Sunday, July 12, 2009

Review (SS1): Vampire Academy by Richelle Mead

Vampire Academy, Book 1

Tags: YA, paranormal, vampires, sex

Rating: 4.5 out of 5

Summary

This is no ordinary vampire world you’re stepping into. Rose Hathaway is a dhampir, a half-vampire, half-human being who is sworn to protect the lives of the Moroi, mortal vampires whose blood is especially desirable by the Strigoi, the evil immortal vampires. Rose has a unique bond with her best friend Lissa, a Moroi princess. The bond was what told her that being at Vampire Academy among the guardians and the other Moroi and dhampirs wasn’t safe, and so two years ago they escaped and have been on the run ever since.

At the start of their senior year, however, Rose and Lissa get caught and it’s back to the pointless social politics of the Academy they go. In between classes, house arrest (as punishment for escaping), and grueling training sessions with the extremely hot Russian guardian Dimitri, however, Rose begins to sense that danger is surrounding Lissa, that she is not who she thinks she is. Lissa has a rare power that could destroy her, and only Rose can protect Lissa from herself…and others who might want to use her for their own benefits.

Review

Now this is the kind of YA paranormal series that I like. Butt-kicking, whip-smart female protagonists; dangerously sexy and complicated love interests; cutthroat high school drama; and an elaborately imagined alternative world…what more could you ask for?

All of the characters, not just the main ones, are great. They have personality, they make biting remarks, they sharpen their claws, spread rumors, manipulate. The Academy is, in a way, like Gossip Girl for vampires: the class politics underlining this series makes it more than a just-for-paranormal-entertainment read. Dhampirs whose life mission is to protect the royal Moroi? An exchange of blood between dhampires and Moroi being dirty and disgusting? The Moroi’s conscious decision to hide from, not fight, the bloodthirsty Strigoi? Come on. There’s plenty to be discussed in this book, as well as plenty to be entertained about.

And speaking of entertainment. The Gossip Girl reference is accurate, more so because of the sexuality that runs through the book. Vampires themselves are already attractive creatures; throw in a couple of hot guys, smart girls, and impossible romances, and you’ve got drama and heartbreak enough to satisfy your cravings. Most books get their strength through either character development or plot; VAMPIRE ACADEMY does both.

This book is class drama for the paranormal set, Twilight done right (in a sexually realistic kind of way). Pick this up and you’ll be sucked immediately into its enchantment. I doubt you will be disappointed.

Similar Authors
Melissa de la Cruz (Blue Bloods series)
Stephenie Meyer

Writing: 4/5
Characters: 5/5
Plot: 5/5
Want more? I am dying to get my hands on the next in the series. Dying.

Overall Rating: 4.5 out of 5

9 comments:

  1. I've been thinking of picking up this book, but I wanted to get through the House of Night series first. I was just going to get it because it's vampires and because it's popular.

    However, after reading your review, I think I'll get to it a bit faster :-) It sounds frickin' awesome!

    ReplyDelete
  2. I love this series and recommended for your series summer reads- so it's really good that you liked it so much and they get better.

    Seahn

    ReplyDelete
  3. Man, you make this sound really great. But I am sick. To. DEATH of vampires (no pun intended).

    ReplyDelete
  4. This series looks really promising. I intend to get my hands on it sooner or later. And I love the covers of the books.

    ReplyDelete
  5. I am in love with this series. Waiting for Blood promise is killing me (no pun intended).

    ReplyDelete
  6. I want to start reading Vampire Academy too. I should be finishing "Predatoress-" written by Emma Gabor,a great vampire book that sucked me in right from the beginning- I am hooked and don't want it to end. I will have to make sure to grab Vampire Academy so that I will have something else good to read to fill the void.

    ReplyDelete
  7. I can't wait to read this... I have to sneak it to the top of the pile.

    LOVED -- loved your review. Did I say I loved it? lol.

    ReplyDelete
  8. hey x does anyone know roughly what age it should be for? because i LOVE vamp books but hate really gory ones. i adored house of night and twilight and am reading vampire beach. is it anything like them?

    ReplyDelete
  9. Great review! I just finished reading this and I loved it too. Do you mind if I link to your review from mine?

    ReplyDelete

Hello! I'm so excited to read what you have to say. Due to high amounts of spam, I'm forced to disabled anonymous comments for the time being. Sorry for any inconvenience this causes, and I hope you can understand and still appreciate the content here!

LinkWithin

Related Posts Plugin for WordPress, Blogger...