The Indigo Spell by Richelle Mead

 

I would like to start this review by saying that I am a huge fan of Richelle Mead’s writing, reading both the entirety of her Vampire Academy series, its spin off the Bloodlines series, as well as her adult fiction with the Succubus series. Unsurprisingly, my expectation for this third Bloodlines book was rather high.

Happily, with a rating of 5 out of 5, I can affirm it stood that test. True to Mead’s usual narration style, the story was gripping and easy to get into, every chapter leading into the next with a cliffhanger-esque feel at each stop. With three active plots intertwining, The Indigo Spell was possibly one of the more complex of her novels, the plots interweaving well and with precision. At no time was my belief at a circumstance suspended or was I wearied by the story.

I also applaud Mead at her ability to continue to introduce complicated ‘forbidden love’ stories that are still fresh and convincing, using the hierarchy she has constructed in this version of the vampire and human world to work against the characters. It’s something that is hard to do in modern fictional stories today without sounding archaic or unrealistic. However, with the strict rules and social customs of each of the three groups introduced in this world (vampire, alchemist, and standard human) she still has a lot to work with.

Of her novels, possibly the only critique was that it took a little longer to hit the point of no stopping. Usually with her books this catch is delivered within the first few chapters of the novel, if not the first few pages. I am reduced to carry the book around wherever and whatever I am doing, unable to tear myself away. However, though still engrossing, this time around it took a few days of reading to get there. Of course once I did hit that catch I was up until 3 am finishing it in one sit in.

Overall my faith in Mead hasn’t waivered, especially in her continued ability to get the reader to love very flawed characters. I really wasn’t sure this time around when starting Bloodlines that Sydney as a narrator would do it for me but it only took a few hours of reading that first book to know I was hooked just as fast as I was with Rose’s narration.

Of the ending I will only say that it was A+ and gives the next book a great start off to pick up on. 

-Alissa Tsaparikos