Guest Review: Bloodlines by Richelle Mead

Miss Kitty from Tigris Eden's Garden of Books is stopping by today with a guest review of Bloodlines!

Bloodlines
Book 1 in the Bloodlines series

Author: Richelle Mead
Publisher: Razorbill
Genre: Young Adult
ISBN: 9781595143174
Release date: August 23, 2011
Author's website: Richelle Mead

BLOOD DOESN'T LIE.

Sydney is an alchemist, one of a group of humans who dabble in magic and serve to bridge the worlds of human and vampires. They protect vampire secrets - and human lives. When Sydney is torn from her bed in the middle of the night, at first she thinks she's still being punished for her complicated alliance with dhampir Rose Hathaway. But what unfolds is far worse. Jill Dragomir - the sister of Moroi Queen Lissa Dragomir - is in mortal danger, and the Moroi must send her into hiding. To avoid a civil war, Sydney is called upon to act as Jill's guardian and protector, posing as her roommate in the last place anyone would think to look for vampire royalty - a human boarding school in Palm Springs, California. But instead of finding safety at Amberwood Prep, Sydney discovers the drama is only just beginning...

If the ending of the Vampire Academy Series left you begging for more of the mysterious Sydney, the newly anointed Princess Jailbait...erm...Jill or our perfectly heartbroken bad boy Adrian...your wait it OVER! This monster of a book (432 pages!) opens the series with a bang.

Sydney is thrust, yet again, into the world of vampires battling not only her own belief system that vampires are all against God's will and just plain wrong! She finds herself battling those beliefs in the worst possible place...high school. Dun dun duuuuuuuun! Juggling high school politics, vampire feedings, and her uptight pain of a supervisor, Keith, is enough to make Sydney wonder if she is really right for this job.

Adrian is also back. After Rose shattered him in the end of Spirit Bound, he has been doing nothing but slipping back into his bad habits of self loathing, partying all night with random girls and smoking like a chimney. A request from the elusive Abe Mazur has Adrian in Palm Springs along side the unlikely roommates, Sydney and Jill.

Now that her half-sister is Queen, Jill must find her place in vampire society and stay ALIVE. There are protesters so Lissa being being on the throne and because they know they can't get to her...they are going after Jill. Lissa's only living relative and by law...the Queen has to have at least one. Until the Queen can change that law Jill is in hiding and trying to navigate High School, homework, dating and the dreaded gym class.

I recommend this book to any Richelle Mead fan! I was met with several "I didn't see that coming" moments and several mentions of characters I know and love. This series has real promise and I can't wait until book two, The Golden Lily comes out next year.


Reviewed by Miss Kitty: