The Golden Lily, by Richelle Mead

Series: Bloodlines, #2
Publisher: Razorbill
Release Date: June 12, 2012
Genre: Young Adult - Urban Fantasy
Read it in: 5 days
Source: Own
Challenge: TBR Pile, ABC Reading 
Rating: ★★★★★

The second thrilling installment in Richelle Mead's Vampire Academy spinoff series
Tough, brainy alchemist Sydney Sage and doe-eyed Moroi princess Jill Dragomir are in hiding at a human boarding school in the sunny, glamorous world of Palm Springs, California. The students--children of the wealthy and powerful--carry on with their lives in blissful ignorance, while Sydney, Jill, Eddie, and Adrian must do everything in their power to keep their secret safe. But with forbidden romances, unexpected spirit bonds, and the threat of Strigoi moving ever closer, hiding the truth is harder than anyone thought.
Populated with new faces as well as familiar ones, Richelle Mead's breathtaking Bloodlines series explores all the friendship, romance, battles, and betrayals that made the #1 New York Times bestselling Vampire Academy series so addictive. In this second book, the drama is hotter, the romances are steamier, and the stakes are even higher.

So here I am once again left staring at the screen wondering what the hell I'm going to say about a Richelle Mead book. I've only read her Vampire Academy series, plus the two Bloodlines books, but I have to say that Richelle is an amazing writer. AMAZING!

She always has me dying to read the next book in a series, and then when I finally get a copy of it, I don't want to read it. I want to save it. And then when I finally do start it, I get sucked in. So completely sucked in.  I love when a book grabs you and takes you to another world. Another world where you feel all these amazing feelings that the characters feel. They feel the same feelings we do, but for some reason ALL of their feelings are amazing. Whether they are truly happy, or completely and utterly heartbroken.

The Vampire Academy series, and it's spin-off Bloodlines series does that to me. The Golden Lily did that to me.

I've heard a lot of people say it was kind of slow, and it kind of was, I'll admit that. But I was so sucked in with the plot and characters, that I didn't mind. It could be a story of their every day life, from brushing their teeth, to getting ready in the morning, to going to sleep at night and I wouldn't care! Because not only does the plot make up the story, but the amazing, REAL characters.

I'll admit, too, that I sat there, reading, and waiting for something to happen with Adrian and Sydney. I want something to happen between them SO bad. I want--no, need--them to be together. NEED. I love Adrian and he deserves to be with someone like Sydney. They have amazing chemistry, even if they don't see it. They are so different, but they help each other perfectly.

Also, there are new things brought into this story. You hear about them in the first book, but you think its just a myth. But you're introduced to them in this one. The vampire hunters. Even though I knew that they would probably pop up with all the talk about them in the first Bloodlines book, my mind was completely blown when they did pop up. I literally had to stop and whoop before continuing reading because I was excited. I mean, yeah, they aren't exactly "exciting", they are scary and they pissed me off. But that's also what makes them exciting, if that even makes sense. Even though I hold my breath at the action parts, hoping my favorite characters will be fine, I still love them. Doesn't everyone?

Overall, I could go on and on and on with this book and it's series. But I need to draw a limit at times. I have no real problems with this book except for the fact that I always dive into a reading rut when I finish it's series books. Always. It never fails. it takes me a while to get my head out of the VA world. I'm writing this a full six days after I finished it and I've probably started and put down at least that many books in those last six days.

By the way, if you haven't read the Vampire Academy series, please go do that right now. Please. Do the world a favor. And me. Also, if you've read the Vampire Academy series, but haven't stared the Bloodlines series, WHAT THE HELL IS WRONG WITH YOU?! Go. Now. I'm not kidding. DO IT.
                                                                                                                                           

Author Info: Website | Blog | Twitter | Facebook

Buy: Amazon | The Book Depository

The third book, The Indigo Spell, will be released on February 12, 2013. 

Waiting on Wednesday, #40

Waiting on Wednsday is a weekly meme hosted by Jill @ Breaking the Spine. WOW spotlights upcoming releases that you are dying to read and can't wait to get your hands on!

The Golden Lily, by Richelle Mead
(Bloodlines, #2)
Publisher: Razorbill
Release Date: June 12, 2012
Pre-Order: Amazon

Tough, brainy alchemist Sydney Sage and doe-eyed Moroi princess Jill Dragomir are in hiding at a human boarding school in the sunny, glamorous world of Palm Springs, California. The students--children of the wealthy and powerful--carry on with their lives in blissful ignorance, while Sydney, Jill, Eddie, and Adrian must do everything in their power to keep their secret safe. But with forbidden romances, unexpected spirit bonds, and the threat of Strigoi moving ever closer, hiding the truth is harder than anyone thought.

Why do I want it? Richelle Mead. Vampire Academy spin-off. Adrian!! I loved the first book in this spin-off series, as I did the whole VA series, so of course I'd have this book on my wish list! =D 

Last Sacrifice by Richelle Mead

Last Sacrifice by Richelle Mead
Vampire Academy, book #6

Publisher: Razorbill
Release Date: December 7, 2010
Hardcover: 594 Pages
Age Group: Young Adult (12+)
Author Website
Buy: Amazon
Source: Bought
Rating:

Rose Hathaway had always played by her own rules.
She broke the law when she ran away from St. Vladimir's Academy with her best friend and last surviving Dragomir princess, Lissa. She broke the law when she fell in love with her gorgeous, off-limit's instructor, Dimitri. And she dared to defy Queen Tatiana, leader of the Moroi world, risking her life and reputation to protect generations of dhampir guardians to come.
Now the law has finally caught up with Rose—for a crime she didn't even commit. She's in prison for the highest offense imaginable: the assination of a monarch. She'll need help from both Dimitri and Adrian to find the one living person who can stall her execution and force the Moroi elite to acknowledge a shocking new candidate for the royal throne: Vasilisa Dragomir.
But the clock on Rose's life is running out. Rose knows in her heart the world of the dead wants her back. . .and this time she is truly out of second changes. The big question is, when your whole life if about saving others, who will save you?

Wow. . .

That's all I can basically say to this incredible last installment of the international bestselling series, Vampire Academy. I have loved the series from the start. It's my number one favorite vampire series, and it may be pretty safe to say that it's my number one favorite series of all. I have never been disappointed with this series, and reading Last Sacrifice was no different.

I counted down the days until it was released, but wasn't able to get a copy of it. But as soon as christmas came up and my hubby gave me a $50 dollar visa giftcard to get books, this was the first one on my list to order and when I finally got my hands on it I didn't know what to do. I wanted to read it, but at the same time I kind of wanted to save the story.

When I started reading it, I had to take it slow. Which is very hard to do with a Vampire Academy novel. VERY hard. I would of finished it within a couple of hours, but I made myself stop reading after a couple of chapters. So I've made it last about a week.

I know there is a spin-off series, and I'm very excited for it. Don't get me wrong. But at the same time I'm still very sad because it's the end of Rose's story. I've loved her from the start, along with all the other characters, even the evil ones. Rose is one of my favorite heroines of all my favorite books and series.

She puts her best friend, Lissa, and others first. She may seem a bit selfish when it comes to some things in her life, but at the same time she is completely unselfish.

In the Last Sacrifice you see a part of Rose you don't see very often; vulnerability. Which made me love her even more.

Every time I thought I may know who Queen Tatiana's killer was, they found another clue to the puzzle and knocked my theory right down the drain. When they finally figured out who actually did kill her, it shocked me so much! I couldn't believe it! The killer has been one of my favorite characters since mentioned in the series. Though her reasons for murder did fit and wasn't as surprising.

Overall, Last Sacrifice didn't disappoint, not that I thought it ever would. Even though I wish there were more to Rose's story and that this wasn't the last book in Rose's story, it was the perfect ending. If you haven't read this series yet, you need to get a move on and go get them. Buy them, borrow them, anything! (Well, don't steal them. . .Anything BUT that, ha ha.) Just go and grab the first book, and maybe the next couple of ones because once you read the first one you'll want the second one!