Review of Vampire Academy

It's been awhile since I posted a book review, but it's not for lack of reading! I was reading Watchmen for my book club (I bought that one, so it doesn't count as being good for my bridal budget), and another book a friend lent to me.

Vampire Academy is my first library book in awhile, then. I can't remember how I heard about it; probably Amazon recommendations. You know me and trashy urban fantasy novels--I can't resist them. Look at how the girl on the cover totally looks like Angelina Jolie! Shame, shame.

Anyway, this book is about what you'd think--questionable writing skills, but totally entertaining. There weren't any super new ideas here but the author rearranged them in an interesting way. The lead character Rose is half-vampire, half-human (dhampir) and she's going to school to become a guardian to a living vampire (in this book they're called Moroi). There are also the usual dead kind of vampires (Strigoi) who are the enemies of the Moroi and hunt them down.

The other interesting part is that the lead character and her best friend (Lissa, a Moroi whose thoughts and emotions she can sense) are in high school at an academy only attended by Moroi and dhampir, so you get all of the high school intrigue, but in an interesting way. Rose trains to become a guardian while Lissa trains to become Moroi, which includes learning to use magic and specializing in one element.

Of course, it turns out that Lissa's specialty is rare, which gets her kidnapped from the school at the end of the book, leading to the usual chase and rescue scenario.

Still, although there wasn't a lot that was surprising here, it was a fun, easy read and I enjoyed it.