Book Review: The Fiery Heart by Richelle Mead (Bloodlines Book 4)

INFO:
Pages:
Genre:
Release Date:
Publisher:
Received from Publisher for Review

THE SYNOPSIS:
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 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.

MY THOUGHTS:
I wasn't as excited to read 'The Fiery Heart' as I usually would have been with any other installment of the great 'Bloodlines' series. My reasons for this vary between a very intimidating TBR I have had looming over me, various other tasks I have been wanting to accomplish and the weird "hype" for this novel. In ordinary circumstances I would have wanted to read this book as soon as I got it.

When I say "weird hype" I am talking about the youtube trailers. They are not the best quality book trailers I have ever seen and whenever I saw one, the words 'over dramatic teenage vampire soap opera' sprang to mind. The book trailers had me expecting that Sydney and Adrian would finally be together and it would be love-letter soppy with a hint of Adrian drama. I was going to be majorly disappointed in Richelle Mead if she did this to the series. Luckily  it turns out that the book trailer was the only thing that was over-dramatic and that the novel didn't stray too far from the rest of the series.

When I finally got around to reading 'The Fiery Heart' I did enjoy it, but I just didn't have the time to dive into it completely and finish the book right away. I haven't read much this year or last year, so my reading pace at the moment is not really anything to judge this novel by. 

As for the actual writing... Richelle Mead has written this one differently by alternating POVs between Sydney and Adrian (well, at least I don't remember her doing this in the past...) I liked this because I thought it was nice to see things from Adrian's Point-of-View for a change. Adrian and Sydney are both making big changes and Adrian is growing up a lot. It was nice to see. Not because anyone should have to change themselves for someone, but because it was making them into better people. 

I also noticed that Richelle Mead likes to use the word "crushing" a lot.  Well maybe not a lot but once a writer uses a word in a way i wouldn't expect, more than say 2 times, I remember. sorry, I can't help it...

Like all of the other books there was the shock factor. In the 'Bloodlines' books the "enemy" can come from a very unexpected source. There was also a pretty equal measure of human and vampire drama, which (if you have read any of my other fantasy reviews you will know) I love this in YA Fantasy fiction. It just goes to show that if you are buying a book for your teenage sibling, relative, daughter or even yourself that it's not going to be completely removed from the real world. There are always lessons that can apply to real life and messages in the text to be thought about.

The un-conventional 'Bloodlines' family continues to grow and evolve during 'The Fiery Heart'. We also have a few small reunions and some introductions. As usual I don't want to spoil too much here, but I just feel like it makes the whole Bloodlines/Vampire Academy world so much more realistic. 

I also thought that Sydney's personality has changed considerably along with her beliefs during the series. And, it made me start to wonder how deep the connection between personality and beliefs go. 

And finally, that ending! Why do I continue to engage in these relationships with series that just leave me on a cliffhanger?

Overall, the usual 5/5 stars  for a Richelle Mead book. It was all feeling kind of mediocre until that cliff-hanger! And, now I guess I will just have to wait for the next sequel as patiently as I can... Please tell me I don't have to wait until next year! Also, if you have not read 'Vampire Academy' or 'Bloodlines' I definitely recommend it, unless you hate vampire books.

Your Favourite Blogger,
Natalie

Review: Witches of The East End by Melissa de la Cruz

THE DETAILS:
 Pages: 272
Genre: Adult Fiction, Fantasy
Release Date: 21/06/2011
Publisher: Disney Hyperion
Purchased Online.

THE BLURB:
"Move over, zombies, vampires, and werewolves, and make way for witches. Melissa de la Cruz, author of the best-selling Blue Bloods series, ably sets the stage for a juicy new franchise."
--Entertainment Weekly

The three Beauchamp women--Joanna and her daughters, Freya and Ingrid--live ordinary lives in mist-shrouded North Hampton, out on the tip of Long Island. All three are harboring a centuries-old secret: They are powerful witches forbidden to practice magic. But right before Freya's planned wedding to wealthy Bran Gardiner, a mysterious and attractive man arrives in town and makes Freya question everything. When a young woman turns up dead, it soon becomes clear to all three that it's time to dust off their wands and fight the dark forces working against them.


With a brand-new cast of characters, a fascinating and fresh world to discover, and a few surprise appearances from some of the Blue Blood fan favorites, this is a page-turning, deliciously fun, magical read fraught with love affairs, witchcraft, mythology, and an unforgettable battle between good and evil.
"A bubbling cauldron of mystery and romance." --People
"In her first novel for adults, the author . . . lets her repressed sorceresses rip." --The New York Times

THE REVIEW:
Before I had even read anything by this author 'The Witches of East End' was being released. There were  rave reviews everywhere about how good it was, but how you really need to understand how the world of Melissa de la Cruz works for it to make more sense. After reading just one 'Blue Bloods' novel I decided to give this book a try.

I was a little unsure of this book thanks to all of the references that they were using in other reviews and advertisements for it. I don't know how many times I had heard that it was like a mixture of 'The Witches of Eastwick' (movie) and 'Sex and The City' (show). This did not comfort me. I didn't really like either, and was glad to find that the book didn't really resemble THAT.

'The Witches of East End' follows the lives of three witches. Like the stories and the plays before it, there are three, they are related, And, they all resemble different aspects of the female life, at least at the beginning. As much as I like the idea of the three witches, rather than just one or two, I didn't appreciate that we had to follow the story of each one. I understand that at the end of the book nothing would have made sense without those other two stories, but out of the three Beauchamp women Ingrid was the only one I liked (at the beginning at least). Freya and Joanna both took a bit of warming up to.

One thing I loved about this book was it's small town-ness. I loved the idea of a small coastal town that was hidden away, hard for tourists to find. I liked that everyone new everyone. I guess anyone can half win me over with a small-town setting...

I wasn't into the sex aspect of the book, I don't know if it's just me (I generally don't appreciate sex scenes in novels; I prefer everything to be behind doors that the author doesn't let me into), but it was one of those things that could have ruined the novel for me.  I guess it was to be expected, because 'Blue Bloods' could be a little suggestive for a YA novel. The first part of the novel seemed to be all about the sex lives of some of the characters (including the mayor), but thankfully the novel is more about the actual story line as we get further into the story. This is also one of the reasons, I would have preferred for the story to be just about Ingrid.

The mythology of it all was very original. Like the vampires in 'Blue Bloods' books the witches are reborn again and again as different people, but they have memories of their past lives. The big mystery/problem in the novel and the mythology behind that too, was very well done. It was the sort of thing, where I couldn't actually guess what was going to happen next.

The story-line was very enthralling. I wanted to know what was going on, I wanted to know, I wanted to know... And, I wasn't sure that I was going to find out everything before the book ended, but I did, And, I still got an interesting ending. Not exactly a cliff-hanger, but a new discovery, a new problem. And, guess what? I want to know, I want to know, I want to Know....

Overall, I think this book is definitely a 4.5/5 star book. If it wasn't for the sex, I'd probably give it 5 stars, but that's probably just me and my personal taste. If you like the 'Blue bloods' books or books about witches than I think you will enjoy this. Can't wait to find out what happens in the sequel!

Your Favourite Blogger,
Natalie