St. 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.

I've read so many good reviews about this series and on a whim I finally decided to check it out.

HA!!

Of course once I started I couldn't stop and I've had a blast getting to know Rose and the world of the Vampire Academy.

In book one we are introduced to two girls on the run, one-Rose, a dhampir guardian in training and two, Lissa- a vampire princess and last to her royal line. Why are these girls hiding? Well that and a lot of hot spicy romance make up the plot for this book.

First chapter soon, the girls are caught and taken back to St. Vladimirs (think Hogwarts for vampires....even with half-bloods..aka..dhampirs) where the girls are reprimanded but get sent back to classes and for Rose- training. Dhampirs the half human half vampire species live to protect Vampires or full blood Moroi like Lissa and spend their entire childhood and teen years preparing for a life of Guardian duty against the Strigoi- evil vampires that kill people and everything else. While going back to train, Rose meets Dimitri, her much older Russian born mentor who over the course of the book steals Roses heart. Only they cant be together because not only will Dimitri not give her the time of day, it goes against pretty much all the rules.

I highly enjoyed book one and love Rose, shes like Buffy with more curves and dark hair. I found her attitude, her sass and spark- everything that makes a slayer kick-butt- work well. Yet while Dimitri is still in the background Im awaiting for his character to take more of a prime role. This was deliciously intoxicating.


4/5- YA-Paranormal




Frostbite (Book 2) by Richelle Mead
April 2008 by Razorbill
Nook/258 Pages
Bought

And so right where Academy leaves off we pick up the action in Frostbite. Rose and Dimitri while on a training mission encounter a Moroi massacre and jump to action to protect the students at St. Vlads....the team moves the group to a Ski Resort where family's and Moroi can safely spend the holidays.

Since the "lust" encounter things in the romance department haven't been moving along with Dimitri very well and now that an opportunity for him to marry a Moroi woman has arisen, Rose cant help but feel wounded and ticked off. Trying to move past her feelings for Hot D, she starts a tentative relationship with Mason, fellow dhampir and novice guardian but things aren't as spicy as she would like. At the same though Lissa and Christian (both royal Moroi's) have jumped on the dating train and things are defiantly getting spicy there, frequently Rose is pulled into Lissa thoughts due to the "bond" and getting to know Christian that way is freaking her out.....

Anger and tension are running high with all the characters and the end brings about Rose's first look at loss, maturity and truly what it means to walk the life of a Guardian.

Just as much as the first I loved getting deeper into this second story. The romance is sweeter, the stakes are higher and Meads world building is fun and dangerous.

4/5- YA-Paranormal


November 2008 by Razorbill
Nook Edition- 443 Pages
Bought

For sure my favorite of the three, Shadow Kiss consumes us with its nonstop action. The novices are entering the last phase of their training and start going through field exercises, while sharing a bond is significant for Rose guarding Lissa the Guardians think she would do better protecting someone she isn't linked to. Out of all people to guard, Rose gets stuck with Christian.

Although Rose is tending to trade in her mature level-headedness to whiny hormonal teenager, whether it be from her first kill or the loss and sighting of  a particular "friend" in the previous book, she is in a constant battle with her thoughts and emotions that tend to have a very dark edge. I still love the always evolving sides to her character and after realizing why her emotions were so tangled it made me appreciate her strength even more. The romance is to an extreme point where Rose and Dimitri are right on the edge, we know only one of two things are going to happen and of course as soon as we are given the outcome Mead blasts the reader away with a shocking...SHOCKING...ending. With the introduction to ghosts, mystery and an ending that blew me away Shadow Kiss didn't fail to please.

5/5- YA-Paranormal

Rating for books 1-3

Now while I loved this entire series, I do think its for a mature audience, so parents should know this is not suitable for readers under 17. I defiantly think if teens are going to read it, they should be older teens and college age young adults. Books 1-3 contain: Violence, graphic language, teen drinking, romance and high sensuality. Books 2 &3 contain actual sexual encounters and there is that little thing with Rose being 17 and Dimitri being 24, which of course is part of the drama in the novels but last time I checked is still statutory rape. The novels also touch on various degrees of religion including Orthodox Christianity, Wicca, Russian Orthodox, Catholicism and New Age .