Book Reviews

Vampire Academy (2007)

Vampire Academy - Richelle Mead (2007)

Rating: 3.5/5

Genre: Fantasy

St. Vladimir's Academy is a hidden school for vampires. At the academy vampire learn the ways of magic. Dhampirs also attend the academy, where they train to protect the Moroi (the vamps). Dhampirs are half-human and half-vampire, when they graduate they will be allocated a Moroi to protect.

Rose and Lissa were on the run, but now they're back - at the very place they were running from. What dangers lie ahead for them?

Both characters find themselves in the centre of forbidden romances and the academy's never-flailing gossip. But they need to be careful or the Strigoi - vamps gone bad. Their aim is to make Lissa one of them forever.

I enjoyed reading this book however there were a lot of things I definitely did not like about it. Such as how it is a 'young adult' novel that children around the age of 10 or 11 would want to read, especially since the movie was just in the cinemas. Mead mentions sex, drinking, cursing and depression many times throughout the book. The relationships portrayed in the book seem more targeted towards an older teen audience.

As the story progressed I became less impressed with the main character, Rose. She is stuck up, rude, arrogant and reckless. She goes on and on about how she needs to protect Lissa and yet she keeps getting drunk at parties and almost sleeping with a few guys.

Momentarily forgetting Lissa, I focused my full attention on Jessie. Suddenly, I so needed to do something wild and bad. (Page 103)

I would have found it a bit easier to like Rose if she was, perhaps a bit more careful with her actions as she usually ended up regretting them afterwards.

I think overall the only character I ended up really liking was Christian, Lissa's boyfriend. He's obnoxious, sarcastic and outspoken, which in amongst the rest of this cast of characters makes him a standout.

Honestly, my opinion is that Mead has taken the "Young" out of Young Adult with this novel.

Comment what you thought about Vampire Academy :)