Reading Level: Young AdultGenre: Paranormal
Size: 417 pages
Publisher: Razorbill
Release Date: June 12, 2012
ISBN-13: 978-1595143181
Stand Alone or Series: 2nd book in the Bloodlines series
Source: Borrowed from Library
Rating: 4/5 stars
This is the second book in the Bloodlines series by Richelle Mead. Right now there are six books planned for this series; the third book (The Indigo Spell) is scheduled for a Feb 2013 release. This was a decent continuation of this series. We get to see Sydney learn more about magic and watch as she copes with all of the vamps surrounding her.
Sydney is still at school trying to manage Jill’s safety. The vamps in the story are conducting some testing on Dimitri to see how his blood is different from other vamps. There is a lot of high school drama going on about who loves who and Sydney goes on her first date with a guy who seems to be the perfect match for her. The stakes are upped when one of the vamps is kidnapped by a group of Vampire Hunters and only the Alchmist’s ages old connection with the group allows Sydney to help out.
I enjoyed this book but when I sit down to think about what actually happened in this book, well not much happens. The first two-thirds of the book deals with Sydney trying to get through her day to day life. She finds a boy just like her (really smart and socially inept) and starts dating. She has a lot of tense scenes between her and Adrian. She tries to comfort Eddie as Jill continues to date a human. She tries to protect Eddie from Angeline’s unwanted advances. As I said lots of teenage high school drama stuff.
This book really start to get interesting when the Vampire Hunters enter the story. We got hints of this in the first book, Clarence the old vamp who everyone thinks is crazy has been paranoid about Vampire hunters from day one. The history behind this group and the way it ties into the Alchemists history is really interesting.
As the situation gets more dire Sydney has to face up to the fact that she is just never going to be a real physical fighter. In light of this she starts to investigate the magical abilities that first showed up in Bloodlines. This was another incredibly interesting part of the story and I can’t wait to see where this goes.
I enjoy Sydney as a character she is sooo different from Rose; she is smart, socially awkward, and just a bit blind when it comes to Adrian’s feelings. The tension between Sydney and Adrian definitely goes up a notch in this book. The scenes between these two were wonderful; but the way Sydney struggles between the Alchemists’ beliefs and her love for her friends is heartbreaking at times.
The book ties up nicely and adds a lot of interesting elements to the world. Mead is a very good writer; her writing is easy to read and in general very well done.
Overall a pretty darn good book. Not much happens in the beginning, we just follow Sydney around as she tries to cope with everything she needs to do; it was fun to read but didn’t advance the story a ton. The last third of the book though was incredible; lots more about vampire hunters, about Sydney’s magic, and some wonderful scenes between Adrian and Sydney. Highly recommended for fans of the Vampire Academy series and for fans of paranormal YA books. I can’t wait to see what happens in The Indigo Spell.
This book goes towards the following reading challenges:
- Horror and Urban Fantasy Challenge
- 150+ Books Reading Challenge
So in love with this book :D I finished it in 2 days. I really hope the characters would work things out after the end of this book... Can't wait for the next one :D
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