Showing posts with label Adrian. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Adrian. Show all posts

Friday, August 17, 2012

St. Vladimir's Summer School: Remedial Classes


Jen at Jen Ryland/YA Romantics and Steph at The Fake Steph Dot Com  started the St. Vladimir's Summer School. So I figured I would tag along and read some Vampire Academy since I still hadn't read it!! Lauren at The Headless Owl has also joined us!

So last week I didn't finish Last Sacrifice for the Summer School. So I spent the last few days reading every spare moment I got and finally finished it, only a week late..

Last Sacrifice
(Vampire Academy #6)

Author: Richelle Mead

Publication Date: December 7th 2010

Publisher: Razorbill

Genre: Urban Fantasy / Paranormal

GoodReads

Synopsis:

They come first. My vision was growing dimmer, the blackness and ghosts closing in. I swore it was like I could hear Robert whispering in my ear: The world of the dead won't give you up a second time. Just before the light completely vanished, I saw Dimitri's face join Lissa's. I wanted to smile. I decided then that if the two people I loved most were safe, I could leave this world.

The dead could finally have me.

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?


My Thoughts: I honestly can't believe that it took me so long to read this book. It wasn't because I didn't like it, I LOVED it! But I've just been so busy lately, so I never got a chance to finish it. So I'm slightly sad because the series is done, but there it always the Bloodlines series for me to read! Luckily, there are six books planned for that series as well.

Ok, so Last Sacrifice takes up where Spirit Bound left off, with Rose in jail. So much happens in this book. Rose's friends stage a jail break because they are running out of time to find Tatiana's killer (OMG, I couldn't believe who it was!!!) So they send Rose off to hide with Dimitri and Sydney, in a small town in the middle of no where. Of course, Rose isn't content to sit around waiting, she has her own agenda. So off she goes to find Lissa's illegitimate sibling to give Lissa a chance to vote in the council. Of course to give themselves more time, they have Lissa run for the throne, she can't win anyways. There are some very unlikely allies, heartbreak (<3 Adrian), sex and constant motion. Things are happening fast in this book, they can't go slowly because they are running out of time.

Rose changed so much in this book, at least I thought she did. She had a lot of realizations and made so many sacrifices. She does do something that made me sad, cheating on Adrian, but I guess that leaves him open for the Bloodlines series, so we'll get to read more about him  <3. Although his hurt made me very sad. Lissa is another character that grew a lot, growing into her royal role. I will admit that I teared up a few times while reading, I got so emotionally involved with the character's lives.  The character's are just so easy to fall in love with and want more from them. It's one of the reasons I'm sadabout this series ending, since there are some characters that likely won't continue on.

 Once again, Richelle Mead had me wanting to read non stop, even if I couldn't. When I wasn't reading, I was thinking about it, even dreaming about it. Oh how I wish I'd had an Adrian induced spirit dream!! I read all of these in e-format, but I'm definitely going to be purchasing these for my collection, it's become a favorite for me. This is a series you don't want to miss out on. I can't wait to dive into Bloodlines! So if you haven't read Vampire Academy yet, do it, you won't be sorry!

Wednesday, August 1, 2012

St. Vladimir's Summer School: Spirit Bound

Ashelynn at Gypsy Book Reviews, Jen at Jen Ryland/YA Romantics and Steph at The Fake Steph Dot Com  started the St. Vladimir's Summer School. So I figured I would tag along and read some Vampire Academy since I still hadn't read it!! Lauren at The Headless Owl has also joined us!

 So i'm a little late getting my post up today, I know it's not really an excuse, but I have been working nights (which is when I normally do the majority of my reading and post writing!) and getting up at 7am after about 5 hours of sleepwith my daughter, who won't let me on the computer at all anymore when she's awake. So now that she's napping, I can get my post written up since I DID actually finish Spirit Bound! Amazingly, since I only started it Monday night.

Spirit Bound
(Vampire Academy #5)

Author: Richelle Mead

Publication Date: May 18th 2010

Publisher: Razorbill

Genre: Urban Fantasy / Paranormal

GoodReads

Synopsis:

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.


My Thoughts: Alright, I can't wait to see how this series ends. I can't believe there is only one more book! It's somewhat saddening! I absolutely loved Spirit Bound! (Of course) and can't believe some of the things that happened in it! There was just  so much going on!

So Rose had returned to school and finally graduates, with the best marks in her class. Then it's off to the Royal Court where the new graduates will learn who they will be guarding in the future. Not that we ever get to the point of knowing who Rose will be guarding because once again, she takes off. This time she takes Lissa and Eddie with her and they break into a prison, the one that Victor is being held in, to bust him out. Then they head to Los Vegas to meet Victor's brother, another spirit user, to find out if there really is a way to return a Strigoi's soul to them. Of course there is, but it will require Lissa to charm a silver stake and then staking the Strigoi herself. No way Rose is going  to be letting that happen! Of course, true to his threats, Dimitri shows up in Vegas, during the day no less, and tries to kill Rose. They get away and head back to the Royal Court and safety, although Rose is put on probation for running off again. Lissa goes to check out her new university and she and Christian and the rest of their group are ambushed by Dimitri and his Strigoi. Dimitri keeps Lissa and Christian alive to use as bait for Rose. It works and the Royal Court is sending a rescue team. Rose knows she has to kill Dimitri now, there is no choice. She is either going to lose Lissa or Dimitri, and she would rather it be him.

Rose is such a complex character sometimes, it can be overwhelming. I can only imagine how she feels about it sometimes. If something can go wrong for her, it generally does.It doesn't help that she's being hunted down by one of the deadliest Strigoi out there. Things have at least been slightly patched up with Lissa and they are back to being friends, even if Rose is no longer going to be her guardian. There is something that happens with Dimitri, that was totally expected, but I'm still rooting for Team Adrian, although,  if Rose doesn't want him, I will be happy to fight Steph for him.

There was so much that went on during this book.  Always some kind of adventure of life changing event going on at court. Moroi history has been changed, new laws are being passed, and important people are being assassinated with others being accused of murder, when we know it wasn't them as the reader. Apparently  there is never a dull moment in Rose's life and I'm completely anxious to find out how this story is  going to wrap up. This is a series that keeps you  hanging on and the cliffhanger in this one was just... ugh! I  have to read Last Sacrifice. This series is just amazing and everyone has to read it. I keep asking people if they've read it and gotten someone else from work to start it.. I definitely recommend!!

Wednesday, July 25, 2012

St. Vladimir's Summer School: Blood Promise

Ashelynn at Gypsy Book Reviews, Jen at Jen Ryland/YA Romantics and Steph at The Fake Steph Dot Com  started the St. Vladimir's Summer School. So I figured I would tag along and read some Vampire Academy since I still hadn't read it!! Lauren at The Headless Owl has also joined us this week!

Blood Promise
(Vampire Academy #4)

Author: Richelle Mead

Publication Date: August 25th 2009

Publisher: Razorbill

Genre: Urban Fantasy / Paranormal

GoodReads

Synopsis:

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?


My Thoughts: Ok, I'm not really sure where to start with this one. This series is just so amazing, I still can't believe I've never read it before. I loved Blood Promise almost as much as Shadow Kiss, but not quite! There was a lot that happened and it was fairly fast paced, always a good thing. I can say that once again it was extremely hard not to pick up the next book immediately after finishing it. Richelle Mead is quickly becoming one of my new favorite authors, I just love her writing style and characters so much!
It pretty much started off where Shadow Kiss leaves off.  Rose leaves school to go in search of Strigoi Dimitri. She hears that he went back to Russia and so she goes there and starts looking. She leaves lots of other dead Strigoi behind her, but there is no sign of Dimitri.  Eventually she meets Sydney, an Alchemists, who isn't very happy about Rose's trail of bodies since she's the one who's been cleaning them all up. Sydney takes Rose to Dimitri's hometown and Rose meets Dimitri's family and feels right at home with them. She delivers the bad news and they have a funeral for Dimitri. Eventually, Rose continues on looking for Dimitri, and finds him! But can she really kill him?

Rose grows even more in this book. She realizes more about her relationship with Lissa and Dimitri. She realizes that her mom  isn't so different from her after all and that sometimes duty does have to come first. She loses the man she loves, nearly loses her best friend, she almost even loses her life. I like her character a lot more than I did when I started out the series, she just matures so much with each new book. I'm still holding out for her and Adrian, but after the ending of Blood Promise I'm not to sure what's going to happen with them anymore. Dimitri is absolutely psychotic in this one, of course, he is a Strigoi so it  is expected.

Blood Promise is an amazing read. You really should read the series if you haven't. As I said, Richelle Mead is a wonderful author and she has created this cast of characters that I can't get enough of. Luckily, there is another series based in the same universe, so I'm looking forward to reading that one as well. Seriously, read. It. Now! You won't be sorry you did! I'm off to read the next book now!

Wednesday, July 18, 2012

St. Vladimir's Summer School


Ashelynn at Gypsy Book Reviews, Jen at Jen Ryland/YA Romantics and Steph at The Fake Steph Dot Com  started the St. Vladimir's Summer School. So I figured I would tag along and read some Vampire Academy since I still hadn't read it!!

Shadow Kiss
(Vampire Academy #3)

Author: Richelle Mead

Publication Date: November 13th 2008

Publisher: Razorbill

Genre: Urban Fantasy / Paranormal

GoodReads

Synopsis:

Is Rose’s fate to kill the person she loves most? It’s springtime at St. Vladimir’s Academy, and Rose Hathaway is this close to graduation. Since Mason’s death, Rose hasn’t been feeling quite right. She has dark flashbacks in the middle of practice, can’t concentrate in class, and has terrifying dreams about Lissa. But Rose has an even bigger secret . . . .She’s in love with Dimitri. And this time, it’s way more than a crush. Then Strigoi target the academy in the deadliest attack in Moroi history, and Dimitri is taken. Rose must protect Lissa at all costs, but keeping her best friend safe could mean losing Dimitri forever…


My Thoughts: This week we read Shadow Kiss the third book in the series and oh my gosh!! It was so good! I could barely put it down! I wanted to pick up the next book immediately after finishing it but I have a couple more books I need to read in the meantime, so it will have to wait until the weekend probably. I don't even know where to really start with this book because it surpassed the awesomeness of the last two books. There was so much that happened, so many feelings I went through while reading it. I have no idea why I didn't read these books sooner, Richelle Mead just has a way of making her books impossible to put down. I completely immersed myself in the world she created and lost track of time whenever I was reading.

So if you're like me, and are a super slacker when it comes to reading series that everyone recommends to you, you might be wondering what was so great about this book. What makes it stand out so much more than the previous two. Well, for one, Rose has changed... a lot. She is no longer as irresponsible as she was in the previous books. She finally realizes that she needs to take her training seriously and that she's not invincible. She also feels a lot of guilt for what happened over the holidays. She did all she could, but it wasn't enough to save her friend. And to top it all off, she's now seeing ghosts and thinks she's going crazy. Basically, Rose grew a lot as a character and fell into the role of a guardian. Of course, she still wants Dimitri, even if it could get in the way of her job. She is completely in love with him. There is quite a bit of action in this book, and some romance. The plot moves quickly and there is never a boring part, at least for me.

I think I'm team Adrian. I  guess the idea of Rose and Dimitri being together kind of creeps me out. He is her mentor after all.. So he should really know better. You can't really help who you love I guess (even if sometimes you which you could). But I'm holding out hope for Adrian! He's crazy about Rose, he just hides it behind sarcasm and wit.

I don't know if you've figured it out yet or not, but YES! I definitely recommend this book! I recommend the whole series so far! It's just too good to not read. If you even like paranormal books in the slightest. Read this now!