Review: Frostbite by Richelle Mead

Rose loves Dimitri, Dimitri might love Tasha, and Mason would die to be with Rose... 
It’s winter break at St. Vladimir’s, but Rose is feeling anything but festive. A massive Strigoi attack has put the school on high alert, and now the Academy’s crawling with Guardians—including Rose’s hard-hitting mother, Janine Hathaway. And if hand-to-hand combat with her mom wasn’t bad enough, Rose’s tutor Dimitri has his eye on someone else, her friend Mason’s got a huge crush on her, and Rose keeps getting stuck in Lissa’s head while she’s making out with her boyfriend, Christian! The Strigoi are closing in, and the Academy’s not taking any risks... This year, St. Vlad’s annual holiday ski trip is mandatory. 
But the glittering winter landscape and the posh Idaho resort only create the illusion of safety. When three friends run away in an offensive move against the deadly Strigoi, Rose must join forces with Christian to rescue them. But heroism rarely comes without a price...

Continuing with my Vampire Academy adventure, I read the second book in the series, Frostbite. Let me tell you, I am SOOO glad I decided to continue the series. When I read the first one I had my doubts but everyone insisted that the series gets better and they were so right.

Frostbite starts right where Vampire Academy leaves off. Maybe a few weeks have passed and Rose is ready to take a major test to prove she is ready to be a guardian. From there it all picks up. There isn't a dull moment up to the very last page. Someone is killing the Moroi and they want to keep them as secure as possible so they all go on this ski trip. 

In Frostbite we learn more about all the characters. In the first book I didn't really connect to the main characters and while I still haven't fallen completely in love with Dimitri as many of you have, I did being to understand Rose more. She continues to care for her best friend Lissa and would do anything for her. Lissa is beginning to come to terms with her gifts, which is great. She's showing character development and doesn't hide out anymore. But I'm still more in love with the secondary characters. Come on, Christian? Mason? I was drooling for Christian. He is my favorite character, right there after Mason. Mason continues to protect and basically worship Rose in this book. I think we could all use a best friend like him. We also get to meet Adrian in this book...(: let me just say, I get it. I understand why everyone loves him.

The action I was lacking in the first book is slammed into this one. There was just the right amount of action to keep me hooked through the entire book. I was never bored and devoured Frostbite in one day. There were parts that had me clinging to the book with a shocked look on my face and I couldn't bring myself to put the book down. I'm sure the people passing me by as I was reading were wondering what torture I was enduring. If you've read this book, I'm sure you'll know exactly what scene I'm referring to.

I don't want to go into more detail because then I would just spoil it for you. So you should just go out and pick up this series. Take it from someone who was very skeptic about this series even after reading the first book, you will love Frostbite. It has a little bit of everything so no matter what you're into (romance, action, mystery, paranormal, etc.) you'll be sure to enjoy it!

Rating: 5/5 stars

Review: Vampire Academy by Richelle Mead

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...
Rose and Lissa become enmeshed in forbidden romance, the Academy’s ruthless social scene, and unspeakable nighttime rituals. But they must be careful lest the Strigoi—the world’s fiercest and most dangerous vampires—make Lissa one of them forever.

This book had been recommended to me so many times by all my real life friends and blogger friends. I had attempted to read this book once before and got about 100 pages in before returning it to it's owner (I had borrowed it for months). I just couldn't get into it the first time but so many people adore this series that I couldn't just give up. So last year I bought my own copy and early this year I decided I would read the entire series and continue with Bloodlines. One book a month.

When I picked this book up for the second time I have to say that once again it didn't completely capture me. I found myself putting it down after reading 10 or 20 pages at a time. Because of this it took me about a week to read it but by the end I was completely engaged.

Rose and Lissa were as close as best friends can be. You can genuinly see that they would do anything for each other. That was one aspect I really liked. Surprisingly though, I fell in love with the secondary characters. Mason was such a perfect friend to Rose. He was protective and adorable at the same time. Mason also had me laughing whenever he opened his mouth. I don't think Rose realizes how much he truly cares for her. My other favorite character was Christian. I know there are a lot of people who didn't trust him in the beginning but that was not the case for me. I could see how you would be wary of him at first but for me that feeling wore off quickly and became one of, YAY Christian!


For the overall plot of the book I was expecting so much more action. Don't ask me why. Did I read the book would be action packed somewhere? Nope, but that was what I was picturing in my head. Instead it was more boarding school problems with a huge dark twist. The Strigoi were creepy and there was a mystery surrounding the main story. I really liked the mystery aspect. The romance was there but not the main plot of the story. There was a lot of talk about it but it wasn't really seen as much, although the sexy scenes were truly sexy.


Overall I thought it was an okay book. Something a bit different  from what I was expecting, so maybe that is why I didn't enjoy it as much. But I will be continuing with the series. I've heard it gets a lot better with each book and I'm excited for the rest of the series.


3.5 stars