Vampire Academy & Frostbite by Richelle Mead

Vampire Academy (Vampire Academy, #1)

By Richelle Mead

Publisher: the Penguin Group, 2007

332 pages, paperback

Date Finished: 13/11/2011

Genres: Young Adult, Coming of Age, Action, Adventure, Romance, Fantasy

Vladimir’s Academy isn’t just any boarding school—it’s a hidden place where vampires are educated in the ways of magic and half-human teens train to protect them. Rose Hathaway is a Dhampir, a bodyguard for her best friend Lissa, a Moroi Vampire Princess. They’ve been on the run, but now they’re being dragged back to St. Vladimir’s—the very place where they’re most in danger. . . .

Rose and Lissa become enmeshed in forbidden romance, the Academy’s ruthless social scene, and unspeakable nighttime rituals. But they must be careful lest the Strigoi—the world’s fiercest and most dangerous vampires—make Lissa one of them forever...
~from goodreads.com~

~First Line: "I felt her fear before I heard her screams."
~Last Line: "From far away, I heard the sound of cawing, almost like laughter."

Review: This is and always will be one of my favorite series of all-time. Rose and Lissa, but especially Rose, make me feel like my problems aren't all that when I read about theirs. When I reread this novel, I couldn't put it down for anything in the world.

Rose Hathaway is a dhampir -- half human, half Moroi (vampire). She has a psychic bond with here best friend Lissa Dragomir. Liss is a Moroi princess, the last left of her family line, the Dragomirs. At thebegininng of the novel, you witness the girls being captured (more like finally found) and being taken back to St. Vladimir's Academy, a school only for Moroi and dhampirs.

The plot was really really great! The girls were always getting into some kind of action, although it was more Rose than Lissa. (Rose acts, then thinks; Lissa's the opposite, which is why she gets along better with people.) The romance aspect added to the book, too. You can't help but be pulled into it. "But he's not popular." "He's too old for you!" These are only a few of the things I said while flipping through the pages. :)

Rose is one of those kick butt people that everyone likes but would never want to get into a fight with. (Her and Chuck Norris desperately need to have a showdown!) Lissa is a kind, sweet, loving person who just wants to live up to her brother's ghost. She's really good at compulsion and still hasn't specialized in an element(magic), which isn't something she likes mentioning.

Two more characters that you definitely need to know are Dimitri Belikov, Rose's seven-years-too-old-for-her-crush and training mentor, and Christian Ozerathe son of two Moroi-turned-Strigoi parents (Strigoi = bad, Moroi = good, Moroi turning Strigoi = horrible). Dimitri totally has feelings for Rose. It's super obvious; he can't help himself sometimes. Christian is sweet like Lissa, who he likes, but has a fierce side like Rose. Definitely a nice combination, Ms. Mead.

Overall, GET THIS BOOK. Read it. It will become an addiction. A good one, but an addiction all the same. And I'll still be here for you to thank later :)

Plot Rating: 5
Character Rating: 5
Cover Rating: 4
GoodReads Rating: 5

Overall rating:
and three-fourths :)

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Frostbite (Vampire Academy, #2)

By Richelle Mead

Publisher: the Penguin Group, 2008

327 pages, paperback

Date Finished: 23/11/2011

Genres: Young Adult, Coming of Age, Romance, Some Adventure, Action, Fantasy

Rose loves Dimitri, Dimitri might love Tasha, and Mason would die to be with Rose…

It's winter break at St. Vladimir's, but Rose is feeling anything but festive. A massive Strigoi attack has put the school on high alert, and now the Academy's crawling with Guardians—including Rose's hard-hitting mother, Janine Hathaway. And if hand-to-hand combat with her mom wasn't bad enough, Rose's tutor Dimitri has his eye on someone else, her friend Mason's got a huge crush on her, and Rose keeps getting stuck in Lissa's head while she's making out with her boyfriend, Christian! The Strigoi are closing in, and the Academy's not taking any risks… This year, St. Vlad's annual holiday ski trip is mandatory.

But the glittering winter landscape and the posh Idaho resort only create the illusion of safety. When three friends run away in an offensive move against the deadly Strigoi, Rose must join forces with Christian to rescue them. But heroism rarely comes without a price...
~from goodreads.com~

~First Line: "Things die."
~Last Line: "Lots of things."

Review: The sequel to Vampire Academy was even better than the first. Although it had some sad parts, too, but don't all books?

Rose and Lissa escape the perilous hands of Lissa's "Uncle" Victor. Only to be pulled into even more drama. But of course, that's one of the best parts of these books :D.

Two more really important characters in this novel are Adrian Ivashkov, who I would love to meet in person, and Mason Whose-last-name-I-can't-remember. Adrian is a bad boy. Period. I can't even explain without giving him away. Picture, and charcterize, the baddest bad boy you can imagine; Adrian is probably two levels down from that. Ahmazing, huh?

Mason is one of Rose's classmates and a really good friend of her's, too. I've always thought that Rose and Mason make such a cute couple together. hHe understands her like other people don't and most never will. When they "fought" it was so heart-breaking, kind of.

The plot . . . all I can say without including spoilers is that I wish the novel had a completely different ending. I think you will think the same thing whenever you read it. Quite sad indeed.

Without a doubt, this book was really good, and anyone who still hasn't started reading this series: please start. SOON! :D

Plot Rating: 5
Character Rating: 5
Cover Rating: 4.5
GoodReads Rating: 5

Overall rating:
and seven-eighths :)