fictionalkate's review against another edition
4.0
At St. Vladimir's, Rose and Lissa's lives have gone back to normal. With help from medication Lissa's mood seems to have stabilized and with all the extra training, Rose has caught up with her classmates despite having missed two years worth of instruction.
Rose has an important Guardian test but before she could undergo assessment she and Dimitri stumble upon the site of a massive Strigoi attack. In the name of safety, the school decide to go to an exclusive ski resort for the holidays to get out of the way of the Strigoi assassins. But things are anything but safe on the slopes. Rose's mother arrives with the Moroi she protects and a strange Royal keeps popping up everywhere Rose turns. To top it off Rose finds herself battling her feelings for Dimitri and protecting her friends from the Strigoi... and from themselves.
I loved the first one book in the series and this was a great follow-up. Rose is just as feisty and strong. Lissa's entertaining and I liked the development of her powers, her relationship with Christian and her accepting her position amongst the Moroi as the representative for the Dragomir Royal Family.
This book is a lot more concerned with the politics of the race as well as their evil enemy, the Strigoi, with less attention paid to the dynamics of high school. I liked how the series is progressing and I can't wait to read the third book however I missed Rose interacting with the rest of the students at St. Vladimir's.
In terms of action - this book had a lot. There was a lot of violence, murder and a fantastic fight scene towards the end of the book that near broke my heart. I loved the new characters of Tasha and Adrian who were introduced and I can't wait to read the next book to see what we find out next - about the world of the Vampires and about just what happens next in Rose's life romantically.
Rose has an important Guardian test but before she could undergo assessment she and Dimitri stumble upon the site of a massive Strigoi attack. In the name of safety, the school decide to go to an exclusive ski resort for the holidays to get out of the way of the Strigoi assassins. But things are anything but safe on the slopes. Rose's mother arrives with the Moroi she protects and a strange Royal keeps popping up everywhere Rose turns. To top it off Rose finds herself battling her feelings for Dimitri and protecting her friends from the Strigoi... and from themselves.
I loved the first one book in the series and this was a great follow-up. Rose is just as feisty and strong. Lissa's entertaining and I liked the development of her powers, her relationship with Christian and her accepting her position amongst the Moroi as the representative for the Dragomir Royal Family.
This book is a lot more concerned with the politics of the race as well as their evil enemy, the Strigoi, with less attention paid to the dynamics of high school. I liked how the series is progressing and I can't wait to read the third book however I missed Rose interacting with the rest of the students at St. Vladimir's.
In terms of action - this book had a lot. There was a lot of violence, murder and a fantastic fight scene towards the end of the book that near broke my heart. I loved the new characters of Tasha and Adrian who were introduced and I can't wait to read the next book to see what we find out next - about the world of the Vampires and about just what happens next in Rose's life romantically.
caroline2499's review against another edition
adventurous
funny
mysterious
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
melissawalcott's review against another edition
5.0
HEN LOVE AND JEALOUSY COLLIDE ON THE SLOPES, WINTER BREAK TURNS DEADLY…
Lissa Dragomir is a Moroi princess: a mortal vampire with a rare gift for harnessing the earth’s magic. She must be protected at all times from Strigoi; the fiercest 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. Rose is dedicated to a dangerous life of protecting Lissa from the Strigoi, who are hell-bent on making Lissa one of them.
Rose has serious guy trouble. Her gorgeous tutor, Dimitri, has his eye on someone else, her friend Mason has a huge crush on her, and she keeps getting stuck in her best friend Lissa’s head while she’s making out with her boyfriend, Christian.
Then a nearby Strigoi attack puts St. Vladimir’s on high alert, and the Academy whisks its students away on a mandatory holiday ski trip. But the glittering winter landscape and posh Idaho resort only provide the illusion of safety. When three students run away to strike back against the deadly Strigoi, Rose must join forces with Christian to rescue them. Only this time, Rose – and her heart – are in more danger than she ever could have imagined..
This is the sequel to Vampire Academy and while the first book was…okay this book is definitely worth picking up! There is definitely a lot of action, probably more than in the first book and there isn’t as much Lissa in this book which for me was better.
Please pick up this book! It is so worth it!
**END OF NON SPOILER SECTION**
I really liked how this book picked up right where we left off. I really don’t like the gaps of time… Anyway, so Lissa and Christian are together and Rose is still Rose. There’s a lot of filler to catch readers up and then we get to some action. Rose has to take this test to become a guardian, kind of a milestone test, and she and Dimitri have to travel a few hours to meet with a another guardian for the test.
Well, when they get there, the guardian and the Moroi family he guards are dead. Of course Dimitri went into protective mode and told Rose to stay in the car. To me, he really should’ve let her out of the car not only for a more thorough sweep, protection, and because it could’ve been good experience for her.
But knowing Rose, she got out anyway and what they found was unsettling. Strigoi definitely were there but now Humans are helping these attacks take place. That definitely threw me for a loop because that really changes everything. It gives the Strigoi an overall advantage since they can’t go in sunlight. Now the humans can which causes more trouble for dhampirs and Moroi.
So all Moroi and dhampirs alike come together at a ski resort. And Rose’s mom is there. The two had already had a debacle when her mom was telling stories in her dhampir class and Rose made snarky comments but now she’s kind of stuck with her mom. But the resort is huge and she can escape her mom’s heavy stares.
But Rose has another dilemma. Christian’s aunt Tasha is there and Rose learns that she wants Dimitri to be her guardian and the father of her children. To me, that is just a strange situation and Rose handled it quite well. I would’ve been pissed as well! I mean, it’s totally normal to get jealous when the a girl is after the guy you like.
So, another guy comes along: Adrian and boy is he sexy. Giving Rose perfume and stuff because she doesn’t have any… *sigh* SO, now Rose has Mason and Adrian but all good things must come to an end. :(
Rose being prepared to give it all up to Mason chickens out so Mason gets pissed and storms away. To go after Strigoi. With Mia. And Eddie. Because spilled the beans about a Strigoi sighting.
The book goes in to full action mode then as Rose and Christian go after the trio. I really liked Christian then because he saw the danger of the situation and instead of making a snarky comment, decided to help.
Once we caught up with Mason and the other two, I really noticed how impulsive Mason was and I kind of wondered if he should be a guardian. He didn’t seem to have good judgement which of course led to them being caught by Strigoi….
Made me really mad…
The two Strigoi were tempting Mia and Christian with the dhampirs… And the stupid guy leader, Isaiah was feeding off of poor Eddie. I really loved how Adrian was trying to help as well when he was visiting Rose in her dreams.
But Rose being the smart ass she is, figured out that Christian and Mia had powers! And they could help!
Ughh, it was awesome! Christian pretending to feed off of Rose while he burned her binds! Kick ass! And then they went into full ninja mode kicking the guardians’ asses! And they were almost out when the two Strigoi come back…
I know we needed a final scene to kick some ass but… :( It could have been a happy ending!
I was sitting there reading on my nook bawling my eyes out as this scene was unfolding and when…when Isaiah killed…killed Mason…I just…broken down…
The of the book was pretty depressing but Richelle Mead tried to cheer us up with a little Rose and Dimitri action…well not little. He totally turned down Tasha and chose Rose!
So I was sitting there bawling but I was so happy! This book put me through an emotional roller coaster…but I loved it.
5/5 stars!
Lissa Dragomir is a Moroi princess: a mortal vampire with a rare gift for harnessing the earth’s magic. She must be protected at all times from Strigoi; the fiercest 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. Rose is dedicated to a dangerous life of protecting Lissa from the Strigoi, who are hell-bent on making Lissa one of them.
Rose has serious guy trouble. Her gorgeous tutor, Dimitri, has his eye on someone else, her friend Mason has a huge crush on her, and she keeps getting stuck in her best friend Lissa’s head while she’s making out with her boyfriend, Christian.
Then a nearby Strigoi attack puts St. Vladimir’s on high alert, and the Academy whisks its students away on a mandatory holiday ski trip. But the glittering winter landscape and posh Idaho resort only provide the illusion of safety. When three students run away to strike back against the deadly Strigoi, Rose must join forces with Christian to rescue them. Only this time, Rose – and her heart – are in more danger than she ever could have imagined..
This is the sequel to Vampire Academy and while the first book was…okay this book is definitely worth picking up! There is definitely a lot of action, probably more than in the first book and there isn’t as much Lissa in this book which for me was better.
Please pick up this book! It is so worth it!
**END OF NON SPOILER SECTION**
I really liked how this book picked up right where we left off. I really don’t like the gaps of time… Anyway, so Lissa and Christian are together and Rose is still Rose. There’s a lot of filler to catch readers up and then we get to some action. Rose has to take this test to become a guardian, kind of a milestone test, and she and Dimitri have to travel a few hours to meet with a another guardian for the test.
Well, when they get there, the guardian and the Moroi family he guards are dead. Of course Dimitri went into protective mode and told Rose to stay in the car. To me, he really should’ve let her out of the car not only for a more thorough sweep, protection, and because it could’ve been good experience for her.
But knowing Rose, she got out anyway and what they found was unsettling. Strigoi definitely were there but now Humans are helping these attacks take place. That definitely threw me for a loop because that really changes everything. It gives the Strigoi an overall advantage since they can’t go in sunlight. Now the humans can which causes more trouble for dhampirs and Moroi.
So all Moroi and dhampirs alike come together at a ski resort. And Rose’s mom is there. The two had already had a debacle when her mom was telling stories in her dhampir class and Rose made snarky comments but now she’s kind of stuck with her mom. But the resort is huge and she can escape her mom’s heavy stares.
But Rose has another dilemma. Christian’s aunt Tasha is there and Rose learns that she wants Dimitri to be her guardian and the father of her children. To me, that is just a strange situation and Rose handled it quite well. I would’ve been pissed as well! I mean, it’s totally normal to get jealous when the a girl is after the guy you like.
So, another guy comes along: Adrian and boy is he sexy. Giving Rose perfume and stuff because she doesn’t have any… *sigh* SO, now Rose has Mason and Adrian but all good things must come to an end. :(
Rose being prepared to give it all up to Mason chickens out so Mason gets pissed and storms away. To go after Strigoi. With Mia. And Eddie. Because spilled the beans about a Strigoi sighting.
The book goes in to full action mode then as Rose and Christian go after the trio. I really liked Christian then because he saw the danger of the situation and instead of making a snarky comment, decided to help.
Once we caught up with Mason and the other two, I really noticed how impulsive Mason was and I kind of wondered if he should be a guardian. He didn’t seem to have good judgement which of course led to them being caught by Strigoi….
Made me really mad…
The two Strigoi were tempting Mia and Christian with the dhampirs… And the stupid guy leader, Isaiah was feeding off of poor Eddie. I really loved how Adrian was trying to help as well when he was visiting Rose in her dreams.
But Rose being the smart ass she is, figured out that Christian and Mia had powers! And they could help!
Ughh, it was awesome! Christian pretending to feed off of Rose while he burned her binds! Kick ass! And then they went into full ninja mode kicking the guardians’ asses! And they were almost out when the two Strigoi come back…
I know we needed a final scene to kick some ass but… :( It could have been a happy ending!
I was sitting there reading on my nook bawling my eyes out as this scene was unfolding and when…when Isaiah killed…killed Mason…I just…broken down…
The of the book was pretty depressing but Richelle Mead tried to cheer us up with a little Rose and Dimitri action…well not little. He totally turned down Tasha and chose Rose!
So I was sitting there bawling but I was so happy! This book put me through an emotional roller coaster…but I loved it.
5/5 stars!
mariluv's review against another edition
adventurous
emotional
funny
mysterious
sad
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.5
diedaahh's review against another edition
medium-paced
2.5
I need to preface all my VA storygraph reviews with the following.
I'm pretty sure that this series along with THG is what got me into reading as a wee lil teen.
Although some things are better left alone, I couldn't resist revisiting this series for a SEVENTH (I know) reread. This was my comfort series as a 14-16 year old and this is the first time I am reading this series ten years later as a grown-ass woman in her mid-20s. Will I regret this? Probably. I just HAD TO experience this world again because I wanted to see if it stood the test of time or if I was simply blinded by nostalgia.
Rose is a 17-year-old girl doing 17-year-old girl things. What else do u want me to say?
This is the age where teens think that they know everything they need to know (you do not) and Rose is no exception. Even though what happened in
Spoiler
Spokane is absolutely horrifying, Mason needed to die for Rose to realize the brutality of her world and how important her role as a guardian within this heavily flawed and unfair system is.hanwilliams's review against another edition
adventurous
emotional
sad
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.25
coldxperience's review against another edition
4.0
gosh, why do I love it so much when he calls her Roza - but it's feels so riiight
oatieoats's review against another edition
3.0
very entertaining, the main character isn't annoying she's a bit immature but she's 17, understandable. the plot twist were a little bit obvious, i dont like the love interest I want Adrian! #TEAMADRIAN
7 years IS a big difference because Dimitri is a man and Rose is just a kid, a teenager and she deserves to live her teenage year and dating Dimitri will force her to grow up and mature faster than she needs to.
I also feel like Lissa is a terrible friend, she's selfish and self-centered everything has to be about her. Rose is a great friend, a but obsessed, but Lissa has no idea what's going on with Rose and she doesn't seem eager to find out
7 years IS a big difference because Dimitri is a man and Rose is just a kid, a teenager and she deserves to live her teenage year and dating Dimitri will force her to grow up and mature faster than she needs to.
I also feel like Lissa is a terrible friend, she's selfish and self-centered everything has to be about her. Rose is a great friend, a but obsessed, but Lissa has no idea what's going on with Rose and she doesn't seem eager to find out
steffi_au_penguinbooks's review against another edition
3.0
Vampire Acadamy: ☆☆☆.5
“There's nothing worse than waiting and not knowing what'll happen to you. Your own imagination can be crueler than any captor.”
3.5 stars
Part 2 of me wanting to shake and hug Rose Hathaway. Will this relationship us continue like this? Hm ....
I do believe Frostbite was better than the first book. The book started really strong and I was super hyped up, since I really wanted to know more about Strigoi. Furthermore, we get to know more about Dhampirs and Rose's mother!
However, after that amazing start, the story went back to the teenage drama similar to the one we had in Vampire Academy. However this time, the focus was more on Rose instead of Lissa. Actually, Lissa was more of a side character and sadly I was missing their amazing friendship from book 1.
At times, Rose acted like she was 14 years old instead of 17. Once upon a time I was also 17 and to be honest, my mother and I hadn't had the best relationship. But Rose .... ARGH. She really really frustrated me at times, but at the same I felt bad feeling like this because she is young and impulsive but ugh :D
Similar to book 1, after all the teenage drama s*** went down again and .... wow. Those last 30-40 pages were amazing!!! The suspense was extremely high and I couldn't stop reading. I finished the book at around 4am because I just had to know how it ends. I wasn't disappointed. And because that ending was so good, I am super looking forward to the third book!
“There's nothing worse than waiting and not knowing what'll happen to you. Your own imagination can be crueler than any captor.”
3.5 stars
Part 2 of me wanting to shake and hug Rose Hathaway. Will this relationship us continue like this? Hm ....
I do believe Frostbite was better than the first book. The book started really strong and I was super hyped up, since I really wanted to know more about Strigoi. Furthermore, we get to know more about Dhampirs and Rose's mother!
However, after that amazing start, the story went back to the teenage drama similar to the one we had in Vampire Academy. However this time, the focus was more on Rose instead of Lissa. Actually, Lissa was more of a side character and sadly I was missing their amazing friendship from book 1.
At times, Rose acted like she was 14 years old instead of 17. Once upon a time I was also 17 and to be honest, my mother and I hadn't had the best relationship. But Rose .... ARGH. She really really frustrated me at times, but at the same I felt bad feeling like this because she is young and impulsive but ugh :D
Similar to book 1, after all the teenage drama s*** went down again and .... wow. Those last 30-40 pages were amazing!!! The suspense was extremely high and I couldn't stop reading. I finished the book at around 4am because I just had to know how it ends. I wasn't disappointed. And because that ending was so good, I am super looking forward to the third book!