Shadow Kiss by Richelle Mead

Stand Alone or Series: Book 3 of the Vampire Academy series

Source: Public Library 

Format: Print 

Summary 

It's springtime at St. Vladimir's Academy, and Rose Hathaway is this close to graduation. Since making her first Strigoi kills, Rose hasn't been feeling quite right. She's having dark thoughts, behaving erratically, and worst of all... might be seeing ghosts.

As Rose questions her sanity, new complications arise. Lissa has begun experimenting with her magic once more, their enemy Victor Dashkov might be set free, and Rose's forbidden relationship with Dimitri is starting to heat up again. But when a deadly threat no one saw coming changes their entire world, Rose must put her own life on the line - and choose between the two people she loves most. 

Review

My favorite thing about this series is the characters and their layered, complex relationships. It is Rose’s strange combination of toughness and vulnerability that makes her so endearing as a character, besides the fact that she has a lot of really stupid moments. Her relationship with Lissa is really in the spotlight in this book which is good because it’s been a long time coming, considering how Lissa almost takes Rose for granted as a safety net – both in terms of their remarkable bond, as Guardian and Moroi, and in terms of where they stand as best friends. Then there’s the romance with Dimitri, which really skyrockets in this book. Although it certainly seems that Rose acts very immature at times, she has grown a lot in these books and will most likely grow into one of the best heroines in any Young Adult series.

 It’s a powerful thing to read, almost brutal in its honesty, especially considering this is a Young Adult novel, and I mean this in the very best way. Everything isn't perfect for Rose which is a great message, especially to younger readers, Bella of the Twilight books being the exact opposite of that, where everything is just tied up in a pretty bow after all of her stupid actions (Sorry Twihards).

Spoilers for Shadow Kiss ahead!

The twist is when Dimitri becomes a Strigoi. Just when Rose and Dimitri can finally be together, it is all taken away.

Part of me thinks it's unnecessary of Mead to turn Dimitri into a Strigoi. But it also really forces Rose to grow up, to become her own person, to leave the school and the protection that she has always had all of her life. I love this book for this particular twist. This series deserves to be the best known 'vampire' series, unlike some others *Cough Twilight Cough*

Page Count:443 Pages

Starred Rating: 5 out of 5 stars

Publisher: Razorbill

Goodreads: https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/2802316-shadow-kiss?from_search=true

Buy the book: http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/1595141979/ref=s9_psimh_gw_p14_d0_i5?pf_rd_m=ATVPDKIKX0DER&pf_rd_s=desktop-1&pf_rd_r=073A9WD32KPXN4W27639&pf_rd_t=36701&pf_rd_p=1970559082&pf_rd_i=desktop

This is not a sponsored review unless explicitly stated. All opinions expressed in this review belong to me and all products were purchased by me unless otherwise stated. All opinions are my own.