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4.25 AVERAGE
4.25 AVERAGE
adventurous
challenging
funny
tense
slow-paced
4.5 Stars
This was an excellent finale.
Positives:
-Mystery- Like most of VA books, there is a mystery going around about who killed the queen. It was very intriguing, and I only guessed who it was five pages before the reveal.
-The interesting interactions- different groups of people interact, and often interactions between people you wouldn't expect. I appreciated that we got to see the different ways different people talked.
-Lissa's journey- Lissa definitely takes a journey in this book of self-discovery. She is nervous about most things, but her dedication to her friend and boyfriend is relentless.
-Big reveal: I'm not spoiling it if you don't know, but there is a mystery surrounding a bloodline revealed at the end of Spirit Bound. It is finally revealed who it is, but it definitely felt real, and the scene was realistic and well put together.
Negatives
-These are all minor things, but Rose still irked me, only because she couldn't be chill for five minutes. And she was also cheating, and while that is an excusable action, as love triangles, tend to have that situation, and it wasn't the main focus of the story, however, she knew whom her heart truly belonged to. And me not being the biggest Dimitri and Rose shipper, I just wasn't invested in their relationship as much as other people. But I did enjoy their conversation about having to forgive yourself.
-Another somewhat big thing: I'm going to try not to spoil, but there was a reveal about strigoi in SpiritBound. And in this book, a whole bunch of Strigoi are getting killed by Dimitri. And what bugged me is that he felt they were all evil and immoral, even though Strigoi have lost moral sense, and some are unwilling strigoi, from what we learned in SpiritBound, it just seemed wrong to kill them all. And yet most of those Strigoi who are unwilling were probably innocent guardians or dhampirs who have lost their sense and killed people, and yet it doesn't apply or doesn't seem to, to another character (you know who I'm talking about if you've read the book). And I know, we are supposed to know this character, and obviously his/her situation is "different" to us, even though, compared to unwilling Strigoi, it isn't, and I just don't think those Strigoi deserved to die.
This was an excellent finale.
Positives:
-Mystery- Like most of VA books, there is a mystery going around about who killed the queen. It was very intriguing, and I only guessed who it was five pages before the reveal.
-The interesting interactions- different groups of people interact, and often interactions between people you wouldn't expect. I appreciated that we got to see the different ways different people talked.
-Lissa's journey- Lissa definitely takes a journey in this book of self-discovery. She is nervous about most things, but her dedication to her friend and boyfriend is relentless.
-Big reveal: I'm not spoiling it if you don't know, but there is a mystery surrounding a bloodline revealed at the end of Spirit Bound. It is finally revealed who it is, but it definitely felt real, and the scene was realistic and well put together.
Negatives
-These are all minor things, but Rose still irked me, only because she couldn't be chill for five minutes. And she was also cheating, and while that is an excusable action, as love triangles, tend to have that situation, and it wasn't the main focus of the story, however, she knew whom her heart truly belonged to. And me not being the biggest Dimitri and Rose shipper, I just wasn't invested in their relationship as much as other people. But I did enjoy their conversation about having to forgive yourself.
-Another somewhat big thing: I'm going to try not to spoil, but there was a reveal about strigoi in SpiritBound. And in this book, a whole bunch of Strigoi are getting killed by Dimitri. And what bugged me is that he felt they were all evil and immoral, even though Strigoi have lost moral sense, and some are unwilling strigoi, from what we learned in SpiritBound, it just seemed wrong to kill them all. And yet most of those Strigoi who are unwilling were probably innocent guardians or dhampirs who have lost their sense and killed people, and yet it doesn't apply or doesn't seem to, to another character (you know who I'm talking about if you've read the book). And I know, we are supposed to know this character, and obviously his/her situation is "different" to us, even though, compared to unwilling Strigoi, it isn't, and I just don't think those Strigoi deserved to die.
adventurous
challenging
mysterious
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Flaws of characters a main focus:
N/A
While it was good, I don’t think it was the ending the series should have. A lot of loose strings that seemed tied up too fast
"ʺEighteen, and already youʹve been accused of murder, aided felons, and acquired a death count higher than most guardians will ever see.ʺ He paused. ʺI couldnʹt be prouder.""
Based on my memories, Last Sacrifice should have been a five star read. I remember having such a blast the first time I read it. I expected to love Last Sacrifice and I hoped that it would erase the 'meh' feelings towards Spirit Bound. Unfortunately, that wasn't the case.
I hate saying this, but I don't love Rose as much as I used to. I have such a soft spot for impulsive, snarky, sassy, vulnerable and badass heroines and I loved Rose as a character. However, after reading Spirit Bound and Last Sacrifice, I like Rose, but I don't love her. There are two main reasons for this:
♥ In the last two books of the Vampire Academy series, Rose's character development and growth become non-existent. Rose is a frustrating character, but she still acted in character and I could understand the reasoning behind her actions. In Last Sacrifice, I couldn't understand Rose's reasoning and actions as much and felt that she kept on changing to suit the plot direction.
♥ Rose has a tendency to lead people on mainly because she's in denial about her feelings, but after realising and accepting her true feelings in Last Sacrifice, she does something that could have been avoided.
Spoiler
I understand that Rose and Dimitri are meant to be together, but that does not give Rose free reign to cheat. There are so many ways that Rose could have ended her relationship with Adrian before having sex with Dimitri. I get angry when I read about cheating, because someone always gets hurt and I've not yet read a book that makes cheating justifiable or understandable to some extent.I also don't care about Rose's romantic relationships. Rose and Dimitri have a connection and plenty in common, but the drama and angst in their relationship is boring. Adrian has grown on me, but I don't think Rose and Adrian are meant for each other. However, I do not appreciate that Adrian was kicked to the curb and made to seem like a jerk for the sake of the plot. Adrian deserves so much better and I hope that the Bloodlines series delivers.
The Vampire Academy series has always been about the strong bond and friendship between Rose and Lissa. Rose's ability to see the world through Lissa's eyes means that we get to see what's been going on at court from Lissa's perspective. My favourite part of Last Sacrifice is Lissa's rise to queendom and the tests and trials that she has to go through
Spoiler
and my favourite scene is Lissa's coronation ceremony. Yes queen!While the romance in Rose's life leaves much to be desired, I love the relationship between Lissa and Christian and wish that I could have seen more of them being ridiculously in love instead of witnessing the Rose-Adrian-Dimitri train wreck.
I love most of the secondary characters: Christian, Sydney, Eddie, Jill,
Spoiler
Sonya,Since this is a reread, I can't comment about whether or not I was surprised by the mystery aspect, but the mystery aspect is lacking and the 'great reveal' is gimmicky.
I don't love the Vampire Academy series as much after a reread, but it still has some of my favourite characters, friendships, romances and scenes. It's a series that I will always have fond memories of, no matter how much the last two books disappointed me.
A solid finale!
"Sometimes the greatest tests of our strength are situations that don't seem so obviously dangerous. Sometimes surviving is the hardest thing of all."
**4.5 stars**
***March 6, 2019***
It ended. Now I can finally read Bloodlines. I can't wait to see more of Adrian.
***December 19, 2016***
Amazing ending to the series. Loved it!
***March 6, 2019***
It ended. Now I can finally read Bloodlines. I can't wait to see more of Adrian.
***December 19, 2016***
Amazing ending to the series. Loved it!
adventurous
lighthearted
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
N/A
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
adventurous
dark
emotional
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
This whole series was a shock to my system, I haven't read a Vampire book for a good 5 years and now all i can say is I want more! pretty please?
This whole series is fantastic, amazing, wholeyshitballsIdidnotseethatcoming, great! If I was rating the series as a whole I'd say it was a solid 4.5/5 I did have some minor problems with it but overall I loved it to bits
This book had everything I wanted from a last book in such an epic series. Best friend vibes, Romantic interest Finally being wrapped up uncovering secrete, all the past plot lines coming together, explosions There always has to be explosions! , heart stopping moments, reunions, goodbyes. AH JUST EVERYTHING IN A NICE LITTLE BOW
If you haven't picked up this series yet just DO IT. I wish I could go back in time and give teenage me this series instead of re-reading Twilight until my copies fell apart.
The only problem I had with this book was 1. Sometimes Rose was just to gun ho about things and should have thought things through just a little bit more.
Also all the recapping! Gosh I don't need constant re capping in every book, it started to really annoy me and I couldn't skip it because it was in twinned through out the whole story *sigh*
Okay I need to talk about some stuff
Rose and
Lissa! Hello Divergent flashbacks When Rose jumped in front of the bullet, oh wow I thought that would be it, I was just about to start internally sobbing. I am so grateful Mead didn't kill her off Hello Allegiant flashbacks Lissa is the perfect choice and will lead all the Moroi fairly.
Adrian
Dimitri
Christian
Favorite quotes:
“Ah, my daughter,ʺ he said. ʺEighteen, and already youʹve been accused of murder, aided felons, and acquired a death count higher than most guardians will ever see.ʺ He paused. ʺI couldnʹt be prouder.”
“What the hell?" I asked. Is this daring escape being sponsored by Honda?”
Quote that nearly broke my heart
This whole series is fantastic, amazing, wholeyshitballsIdidnotseethatcoming, great! If I was rating the series as a whole I'd say it was a solid 4.5/5 I did have some minor problems with it but overall I loved it to bits
This book had everything I wanted from a last book in such an epic series. Best friend vibes, Romantic interest
If you haven't picked up this series yet just DO IT. I wish I could go back in time and give teenage me this series instead of re-reading Twilight until my copies fell apart.
The only problem I had with this book was 1. Sometimes Rose was just to gun ho about things and should have thought things through just a little bit more.
Also all the recapping! Gosh I don't need constant re capping in every book, it started to really annoy me and I couldn't skip it because it was in twinned through out the whole story *sigh*
Okay I need to talk about some stuff
Rose and
Spoiler
Dimitri! I really like these two together and I felt what she said to Adrian was right (but also a bit harsh) but still truthful and heartfelt which sums up Rose to a TLissa!
Spoiler
Lissa is QUEEN! YAS, I loved seeing her so strong and independent. Going through the trial and her worst fearsAdrian
Spoiler
My poor little favorite! I still love you and your craziness Adrian and you'll find happiness.Dimitri
Spoiler
I felt Dimitri was a bit cheesy and not his usual hard ass but I guess coming back from the dead will do that to ya *shrugsChristian
Spoiler
Christian wasn't a huge part of this book but he was still there, I wish we could hav seen some more of him and his banter. Tash being the killer was shocking but also really believable once you put it all together. The only thing I felt weird about was the framing of Rose because I didn't think she'd be that jealous, I mean your sentencing someone to death!Favorite quotes:
“Ah, my daughter,ʺ he said. ʺEighteen, and already youʹve been accused of murder, aided felons, and acquired a death count higher than most guardians will ever see.ʺ He paused. ʺI couldnʹt be prouder.”
“What the hell?" I asked. Is this daring escape being sponsored by Honda?”
Quote that nearly broke my heart
Spoiler
“I loved you!" he yelled. He jumped up out of his chair so quickly I never saw it coming. "I loved you, and you destroyed me. You took my heart and ripped it up.”
(As reviewed on Paper Riot.)
On the book
!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
This might be my favorite of the entire series. Though I'm not sure. My brain stopped cooperating around chapter two. Holy shit. What a book. I just. Wow. What.
On the series (no spoilers!)
Vampire Academy is one of the series I never thought I would get into. While I have nothing against vampires, I haven’t read a series where I truly loved them, and therefore I didn’t think that Vampire Academy could convince me. Was I wrong? Very much so. I bought the first book with no intention of reading it soon, until Betty and Amber convinced me otherwise. And that’s when I became obsessed. I read the first one, fell in love with Rose, Dimitri, Lissa, Christian, bought the second one, fell in love with Adrian, bought the third one, got my heart broken etc. If you follow me on Twitter, you might know that this series ruined me – in the best way possible.
You might not be convinced you need to read this series just yet. However, let me tell you about different things that make Vampire Academy fabulous. First, let’s discuss why Vampire Academy is not your average vampire series. It’s really simple: when we think vampires, we think Twilight. Is this series like Twilight? Not even close. Mead’s vampire world doesn’t consist of sparkly vegetarian vampires who stare at sulky teenage girls in their sleep (no offense). The VA vampires are either badass half-vampires (dhampirs), good living vampires (Moroi) or evil dead vampires (Strigoi). And mixed with intriguing politics, haunting history and jaw-dropping mystery, this makes Vampire Academy far superior to Twilight. (This is my opinion. No offense to those who love Twilight. I did too.)
The main reason I love this series, and also the main reason you need to read this series, is Rose Hathaway. Why? Okay. Take out your dictionary. Look up the term “kick-ass heroine”. (This is my imagination, so this exists in your dictionary.) What do you see? Yep. That’s Rose Hathaway, right there. What I liked most about this book, and what Richelle Mead managed to portray really well with her writing, was a fierce, feisty and witty heroine, one that is truly unique. But while I often say Rose is flawless, she really isn’t: she can be very young in her behavior, and sometimes, she’s arrogant. But holy hell, do I love this girl. It’s so great to read about a strong, confident character that literally kicks ass for a change.
My other main reason – because I’m totally allowed to have two – is the romance, also known as the flawless combination that is Rose Hathaway and Dimitri Belikov. I don’t take the term “OTP” lightly. I don’t have many OTPs. In fact, there are only two that I really ship. One is Logan and Veronica from Veronica Mars. The other is Rose and Dimitri. Two main ships. Two couples that cause me heartache and heartbreak and make me start sobfests and make me send crazy texts to Amber and Kelly. I also don’t take the term “soulmates” lightly, because I honestly don’t believe in it, but Rose and Dimitri are nothing less than perfect for each other. I was going to write a professional and coherent paragraph about why their romance is the best ever in the entire world, but eff it. It just is.
Alongside our outstanding main character, Richelle Mead managed to bring to live a colorful and very well-written cast of side characters. Dimitri Belikov, of course, is (as described by Richelle) “a badass Russian warrior god” (and by Kelly) “a panty dropping Russian bastard”. He’s fierce. He’s loyal. He’s incredible. But there’s also Lissa (who I hated in Shadow Kiss, but liked overall), Adrian (the other main guy, and boy, is he a great one!), Christian (my favorite! Christian is snarky and sarcastic. Of course I love him), Eddie, Mia, Jill, Alberta, Mason, Abe, Sydney… I could write paragraphs on each of them, but I’m not going to, because let’s be honest: that would make this “review” too long.
Before I end this review and you get yourself to the nearest bookstore to purchase the first book, I’d like to remind you that this was not a review. I love this series with a passion, but I am not capable of truly reviewing it because I’m being harrassed by FEELS. Do I think this series is for everyone? No. Not everyone will like Rose, and not everyone will think the writing is that special or unique. I even realize that not everyone might ship Rose and Dimitri in the crazy way I do. But it’s okay. I just hope this little bit of writing inspired you to pick up this series, even if it’s just the first book. Give it a try.
On the book
!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
This might be my favorite of the entire series. Though I'm not sure. My brain stopped cooperating around chapter two. Holy shit. What a book. I just. Wow. What.
On the series (no spoilers!)
Vampire Academy is one of the series I never thought I would get into. While I have nothing against vampires, I haven’t read a series where I truly loved them, and therefore I didn’t think that Vampire Academy could convince me. Was I wrong? Very much so. I bought the first book with no intention of reading it soon, until Betty and Amber convinced me otherwise. And that’s when I became obsessed. I read the first one, fell in love with Rose, Dimitri, Lissa, Christian, bought the second one, fell in love with Adrian, bought the third one, got my heart broken etc. If you follow me on Twitter, you might know that this series ruined me – in the best way possible.
You might not be convinced you need to read this series just yet. However, let me tell you about different things that make Vampire Academy fabulous. First, let’s discuss why Vampire Academy is not your average vampire series. It’s really simple: when we think vampires, we think Twilight. Is this series like Twilight? Not even close. Mead’s vampire world doesn’t consist of sparkly vegetarian vampires who stare at sulky teenage girls in their sleep (no offense). The VA vampires are either badass half-vampires (dhampirs), good living vampires (Moroi) or evil dead vampires (Strigoi). And mixed with intriguing politics, haunting history and jaw-dropping mystery, this makes Vampire Academy far superior to Twilight. (This is my opinion. No offense to those who love Twilight. I did too.)
The main reason I love this series, and also the main reason you need to read this series, is Rose Hathaway. Why? Okay. Take out your dictionary. Look up the term “kick-ass heroine”. (This is my imagination, so this exists in your dictionary.) What do you see? Yep. That’s Rose Hathaway, right there. What I liked most about this book, and what Richelle Mead managed to portray really well with her writing, was a fierce, feisty and witty heroine, one that is truly unique. But while I often say Rose is flawless, she really isn’t: she can be very young in her behavior, and sometimes, she’s arrogant. But holy hell, do I love this girl. It’s so great to read about a strong, confident character that literally kicks ass for a change.
My other main reason – because I’m totally allowed to have two – is the romance, also known as the flawless combination that is Rose Hathaway and Dimitri Belikov. I don’t take the term “OTP” lightly. I don’t have many OTPs. In fact, there are only two that I really ship. One is Logan and Veronica from Veronica Mars. The other is Rose and Dimitri. Two main ships. Two couples that cause me heartache and heartbreak and make me start sobfests and make me send crazy texts to Amber and Kelly. I also don’t take the term “soulmates” lightly, because I honestly don’t believe in it, but Rose and Dimitri are nothing less than perfect for each other. I was going to write a professional and coherent paragraph about why their romance is the best ever in the entire world, but eff it. It just is.
Alongside our outstanding main character, Richelle Mead managed to bring to live a colorful and very well-written cast of side characters. Dimitri Belikov, of course, is (as described by Richelle) “a badass Russian warrior god” (and by Kelly) “a panty dropping Russian bastard”. He’s fierce. He’s loyal. He’s incredible. But there’s also Lissa (who I hated in Shadow Kiss, but liked overall), Adrian (the other main guy, and boy, is he a great one!), Christian (my favorite! Christian is snarky and sarcastic. Of course I love him), Eddie, Mia, Jill, Alberta, Mason, Abe, Sydney… I could write paragraphs on each of them, but I’m not going to, because let’s be honest: that would make this “review” too long.
Before I end this review and you get yourself to the nearest bookstore to purchase the first book, I’d like to remind you that this was not a review. I love this series with a passion, but I am not capable of truly reviewing it because I’m being harrassed by FEELS. Do I think this series is for everyone? No. Not everyone will like Rose, and not everyone will think the writing is that special or unique. I even realize that not everyone might ship Rose and Dimitri in the crazy way I do. But it’s okay. I just hope this little bit of writing inspired you to pick up this series, even if it’s just the first book. Give it a try.