Vampire Academy|Richelle Mead

Review

 Title: Vampire Academy

Series: Vampire Academy #1

Author: Richelle Mead

Publication: August 16, 2007 by Razorbill

Literary Award(s): YALSA Teens Top Ten (2008)

Format: Paperback

Source: Library

Genre: YA; Paranormal; Fantasy; Romance (subplot)

St. Vladimir’s Academy isn’t just any boarding school—it’s a hidden place where vampires are educated in the ways of magic and half-human teens train to protect them. Rose Hathaway is a Dhampir, a bodyguard for her best friend Lissa, a Moroi Vampire Princess. They’ve been on the run, but now they’re being dragged back to St. Vladimir’s—the very place where they’re most in danger. . . .

My Thoughts:

I picked this book up for pretty much one reason; you can’t watch PolandBannasBOOKS booktube videos without coming to realize her true love for this series.  I was at the library, and figured, hey why NOT pick up this book.  Christine loves it!

I think that first and foremost I should probably talk about vampires.  I never really got into Twilight and certainly not into the big paranormal romance surge around 2009.  It’s not that I didn’t have respect or dislike for paranormal, it was more of an indifference.  But, in 2013 I read Holly Black’s The Coldest Girl in Coldtown, which made me realize that different interpretations of vampirism can lead to very different types of stories.

That is what I found in Vampire Academy.  Immediately after starting the book, you are thrown into two main things.  First off, Richelle Mead doesn’t hold back, and completely immerses you in vivid world building. There is compulsion and feeders and guardians.  Mead’s vampire world is made up of three different groups, all varying levels of ‘pure’ vampire.  Some of the vampire’s have specific titles, similar to a ‘duke’ or ‘duchess’ except that ‘prince’ and ‘princess’ is used, but not in a royal manner.  Not only do they have specific titles but they have a certain power that they hone and use to their advantage    The level of detail was absolutely fascinating.

Secondly,  we are introduced to the friendship between our protagonist Rose, and her best friend Princess Lissa.  It is clear from the first interaction that reader witnesses that these two are more than just friends, but not in a romantic way.  Rose and Lissa have a complicated relationship due to the fact that not only is Rose Lissa’s guardian, they are bonded.  Being bonded in as concept that isn’t particularly prevalent for all of the characters but completely changes the dynamic between Rose and Lissa.

The main plot of the book focuses on Rose and Lissa’s return to their school, the complicated social hierarchy, and dealing with why they left in the first place.  Vampire Academy is not short of character development, action, or even romance.  Similar to Black’s The Coldest Girl In Coldtown, the romance in Vampire Academy is mostly subplot.  While it is exciting romance, it is forbidden and angsty.  However, there is promise for future redemption in following books.

My main beef with Vampire Academy, which is pretty much my only beef, is that ‘Vampire Academy’ is a terrible, horrible, name for this book.  First of all, the book doesn’t focus on the school as a whole, but very specific students. But mostly, the problem is that Mead doesn’t even refer to her vampires as ‘vampires’.  They have specific names like Moroi, Dhampir, and Strigoi that had to do with their blood purity and how they turned.

Conclusion:

Vampire Academy is a book filled with rich, juicy word building, crazy warrior action scenes, and maybe some angsty romance. Oh, and it has a kick ass female friendship.  For readers who want a vampire story set in a creative, well thought world, readers who want an awesome female friendship that the story focusses on, and for readers who want a story about love that cannot be.  Fans of Holly Black’s The Coldest Girl in Coldtown and Sara J. Maas’ Throne of Glass should pick this up.