Author: Richelle Mead
Publisher: Razorbill, 2008 and 2009
Genre: YA Urban Fantasy/ Paranormal Romance
Shadow Kiss
Rose Hathaway knows it is forbidden to love another guardian. Her best friend, Lissa-the last Dragomir princess-must always come first. Unfortunately, when it comes to gorgeous Dimitri Belikov, some rules are meant to be broken...
But since making her first Strigoi kills, Rose hasn't been feeling right. Something dark has begun to grow in her mind, and ghostly shadows warn of a terrible evil drawing nearer to the Academy's iron gates. And now that Lissa and Rose's sworn enemy, Victor Dashkov, is on trial for his freedom, tensions in the Moroi world are higher than ever.
Lying to Lissa about Dimitri is one thing but suddenly there's way more than friendship at stake. The immortal undead are on the prowl, and they want vengeance for the lives that Rose has stolen. In a heart-stopping battle to rival her worst nightmare, Rose will have to choose between life, love, and the two people who matter most..but will her choice mean that only one can survive?
But since making her first Strigoi kills, Rose hasn't been feeling right. Something dark has begun to grow in her mind, and ghostly shadows warn of a terrible evil drawing nearer to the Academy's iron gates. And now that Lissa and Rose's sworn enemy, Victor Dashkov, is on trial for his freedom, tensions in the Moroi world are higher than ever.
Lying to Lissa about Dimitri is one thing but suddenly there's way more than friendship at stake. The immortal undead are on the prowl, and they want vengeance for the lives that Rose has stolen. In a heart-stopping battle to rival her worst nightmare, Rose will have to choose between life, love, and the two people who matter most..but will her choice mean that only one can survive?
My Review:
Final year at St. Vladimir’s Academy means novice guardians get their field trials, and for the next six weeks they’ll dedicate themselves to protecting a fellow Moroi student. But for Rose Hathaway this is only one of the many troubles she has to deal with. Under lots of stress from the trials sudden fits of anger don’t seem that rare for hot headed rose, but when she starts seeing things, Rose thinks the stress is really making her crazy.
Keeping secrets to protect her best friend Lissa is also taking a toll on Rose (not that she’d ever admit it). But deep down, Rose knows she’ll have to deal with that sooner or later, just as she needs to deal with her feelings for Dimitri. In the end, they can no longer deny what is true, and for once they stop thinking about what is right.
I loved Rose in this book. She really is a tough girl! Having just recently lost her best friend has put a new perspective in her. Having her deal with all her issues, plus the on-going guardian trials at the same time I could see how Rose as a character had grown. This book also shows how deeply ingrained is the belief that guardians are expendable, and only the Moroi matter. It was really frustrating having Rose come back to that principle over and over again. At least she accepts that Moroi should fight along guardians, and we get to see some of that in action. I’ll just say that Moroi + Guardian = badassness of epic proportions.
The end was really heartbreaking. I won’t say unexpected for me because idiotically I had gone searching for fanfics and read a spoiler that I didn’t know was a spoiler until I finished the book. But if I hadn’t read anything I would have been shocked at how things turned out. I think it’s for the best though; it makes it all the more exciting for the next book.
Blood Promise
Rose Hathaway's life will never be the same.
The recent attack on St. Vladimir's Academy devastated the entire Moroi world. Many are dead. And, for the few victims carried off by Strigoi, their fates are even worse. A rare tattoo now adorns Rose's neck, a mark that says she's killed far too many Strigoi to count. But only one victim matters . . . Dimitri Belikov. Rose must now choose one of two very different paths: honoring her life's vow to protect Lissa—her best friend and the last surviving Dragomir princess—or, dropping out of the Academy to strike out on her own and hunt down the man she loves. She'll have to go to the ends of the earth to find Dimitri and keep the promise he begged her to make. But the question is, when the time comes, will he want to be saved?
Now, with everything at stake—and worlds away from St. Vladimir's and her unguarded, vulnerable, and newly rebellious best friend—can Rose find the strength to destroy Dimitri? Or, will she sacrifice herself for a chance at eternal love?
The recent attack on St. Vladimir's Academy devastated the entire Moroi world. Many are dead. And, for the few victims carried off by Strigoi, their fates are even worse. A rare tattoo now adorns Rose's neck, a mark that says she's killed far too many Strigoi to count. But only one victim matters . . . Dimitri Belikov. Rose must now choose one of two very different paths: honoring her life's vow to protect Lissa—her best friend and the last surviving Dragomir princess—or, dropping out of the Academy to strike out on her own and hunt down the man she loves. She'll have to go to the ends of the earth to find Dimitri and keep the promise he begged her to make. But the question is, when the time comes, will he want to be saved?
Now, with everything at stake—and worlds away from St. Vladimir's and her unguarded, vulnerable, and newly rebellious best friend—can Rose find the strength to destroy Dimitri? Or, will she sacrifice herself for a chance at eternal love?
My Review:
Leaving everything she’s ever known behind Rose sets out on a quest to kill the man she loves, but even finding out his hometown proves difficult. Rose soon realizes she can’t do this alone. Sydney a reluctant, yet useful ally finally helps Rose make her way to Dimitri’s family. All the while dealing with grief and heartache, Rose also has to deal with her shadow-kissed powers which keep springing up surprises.
Dimitri’s family receives her with open arms, and Rose almost loses sight of her purpose. The town’s underground life and a mysterious man called Abe snap her back to reality. Rose heads back to the city with a band of unpromised guardians and starts hunting out Strigoi, leaving a message out for Dimitri.
But no matter how many times Rose told herself she could do it, it never prepared her for that first time of seeing him again. Now trapped in his world, and with mixed feelings, will Rose be able to fulfill her promise? Or will the new promise of “together forever” be too tempting?
The first half of the book goes pretty slow action-wise, but that’s alright because it was like the first book giving info on a whole bunch of new interesting things. Although Rose’s grieving annoyed me a bit, because she would go on and on and on, I couldn’t really blame her. Her escapes were a nice distraction. Going into Lissa’s mind leads down another plot that runs parallel to Rose’s.
Also I’ve never seen this done before, but I absolutely loved the way Rose goes back to reminiscence and describe in detail events and conversations between her and Dimitri. It gives insight into their relationship, and lets us catch all those cute scenes we didn’t see in the other books.
We’ve heard about Dimitri’s scary grandma before, but after seeing her in action well…Yeva rocks! And Abe also rocks and you’ll get why once you finish the book. Actually the end brings two surprises. And yes, thankfully I stayed away from spoilers for this!
