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Review: Silver Shadows by Richelle Mead

May 11, 2015May 25, 2015 Andge @ Down the Rabbit Hole

Series: Bloodlines #5

Sydney Sage is an Alchemist, one of a group of humans who dabble in magic and serve to bridge the worlds of humans and vampires. They protect vampire secrets—and human lives.

In The Fiery Heart, Sydney risked everything to follow her gut, walking a dangerous line to keep her feelings hidden from the Alchemists.

Now in the aftermath of an event that ripped their world apart, Sydney and Adrian struggle to pick up the pieces and find their way back to each other. But first, they have to survive.

For Sydney, trapped and surrounded by adversaries, life becomes a daily struggle to hold on to her identity and the memories of those she loves. Meanwhile, Adrian clings to hope in the face of those who tell him Sydney is a lost cause, but the battle proves daunting as old demons and new temptations begin to seize hold of him. . . .

Their worst fears now a chilling reality, Sydney and Adrian face their darkest hour in this heart-pounding fifth installment in the New York Times bestselling Bloodlines series, where all bets are off.

4 Drink Me Potions

Continuing with the alternating POVs between Sydney and Adrian like the previous novel, The Fiery Heart, the stakes are raised in this fifth installment, Silver Shadows. Sydney’s been captured and is trapped in re-education, far from the reach of Adrian and his love.

I particularly loved this book because both Adrian and Sydney are doing such different things between them. So I was really impatient to read both their parts to see what they were up to next, whether it be about Sydney’s attempts at escape or Adrian’s attempts to find her while fighting off the temptations of his vices. Both POVs were deliciously exciting and fast-paced, which wasn’t often the case when it came to some of the previous books in the Bloodlines series.

Re-education and its threatening implications were present since book 1, so to finally see it become reality for Sydney was intriguing indeed. To my greater surprise, there was something beyond the humiliation of solitary isolation and confinement. It was like a school, with teachers and other “students” that had to be re-educated. The highs and lows of this school environment felt similarly to any school environment, with antagonism from other students and particularly cruel teachers. And of course, the excitement rises with the dangers of trying to find a route of escape with or without Adrian’s help. But practicing human magic is as great of a transgression as being intimate with a vampire. Uh oh, Sydney.

As for Adrian, I loved his part almost as much as Sydney’s. He loved her, and without her love balancing him, he let spirit control him, falling back into all the old temptations and vices that used to hurt him. I’m glad one of the old vices he didn’t fall back into was girls, as I was terrified that he’d be so out of it or feeling so hopeless he would give up staying true to his one love. However, I should’ve known better than to fear, but it was interesting to see him fall to his very lowest point and then pick himself back up in order to find his beloved.

With lots of action as Adrian and some of our other favourite friends from Palm Springs, like Eddie and Marcus, race to find Sydney’s location, and the crazy antics of Sydney’s as she does her best to hold onto her love for her Moroi and dhampir friends, I must say, Silver Shadows had the best plot line of them all. Plus, a wonderfully cute ending that was as surprising as it was perfect.

Overall Recommendation:
Taking place pretty much from where the previous book stopped, Sydney finds herself trapped in re-education, trying to figure out a way to send Adrian a message to rescue her. Meanwhile, Adrian’s battling his own inner demons as he struggles to hold onto hope in finding his love as time continues to pass without any results. With such an exciting premise, Silver Shadows was a fast-paced and truly enjoyable read that propelled me through its alternating POVs as fast as I could. And to top it all off, Mead added the perfect ending that satisfied both the romantic in me as well as left room for bigger problems to be solved in the last book of the Bloodlines series. This book really surpassed some of its predecessors, and is most definitely recommended.

Review: The Fiery Heart by Richelle Mead

May 10, 2015May 25, 2015 Andge @ Down the Rabbit Hole

Series: Bloodlines #4

Sydney Sage is an Alchemist, one of a group of humans who dabble in magic and serve to bridge the wolds of humans and vampires. They protect vampire secrets – and human lives.

In The Indigo Spell, Sydney was torn between the Alchemist way of life and what her heart and gut were telling her to do. And in one breathtaking moment that Richelle Mead fans will never forget, she made a decision that shocked even her…

But the struggle isn’t over for Sydney. As she navigates the aftermath of her life-changing decision, she still finds herself pulled in too many directions at once. Her sister Zoe has arrived, and while Sydney longs to grow closer to her, there’s still so much she must keep secret. Working with Marcus has changed the way she views the Alchemists, and Sydney must tread a careful path as she harnesses her profound magical ability to undermine the way of life she was raised to defend. Consumed by passion and vengeance, Sydney struggles to keep her secret life under wraps as the threat of exposure — and re-education — looms larger than ever.

Pulses will race throughout this smoldering fourth installment in the New York Times bestselling Bloodlines series, where no secret is safe.

4 Drink Me Potions

After committing to Adrian and the love Sydney just can’t deny between them anymore, things should be looking up, right? And then the bomb of a cliffhanger had to drop with Zoe Sage’s arrival.

Although, to be honest, not much really happens in The Fiery Heart by way of action or adventure, this fourth installment was quite enjoyable. There were MANY, and I highlight many , steamy and romantic encounters between Adrian and Sydney throughout. Maybe it was made a lot more fun as their relationship had to be kept secret, even among their close friends living in Palm Springs.

This was also the first book in the series to have alternating POVs between Adrian and Sydney. And my, it was an interesting experience to get into Adrian’s head as well. He really is such a loveable character, even though he has so many vices from spirit’s ups and downs. Maybe it’s because of his brokenness that makes him such a relateable guy. He’s by far from perfect, but his love for Sydney helps balance out his problems and makes him yearn to be a better person.

I love the progression of their relationship being such a main point of this book. When a book is part of such a long series, most books contain crazy plotlines amidst the romance that goes on as an after thought while the protagonists are off fighting whatever problems they have to face. This allowed readers to really explore their forbidden relationship as a major crazy plot line in itself that could ultimately lead towards more problems down the road, particularly the threat of re-education for Sydney.

With Zoe’s arrival, there just seems to be a ticking time bomb on their happiness. On top of that, Richelle Mead still added something big besides romance into the story. The emergence of a possible Strigoi vaccine for the Moroi is a major development for this world, which took up a huge part of Adrian’s POV. As for Sydney’s half of the book, she was exploring the potential ability with her magic to counteract heavier dosages of re-inking that would be able to protect ex-Alchemist rebels if ever captured by the organization. So, even with romance being the forefront of The Fiery Heart, it was by far from boring comparatively to the others as some new discoveries were explored.

And to conclude such a romantic story, Richelle Mead brings us back to the heart of action, as is her style, with that crazy ending. I’ll have to say, I’m just glad I read this series late and didn’t have to wait for the next book.

Overall Recommendation:
A well-written installment alternating between Adrian and Sydney’s POV that focused more on their forbidden romance than any other crazy schemes that have been introduced in the earlier novels. With plenty of steamy moments, Mead takes us to the heart of their strong love and shows us just how perfectly matched they are for each other, no matter how different their worlds were before. For a book that doesn’t necessarily contain too much action, I found it very enjoyable as it truly developed our two protagonists that sets the stage for whatever craziness is to come in the next book. A definite must-read!

Review: Chantress by Amy Butler Greenfield

May 8, 2015May 25, 2015 Andge @ Down the Rabbit Hole

Series: Chantress #1

“Sing, and the darkness will find you.”

This warning has haunted fifteen-year-old Lucy ever since she was eight and shipwrecked on a lonely island. Lucy’s guardian, Norrie, has lots of rules, but the most important is that Lucy must never sing. Not ever. Now it is 1667, Lucy is fifteen, and on All Hallows’ Eve, Lucy hears a tantalizing melody on the wind. She can’t help but sing—and she is swept into darkness.

When she awakes in England, Lucy hears powerful men discussing Chantresses—women who can sing magic into the world. They are hunting her, but she escapes and finds sanctuary with the Invisible College, an organization plotting to overthrow the nefarious Lord Protector. The only person powerful enough to bring about his downfall is a Chantress. And Lucy is the last one in England.

Lucy struggles to master the song-spells and harness her power, but the Lord Protector is moving quickly. And her feelings for Nat, an Invisible College apprentice and scientist who deeply distrusts her magic, only add to her confusion…

Time is running out, and the fate of England hangs in the balance in this entrancing novel that is atmospheric and lyrical, dangerous and romantic.

2.5 Drink Me Potions

I was very excited for another historical fantasy, but my expectations may have been too much. Don’t get me wrong. The premise of the story was beautifully created. In this fictitious version of olden day England, evil creatures known as Shadowgrims create fear in the hearts of all people, especially in those that the Lord Protector to the King condemns as traitors to the crown. Chantresses, magical women who weave magic through “song spells”, have all been hunted down. Except Lucy, of course.

A lot of originality has definitely gone into creating such a world, with certain facts that are actually based on real English history. For that, I had to round up my rating. Because other than my admiration for this world the author has created, everything else was sub-par.

The beginning of the story was an information overload. I understand that to allow readers to fully grasp the history and background of this version of England, a lot has to be explained. However, it just wasn’t done very tactfully. The information felt more like it was dumped and squished into the first 100 pages in order to make sense of the next 200+ pages. That was NOT the end of it, though.

I thought there’d be some sort of adventure to this story. Come on! Throwing a rebellion against the Lord Protector? Learning magic in order to do that overthrowing? Sounds exciting, right? Please, I had to read continuously in order to get through those pages, as I knew I would never pick up the book again if I stopped in the middle. I kept hoping there would be more twists, but barely any came through. Learning magic? More like pages written about Lucy practicing scales and holding notes. For months. And explaining the goings of the scholars as they checked in on her for the months she was holed up in practice. Honestly, the plot could’ve gone in so many directions, but it was just TIRING. And dragged a whole lot.

Picture it. The whole chunk of the middle was like explaining what Lucy did that day, what problems she encountered with magic, and possibly who checked in to see her progress, which was namely Nat. Then multiply that by like quite a number of days that seemed endlessly the same. Talk about tedious.

Speaking of which, the romance part of Chantress? I had such hopes for that. There was barely any true chemistry between Nat and Lucy. Oh sure, it was actually written that Lucy felt a spark pass between them as they gazed at each other, but explicitly written chemistry doesn’t equate to a chemistry that is just felt through their banter and time spent together. They hardly hung out, and when they did, Nat was rather cold to her. So his change of heart to her and the magic she did felt kind of…off. I wanted to believe in it, but I’d rather Greenfield didn’t tell me to believe in their love but rather showed it through their actions.

I must say that although I am disappointed in the start of the series, I will give the rest of the series a shot. I do love the idea of Chantresses a lot, and maybe the author can redeem the story from here on out, considering all the background information has been laid out already. Here’s to hoping, optimistically.

Overall Recommendation:
Chantress could have been a beautiful historical fantasy set in olden day England (which by the way, is one of my favourite settings for historical books). However, it lacked an exciting plot, although its premise was creatively imagined. There was a lot of potential in the adventure of overthrowing a tyrant, but Greenfield never built the story up to any sort of climax and thus the whole story kind of fell flat. As for the rest of this series, I still believe in its potential and will give it a shot. However, I may not recommend this for those who bore easily.