Wednesday 3 April 2013

Review: Bloodspell by Amalie Howard

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Title: Bloodspell

Author: Amalie Howard

Series: Bloodspell #1

Publisher: Langdon Street Press

Publication date: Jun 1 2011

Format: ebook | Netgalley

Genre: YA | Paranormal

Goodreads



The spell was simple...

Cruentus Protectum (Defend the Blood)

But what do you do if your blood is your enemy?

Victoria Warrick has always known she was different. An outcast at school, she is no stranger to adversity. But when she receives an old journal for her seventeenth birthday, nothing prepares her for the dark secrets it holds -- much less one that reveals she's a witch with unimaginable power.

What's more, when she meets the dazzling but enigmatic Christian Devereux, she has no idea how much her life is about to change. Enemies will hunt her. Friends will turn on her. The terrible curse that makes her blood run black will stop at nothing to control her. And Christian has a sinister secret of his own...

Without knowing whom to trust, can Victoria survive her blood's deadly desires? Or will she lose everything, including herself?



My thoughts:


I struggled to give this book a rating since I don't really know how I feel about it.


I was completely enthralled at the start of the book. There was so much mystery involved that I couldn't help but be sucked straight into the story. I was desperate to find out all the answers. 


I really liked the dark tone to the story that was there from the beginning. It was a constant battle for Victoria to control her powers and stop herself from hurting those who she loves. The author had no problem making Victoria's thoughts as dark as possible and it definitely came across in the right way - I immediately noticed how hard she was trying and was instantly sympathetic. 


The characters were also great at the beginning of the book. I loved Christian straight away and Victoria really grew on me as I was let in on more and more of her secrets. I liked the way the characters interacted and how they had just started to develop and maybe change a little in some cases.


However, the last half or so of the book was incredibly different. I thought it took a completely different turn and it didn't really feel like it stayed true to the characters. The plot started to become more focused on Cristian and Victoria and everybody else was excluded for a long time. It really was like reading two completely different books - the last part of the book was too much of the unoriginal vampire romance for me. 



My rating: 5/10



Amelia Howard:

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1 comment:

Sarah Elizabeth said...

such a shame that the ending took such a downturn. I couldn't decide whether to read this one or not but i think i'll give it a miss now. Thanks!