Vampire Academy by Richelle Mead

Title: Vampire Academy
Author: Richelle Mead
Release Date: August 16, 2007
Publisher: Penguin Group / Razorbill
Pages: 332
Format: Paperback
Acquired: Bought
Interest: Series
Age Group: Young Adult
Rating: 5 Stars

Lissa Dragomir is a Moroi princess: a mortal vampire with an unbreakable bond to the earth's magic. She must be protected at all times from Strigoi; the fiercest and most dangerous vampires--the ones who never die.

The powerful blend of human and vampire blood that flows through Rose Hathaway, Lissa's best friend, makes her a Dhampir; she is dedicated to a dangerous life of protecting Lissa from the Strigoi, who are hell-bent on making her one of them.

After two years of illicit freedom, Rose and Lissa are caught and dragged back to St. Vladimir's Academy, hidden in the deep forests of Montana. Rose will continue her Dhampir education. Lissa will go back to being Queen of the elite Moroi social scene. And both girls will resume breaking hearts.

Fear made Lissa and Rose run away from St. Vladimir's--but their world is fraught with danger both inside and out of the Academy's iron gates. Here, the cutthroat ranks of the Moroi perform unspeakable rituals and their secretive nature and love of the night creates an enigmatic world full of social complexities. Rose and Lissa must navigate through this dangerous world, confront the temptation of forbidden romance, and never once let their guard down, lest the Strigoi make Lissa one of them forever...

I bought the book when it first came out and never got the chance to actually sit down and read it. I bought the other books in the series all the way until the end and it wasn't until I heard about the spin-off series that I actually decided that maybe I should actually read it, and I loved it!

It was fun to read. Rose was hilarious and I could relate a lot to Lissa, because like her I tend to let my emotions override me. And the chemistry between the two girl's was amazing. They have the kind of friendship that anyone would wish to have. While Lissa was very timid and unsure, Rose was reckless and took a chance, while Lissa had to hold control, Rose let go of all responsibility. And I think that Richelle did an amazing job when it came time for the roles to be reversed. The girl's really play off each other amazingly.

I may be the only person left in the universe who hasn't read the series, but in case you are behind like me, they I have to say that this is the book to read.

I loved how, despite being a fantasy novel, it ended very realistically between Rose and Dimitri, which will make reading book two more enjoyable!

It was written incredibly well. Richelle didn't go super fast in the novel but she also didn't go slow, making the pace of the book go well. The events played out well, and for the first book things ended with enough loose ends to be tied up, but still there is something left there for the reader to keep asking question and having to look forward to the other series.

Now I know why this book was very high acclaimed.

Funny, enjoyable, adventures, romantic, and mysterious it was a great start to the series!