Published: November 13, 2007 by: Razorbill
Pages: 332
Rating: 4/5 stars
Rose Hathaway has spent 2 years protecting her best friend Lissa from the Strigoi, a fierce group of vampires after Lissa to make her one of them. When the girls are brought to St. Vladimir's; an academy for vampire royalty and their protectors, the girls must face a new challenge: high school. But along with new relationships and romance, comes danger, as the Strigoi is always close by, and the girls must be careful as to who they trust.
I was pleasantly surprised by this book. I have always had problems with vampire books, but I found this one to be pleasing, funny and all around, a great read! It restored my faith in vampire books.
I loved the characters in this book. Lissa and Rose were both strong, sarcastic and badass characters who kept me interested. I didn't find them to be cheesy or cliche at all, and none of the characters in this book really annoyed me. They were a big plus.
I liked how this book wasn't so dark and heavy. It had sort of a contemporary aspect to it, with the girls adapting to new school and new people. You get to see more of a relatable teenager side to them, as opposed to just strictly fantasy. I loved the comic relief in this novel, and it was quite a funny book. I like it when fantasies aren't so serious all the time, as I like to feel comfortable reading a book.
The problem I had with this book, is just that it was nothing extraordinary to me. I enjoyed myself while reading it, but I didn't think that I had anything mind blowing or captivating about it. I didn't think that the relationships in this book were all that strong, besides Lissa and Rose's friendship, and nobody really stood out to me to be over the top amazing.
Overall, this was a nice, easy read. I think it would be a good read to get out of a reading slump, because there's definitely some lighter aspects to it. Although, it was just average for me. It did feel good to get out of my fear of vampire novels though.
Have you read Vampire Academy? What did you think?
Emily @ Paperback Princess
I read this during my vampire obsessed phase so I loved Vampire Academy (and the rest of the series). I totally agree that it's a good book to get you out of a reading slump, it's one of those books which just feels super gossipy and easy to take in because like you said there's not a lot of dark/heavy stuff going on.
ReplyDeleteGreat review, will you be reading the rest of the series?
Thanks Lara! Finishing the rest of the series isn't exactly my priority right now, but I will definitely keep them on my radar. I'd like to see how this story goes forward.
DeleteThis is an old favourite of mine. If I read the book now, I would probably find a lot of flaws with it, but still, I have such a fond memory of this series. And if you can, try to give the sequels a shot! The series get more action paced with each book!
ReplyDeleteMaybe I will! I do love more fast paced novels :)
DeleteI really loved these books-a friend got me hooked, and I read straight through them. For me, I just loved Rose/Dimitri, and I got invested in all the characters. Plus, the action definitely does pick up more and more with each book.
ReplyDeleteI love Dimitri, I think he's a really strong character. I'm happy to hear that the action picks up.
DeleteI agree with you, it is nothing special, but I still enjoyed it. I liked how it wasn't really dark.
ReplyDeleteYes, it was very surprising!
DeleteVampire Academy is probably one of the books with vampires in it which I can actually tolerate! I too enjoyed it because it was a quick read and in fact did help me get out of a reading slump :))
ReplyDeleteNaomi@The Perks Of Being A Bookworm
I loved how unique it was compared to other vampire books!
DeleteEver since I read (and didn't really enjoy) Twilight, I've been wary of vampire books as well, but you make me want to give this series a try! I feel like I'm the one person who hasn't yet, haha. I love it when supernatural books have a lighter, contemporary-feel side - that's why I stick to light fantasy and rarely try high fantasy - and this book sounds like it executes its more realistic side well.
ReplyDeleteBy the way, thanks for your comment on my post about the "wild and precious life" quote! The Beginning of Everything is so great, and I can't believe I haven't gotten around to reading the author's next book yet.
Yes, I wasn't a fan of Twilight at all but I am so happy I gave this one a try! And you're welcome, I love Robyn Schnieder's books :)
DeleteTwilight really made me lose faith in vampires, haha. Glad to see you enjoyed this book and that it restored your faith in vampires! :) Great review, Emily!
ReplyDeleteThanks Ruzaika! It made me realize that not all vampires are bad haha!
DeleteFunny you should post this, because I just finished reading this. Haha. I pretty much felt the same way as you did - I'm not much of a fan of vampire books, but this one really was pretty entertaining. Thanks for sharing and, as always, fabulous review! ♥
ReplyDeleteWell isn't that a coincidence! I'm glad you enjoyed it. Thanks Zoe!
DeleteI just skimmed the review because I haven't read it yet but you've encouraged me to pick it up. One of my friends LOVES this series and is always trying to get me to read it. One day, one day lol!! Great review!!
ReplyDeleteThanks for stopping by! Hope you enjoy the series :)
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