simply outstanding. Details of the Vampire Academy vampire world are not given at the beginning but come into picture as and when required and it is so easy to understand and picturise everything.  There's a lot of humour and some really sweet moments to go along with the general darkness and dangerousness that comes with vampires. 
Vasilisa Dragomir (Lissa) is a Moroi Vampire Princess and her best friend and guardian Rosemarie Hathaway (Rose) is a Dhampir. The two escape from school and are living in and enjoying the human world when Lissa's appointed guardian, Dimitri Belikov is sent to bring the two back to their school. 
Rose was an absolutely cool and kick ass girl. I loved how she put Lissa's safety ahead of everything else and was keen on protecting her. Lissa was kind and warm. She is an exceptional vampire who can do things only a handpicked few have been able to do before her. Together, Rose and Lissa were inseparable. Their friendship is really thorough and strong and has been portrayed beautifully. 

As for the guys, Dmitri was beaut. Although I'm too fond of him, he is hot and smart- a dashing combination. His training sessions with Rose were full of chemistry that was hard to miss. Lissa's love interest, Christian Ozera, who, like Lissa, is a royal Moroi and was simply stunning and sweet- he was amazing. 

The villains in the story weren't the typical scary villains but some unexpected and completely off the beaten track ones with an intelligent and practical purpose in mind. 
Vampire Academy might seem like most other vampire books that have been written, with a vampire school, kick ass heroines and hot heroes and a groovy plot filled with sizzle to keep the story going, but it's so much more than just that. It is gripping and sizzling alright, but one of the most impressive aspect of it is the writing, particularly Rose's voice which is easy and stunning. 
I'm glad I finally started with the series. The hype surrounding it is all worthy and deserving and I can't wait to pick the next book up. 

RATING: