Reviews: The Indigo Spell and The Fiery Heart by Richelle Mead
The Indigo Spell (Bloodlines #3)
by: Richelle Mead
Publication Date: Feb. 12, 2013
Publisher: Razorbill
Genre: Paranormal
Age Group: Young Adult
Source: Purchased for Nook
Page Count: 401 pages
Order Links: Amazon | B&N
My Rating: 3.5/5 stars
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 aftermath of a forbidden moment that rocked Sydney to her core, she finds herself struggling to draw the line between her Alchemist teachings and what her heart is urging her to do. Then she meets alluring, rebellious Marcus Finch--a former Alchemist who escaped against all odds, and is now on the run. Marcus wants to teach Sydney the secrets he claims the Alchemists are hiding from her. But as he pushes her to rebel against the people who raised her, Sydney finds that breaking free is harder than she thought. There is an old and mysterious magic rooted deeply within her. And as she searches for an evil magic user targeting powerful young witches, she realizes that her only hope is to embrace her magical blood--or else she might be next.
In the aftermath of a forbidden moment that rocked Sydney to her core, she finds herself struggling to draw the line between her Alchemist teachings and what her heart is urging her to do. Then she meets alluring, rebellious Marcus Finch--a former Alchemist who escaped against all odds, and is now on the run. Marcus wants to teach Sydney the secrets he claims the Alchemists are hiding from her. But as he pushes her to rebel against the people who raised her, Sydney finds that breaking free is harder than she thought. There is an old and mysterious magic rooted deeply within her. And as she searches for an evil magic user targeting powerful young witches, she realizes that her only hope is to embrace her magical blood--or else she might be next.
*Contains spoilers from The Golden Lily*
So. Believe it or not, I bought this book the day it came out. After putting it off for more than a year now, I decided it was time to finally bite the bullet and go ahead and read it. I loved The Golden Lily and was desperate to see how Sydney and Adrian would move forward after that soul-shattering kiss they shared at the end.
I'll admit- I had some trouble getting through this one and even found myself a bit bored at times. I did love all the tension between Sydney and Adrian throughout the book and the whole 'will they or won't they' Mead has going on for them. The storyline, however, fell a little flat for me. I was engaged, but not overly so. I kept waiting for the action to happen, and it just didn't quite do the trick for me. After reading The Fiery Heart, I do see how important the events in The Indigo Spell were, as they play a huge role in redefining our heroine and really make her reexamine everything that has been ingrained in her from the Alchemists.
I felt this book gave us a lot of character development, especially for Sydney. She is testing the magical waters with her teacher Ms. Terwilliger (ok maybe thrown into the water is a more accurate phrasing), and is learning to harness the power she has within, even though she knows the Alchemists would flip if they ever found out. Ms. T is worried for Sydney's safety, as there is a witch going around draining young women of their youth to keep for herself. Aside from that, she is suspicious that the Alchemists are hiding things, important things, such as a possible connection between them and the Warriors of the Light, a group of vampire hunters. She is determined to find ex-Alchemist Marcus Finch and hope that he can provide answers. When she does find him, he encourages her to join his band of rebels and to go on the run, leaving the Alchemist life behind. However, it wouldn't just be her Alchemist life she would be leaving...
Sydney has a lot of decisions to make in this book and none of them are easy. She really shows how much she has evolved just by her struggle to do what's right versus what's in her heart. And Sydney Sage definitely proves that she has heart in this book.
One of the biggest draws of this series is without a doubt Adrian Ivashkov. I think I can speak for all Vampire Academy fans when I say how upset we were when we saw him get his heart broken by Rose. So for Adrian to open himself up again, this time to Sydney.... whew! I was dying! Never would you think these two would work together, but they do! As Mead slowly breaks down Sydney's prejudices, she is also opening her up to possibilities she never thought she'd ever have, including feeling something for Adrian. I love that they have developed a true friendship first, and even though Sydney tries to keep things strictly platonic between them, they keep getting thrown in situations that make it very difficult to avoid the feelings brewing underneath the surface.
Overall, this wasn't my favorite in the series. It did pick up and get more interesting towards the end, especially with the big decision Sydney made that will change everything....
The Fiery Heart (Bloodlines #4)by: Richelle Mead
Publication Date: Nov. 19, 2014
Publisher: Razorbill
Genre: Paranormal
Age Group: Young Adult
Source: Borrowed from e-library
Page Count: 420 pages
Order Links: Amazon | B&N
My Rating: 4/5 stars
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.
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.
Oh man. I enjoyed this one so much better than The Indigo Spell! I was immediately drawn into the storyline and loved that Mead switched to dual POV! YAY Adrian!!!!! I felt that everything that was building up in the previous book really came to a head in this one. Sydney's magic, her relationship with Adrian, her surprise guest that showed up at the end of The Indigo Spell, and her ever growing dissention from the Alchemists. Whew! This book seriously had it all in my opinion. Action, romance, and a cliffhanger ending that is entirely too reminiscent of Jen Armentrout's Opal! AHHH! And I'm like the 40th person on the waiting list for Silver Shadows!
Again, getting inside Adrian's head was seriously a huge bonus for this book. We really get to see just how much he struggles with using spirit and what it does to him firsthand. He feels useful when he uses it to help others. Yet, the cost is too high and Sydney expresses this concern multiple times. If you look at it from Adrian's perspective though, he is a guy who has never been taken seriously before and this is how he can make a difference in the world. Taking it away from him kills him because then he starts to question his self-worth and if he even has anything to offer someone like Sydney.
Sydney feels helpless when it comes to Adrian and him using spirit. She is so used to being in control of everything and this is one thing she can't. She knows that spirit can drive its users to madness and possibly even death. It's a dangerous magic to have, so you can't say Sydney's fears are unfounded.
I really liked the depth that this book in the series had to offer. Not only do we see Adrian's struggle to find balance in his life with spirit, but we get to see Sydney and Adrian trying to keep their relationship secret, which is not proving to be an easy task, especially with a new character addition that keeps close tabs on Sydney. I have to admit, this character addition drove me a little crazy. She is a reflection of the Sydney Sage we originally met- prejudiced against Moroi and dhampirs, and unwilling to understand why Sydney is constantly running off to do work with Ms. T, when in the grand scheme of things, it is unimportant to her mission.
We have a serious change in relationship dynamics and not just with Sydney and Adrian. The gang is also undergoing some changes of their own. Jill, Eddie, Angeline, and Trey all have their own drama going on and it doesn't make matters easier now that a new guardian has been appointed to the motley crew. Angeline and Jill are showing quite the interest in the newcomer. Neil cracked me up because he's such a goody-two shoes and is strict on rules and regulations. Still, he ends up being a lot more than I ever thought he would be with his actions towards the end.
My favorite part? We got to check in with the VA crew at High Court! *squeal* Yep! We get a little Rose, Dimitri, Sonya, Christian, and Lissa to keep us happy! It was brief and short-lived, but it was still nice to see some of our old favorites.
Beware of cliffhanger though! It's one of those that you know is coming, but once it happened, you still weren't really prepared for it. Let's just say this: betrayal is a bitch.
8 comments
Okay I skipped your Fiery Heart review because I have hopes that I will read it soon and I don't want to read between the lines of your review like my crazy brain is sure to do lol. But I agree about The Indigo Spell, some of it could have moved faster but I really loved how their relationship developed and I seriously love them together! I was always a Dimitri/Rose fan but I still loved Adrian and didn't want him hurt, so to see him finally have a chance makes me all swoony. Great review!
ReplyDeleteLOL. I hope you get to it soon! I liked it so much better than Indigo! Same here! I was never for Adrian, it was always Dimitri for me!
DeleteI really have been back and forth with this series.. I'm just not sure if I want to start it. But despite that, I'm glad you do seem to really enjoy the series! I also need to try and get back into the VA series..
ReplyDeleteBut I did enjoy your reviews! Makes me very curious about the characters and their situations!
Lovely lovely review!
If you like VA, I'm sure you'll like this one! :) I'm really surprised you haven't read them Magen!
DeleteI just picked up Silver Shadows from the library. Can't wait to see what happens next!
ReplyDeleteNicole @ Feed Your Fiction Addiction
Oh man! I'm on a super long waitlist! LOL. I'm trying to get it from my elibrary though. I might check to see if they got a physical copy in though.
DeleteADRIAN. Does anything else really need to be said?!
ReplyDeleteGlad you finally decided to pick these two up! The Fiery Heart is still my favorite to date, but Silver Shadows is awesome, so I can't wait to see what you think of it. I am counting down the days for The Ruby Circle. Thank God RM doesn't make us wait a whole year in between her books.
Haha! No nothing more needs to be said! Love that man! I'm excited for Silver Shadows, so I'm glad you enjoyed it!
DeleteLeave me some comment love! And I will get around to commenting back!
My blog is an award-free blog, however, as I just do not have the time to follow-up.