The Indigo Spell - Review

The Indigo Spell (Bloodlines, # 3)

By: Richelle Mead

Published: February 12th 2013 by Razorbill

432 pages

Source: Personal Library

( Goodreads | Amazon )

Goodreads description--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.

Populated with new faces as well as familiar ones, the Bloodlines series explores all the friendship, romance, battles, and betrayals that made the #1 New York Times bestselling Vampire Academy series so addictive—this time in a part-vampire, part-human setting where the stakes are even higher and everyone’s out for blood.

Richelle Mead really knows how to write a book, I tell you. She's got this way of just making every detail important, fit into the exact location in the story that it should, and she doesn't fall into the traps that many authors today fall into. For one, I love her main characters. Rose from Vampire Academy is extremely strong and impulsive. Sydney is very intellectual, calculating, and the very opposite of impulsive. Rose's way works for her and Sydney's way works for her. There is no getting the two confused. They each have very distinct voices along with distinct problems. As a specific example, Sydney, because she's so thoughtful in every aspect, when she comes to putting pieces in the puzzle together, I never find myself screaming at her to open her eyes and see this trap or not to forget this piece of information. She's on top of it. That's not to say she can't be caught by surprise, but Sydney most definitely will not be caught by surprise when it comes to the obvious.

Of course, I'm not speaking of emotions--Sydney's heart. I've been speaking of her brain. Sydney definitely has a lot more trouble interpreting her feelings than she does clues or some sort of mental problem that needs solving. Without going into too much detail, I was afraid that Sydney was going to find herself in a particular emotional situation that we find quite prevalent in the YA genre and I was cringing my teeth waiting for it to happen. Yet Richelle Mead avoids that situation with such a wide berth that I can only applaud her.

Speaking of, Adrian. Oh Adrian. If you thought he pursued Rose, then well, just prepare yourself for how confident and determined he is about pursuing Sydney. *sigh* Loyal and always willing to be by her side, Adrian puts himself out there in a way that can only be admired considering how recently his heart was broken by Rose. Kudos for seeing what he wants and going after it.

The other characters we've come to love advance in story, but truthfully not too far. The majority of this book was focused on Sydney herself and her struggles coming to terms with what the Alchemist truly are and where she stands in the mix. We do see some of Jill, Eddie, Angeline, and Trey, and I can't wait to see how these stories play out through the remaining books in the series. As well as, the introduction of new characters, Marcus Finch and his band of "Merry Men." What will become of them? I can't wait to find out.

Of course, Richelle Mead had to leave us with one piece of information at the very end that changes the game for the next book, and considering how many references were made to "the fiery heart" in The Indigo Spell, I can't wait to get my hands on that book already.

The Indigo Spell gets 4.5 Stars from me. Have you read The Indigo Spell? If so, what did you think? Let me know!