Book Review: Bloodlines (Bloodlines #1)

By: Richelle Mead

Published by: Razorbill

To Be Released on: August 23rd, 2011

Source: Book received from publisher to receive

4 stars- I Really Enjoyed It

Purchase From: Amazon| Barnes & Noble

When alchemist Sydney is ordered into hiding to protect the life of Moroi princess Jill Dragomir, the last place she expects to be sent is a human private school in Palm Springs, California. But at their new school, the drama is only just beginning.

Populated with new faces as well as familiar ones, Bloodlines explores all the friendship, romance, battles and betrayals that made the #1 New York Times bestselling Vampire Academy series so addictive - this time in a part-vampire, part-human setting where the stakes are even higher and everyone's out for blood.

Let me start off by saying I've only read the first book in the Vampire Academy, and I'm planning on reading the rest even though I've heard from a few friends what happens through out the series. Having said that, I really enjoyed Bloodlines, and I didn't feel lost with the storyline at all. This is a great spin off for a beloved Vampire series, as many of the same characters are back and yes there's even appearances by Rose and Dimitri. Bloodlines isn't about them, this story focuses on Sydney.

There's a lot of things I enjoyed with Bloodlines. I like how Richelle keeps me guessing with her characters. I learned in VA that you can't trust every character you meet and she stays true to that in Bloodlines. There's some wonderful twists and that air of mystery with the characters and the storyline that kept me hooked till the very end. I also liked how some of the main characters, Sydney, Jill, Eddie, and Keith, someone I couldn't stand and for good reason, are all enrolled in a school and have to act like brothers and sisters. This of course allows them to protect Jill. I don't know how they're able to pull it off, because there's some great chemistry between a few of them that has me wondering who's going to be hooking up as the series continues.

Jill herself is a character I really enjoyed getting to know. She's feisty, strong willed and despite having an entourage of characters who are there to protect her, she's someone who can take care of herself. Sydney, the story's main character, has this steely determination that I really admired about her, especially in the beginning of the book. Can I just say that I have no respect for her father after the opening scene. Luckily when she's away from her father, Sydney becomes more courageous, and she's incredibly smart and so sarcastic! She can definitely dish out the one liners and the chemistry between her and Adrian is fabulous! The two of them made me laugh out loud more than a few times. I'm curious to see what happens between them in the next book. Adrian himself is someone I also enjoyed getting to know more. He's still dealing with the things that happened in Vampire Academy, but I think he's a character who's going to make a lot of changes as this series goes on.

I really think Vampire Academy fans will enjoy this spinoff. Bloodlines has a whole new story line, fantastic character chemistry, and the ending is UGH, so good! Seriously. Fans are really going to enjoy it and what ever you do, do not skip to the last page! That last line is one fans will love reading. I'm really looking forward to reading more of this series. After reading Bloodlines, I really want to go and finish reading the rest of the Vampire Academy series. I highly recommend picking this book up.

Visit the Bloodlines website for more information about the series.