Richelle Mead - Last Sacrifice - Vampire Academy Book 6

 

Book Description

Rose is on trial for high treason and the death of Queen Tatiana. Someone is trying to frame her and it looks like even Dimitri might not be able to save her now.

Review

*May contain spoilers*

Out of the whole series I think this book was the one I least enjoyed. That being said it was still fabulous. Richelle Mead is one of my absolute favorite authors. I've never read a book of hers that I haven't really enjoyed and most likely gushed over. So when I say I think this book could have been better it is based on really high standards. 

First for a last book there were quite a few loose ends. Richelle has mentioned there will be a spin off series so I’m assuming these issues will be resolved in those books, since they don't directly relate to Rose. There were lots of little things but one issue that was not completely concluded was the servitude of the Dhampirs to the Moroi. I was really hoping there would be some change here. There was some indication by Lissa that there would be change concerning it in the future, but that was it. The same thing can be said for the Moroi fighting.

Second it felt a bit rushed in some aspects and drawn out in others. The romance between Rose and Dimitri had a sudden turn-around from Dimitri saying he couldn’t love anyone anymore, too I love you, and I want to be with you. In contrast the search for Lissa’s sister was longer than I thought it needed to be. I thought this could have been completed quicker and enabled Rose to return to court to flesh out the situation between Rose, Adrian and Dimitri and embellish on the conclusion and some of the loose ends. I think this would have been a better solution than cheating on Adrian. By the end of the book I felt really bad for Adrian.

A lot of time in the book was spent in Lissa’s perspective at court. I found a lot of this pointless. Usually I enjoy reading the bits where this happens but there was too much of it in this book. I would estimate 50% with Rose and 50% with Lissa. Most of this time with Lissa was searching for the queen’s killer and court duties which could be a bit boring at times. Other things that got concluded too quickly was the insanity Rose was gaining from Lissa, her relationship with her parents and her response to how she caused potential problems for other characters that helped her such as Jill.

My rating out of 5

4/5

Tracey O'Hara - Night's Cold Kiss

Book description


The tension between the Aeternus, an ancient vampiric people, and humanity has been mounting for over a century. But when rogue vampires begin to drain humans in order to achieve an illegal blood-high, all bets are off.

After the death of her parents, Antoinette Petrescu devoted her life to becoming one of the top Venators, the elite hunters who destroy the rogue Necrodreniacs. Her kill count is legendary and her skills superb.

But now the serial killer who killed her parents has returned. And to stop him Antoinette must join forces not only with the Aeternus, but also their most legendary killer. One that is both dangerously attractive, and involved in buried secrets of her past. More dangerous still, a dark attraction grows between them--one that could doom both races.

Summary

When Antoinette Petrescu was a child she witnessed the death of her mother by a Necrodreniac vampire. This experience made Antoinette feel resentment to all vampires. This resentment fuels her motivation to hunt down criminal vampires, as part of an elite Venator corps. However, Antoinette may have finally met her match when she realises her mother’s murderer may still be alive and hunting her. Helping her is Christian, a sexy Aeternus vampire.

Review

Nights Cold Kiss has a dark serial killer plotline that incorporates mystery with romance, action and good world building.  To counter the dark plotline, Victor, Christian’s best friend was successfully used to lighten the sometimes dark feeling of the book and bring about humour, witty conversation and one-liners. In fact, I loved the Victor character.

Christian and Antionette have a lot of differences that make them an unlikely match. Christian’s grief over the murder of his wife and father influenced him to kill many humans in his search for their killers, enough to gain the title of the crimson executioner. In comparison, Antionette hates any type of vampire (Aeternus and Dreniacs) since the death of her mother and sister.  However, there was instant chemistry between Christian and Antionette. Both characters are drawn to the other despite their denying it to themselves and each other. Their relationship is often fiery with lots of sexual tension and suspense. However, I would have liked a little more romance.

Excluding Victor, the character portrayal was probably the weakest area of this book. Christian and Antionette were not always the most likeable characters. There were moments where Christian could be domineering and aggressive (in an unattractive way) and moments where Antionette could be headstrong and rude. In addition, I felt the characters lacked character development. I think there could have been a bit more subtlety and more depth.

I really enjoyed the twists and turns of the mystery element of the plotline. There were times when I thought I had it all figured out and that it was maybe even a bit obvious but then I would be surprised with a great plot revelation. I also really enjoyed the action scenes. In fact, I thought the plotline, in general, was really good.

In summary, I think you could tell the book was Tracey’s debut book but it was enjoyable anyway. I’m looking forward to reading the next book in the series and seeing how she progresses as a writer. 

My rating out of 5

3/5

Review: Melissa De La Cruz - Blue Bloods

Melissa De La Cruz - Blue Bloods - Book 1

Book Description 

Schuyler Van Alen is confused about what is happening to her. Her veins are starting to turn blue, and she’s starting to crave raw meat. Soon, her world is thrust into an intricate maze of secret societies and bitter intrigue. Schuyler has never been a part of the trendy crowd at her prestigious New York private school. Now, all of a sudden, Jack Force, the most popular guy in school, is showing an interest in her. And when one of the popular girls is found dead, Schuyler and Jack are determined to get to the bottom of it.

Schuyler wants to find out the secrets of the mysterious Blue Bloods. But is she putting herself in danger? Melissa de la Cruz’s vampire mythology, set against the glitzy backdrop of New York City, is a juicy and intoxicating read.

Review 

The blue bloods world has a great mix of two of my favorite paranormal themes: Vampires and Angels. Melissa used an unique idea where angels are cursed to drink blood after they have fallen from heaven, thus creating the vampire myth. She then combined this with high society chick-lit and a love triangle. While I loved the concept the book did not fulfill my expectations for a good YA read.

I couldn’t conceptualize 15-16 year olds drinking and going to clubs. I may have been able to get past this if they were being rebellious but it seemed to be an accepted part of the book that this was ok. Melissa explained this ambivalence away by saying their vampire nature didn’t allow them to feel the effects. 

The book was written using a 3^rd person narrative style and it switched between different character points of view. I didn’t like this. In general, I don’t like 3^rd person narratives as much as 1^st person but I’m usually still happy to read them. By switching between the characters I had to read from the perspective of characters that had little to redeem them (namely Mimi). The characters were often superficial, vain and boring.   

Schuyler Van Alen, the protagonist, was a bit of a loner, who doesn’t fit in with the other rich, high society kids at her school. Melissa set this character up nicely to captivate readers with her journey to self discovery but failed to deliver. Instead the character lacked consistency and depth, with her personality set out like a production. At the beginning of the book she is rather shy and lacking in confidence then towards the end of the book she has a bit of a personality transplant and is suddenly a lot more confident with at one point modeling half naked.

The mystery element of the book was intriguing with some good plot twists but it took too long to get into it. It was also a little confusing at the beginning because the author periodically placed historical diary entries that were way before their time in terms of the plot.

If I was asked if I would recommend this book I would say no, read something else, but if I was asked if I’d read the next book in the series I’d say yes, but only if I had nothing better to read.

My rating out of 5

2/5

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Jennifer Rardin - Bitten in Two - Jaz Parks book 7

*Jennifer Rardin R.I.P*

Book Description

Jaz Parks here. I. Am. Pissed. Just as Vayl and I arrive in Morocco to secure an ancient artifact, he wakes up calling me by another woman's name. And it's not even a good one. But since any form of argument transforms him into an unholy terror, I'm forced to play along until the gang and I can figure out what kind of power has so vastly altered his perceptions.

So it's time for me to do what any well-trained assassin in my position might do. I attack. What follows is a hair-raising, breath-taking bullet train ride to the finish as the crew battles on multiple fronts. I now know what I have to do - I must return to hell one last time.


Review

This book left me feeling conflicted with a love-hate relationship towards it. I liked it. In some cases I really liked it but in others I found it hard to read and it left me wanting to put it down. The first part of the story was intriguing with Vayl thinking he was living in the past but it was not well introduced into the story. The reader joined the plot-line after it had already been happening for three days. This felt like I was missing something and I had to catch up. It also felt like a pointless distraction from the main plot-line (which was searching for the Rocenz). I would have enjoyed it more if the two story lines had crossed over to a larger extent.

The story had memorable moments between Vayl and Jazz, edge of your seat tension and funny interludes. What I found difficult to stomach was the relationship between Cole and Kyphas, the demon. Cole has always been a favorite of mine and every time there was a scene where it seemed like he could really care for her made me cringe. In addition, the hints placed in the storyline suggesting that someone will come along for Cole romantically in the future, combined with the ending, made the next book a little predictable for my liking.

All in all, I think I can safely say that many fans of the Jaz Parks series will not be disappointed in this recent addition. The story was well written and designed to captivate many a reader. A lot of my dislike towards the book was unfairly based around my personal soft spot for Cole and my disappointment in his attraction to Kyphas. The concept that there was something good in her was a little weak; as if that should be enough to allow for a connection with a demon that had tried to kill a friend.

My rating out of 5
 
3/5

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