#46 Book Review: Blood Promise

Blood Promise (Vampire Academy #4)

Genre: Young Adult
Pages: 443

Release date: August 25th 2009
Author: Richelle Mead

Publisher: Razorbill
Source: Owned

Format: Paperback

Summary from Goodreads:

Rose Hathaway's life will never be the same.

The recent attack on St. Vladimir's Academy devastated the entire Moroi world. Many are dead. And, for the few victims carried off by Strigoi, their fates are even worse. A rare tattoo now adorns Rose's neck, a mark that says she's killed far too many Strigoi to count. But only one victim matters . . . Dimitri Belikov. Rose must now choose one of two very different paths: honoring her life's vow to protect Lissa—her best friend and the last surviving Dragomir princess—or, dropping out of the Academy to strike out on her own and hunt down the man she loves. She'll have to go to the ends of the earth to find Dimitri and keep the promise he begged her to make. But the question is, when the time comes, will he want to be saved?

Now, with everything at stake—and worlds away from St. Vladimir's and her unguarded, vulnerable, and newly rebellious best friend—can Rose find the strength to destroy Dimitri? Or, will she sacrifice herself for a chance at eternal love?

My review:

Cover:

Again, I’m not a big fan of VA covers although I still think it looks quite good!

3 Forget-me-not flowers for the cover!

Story:

[Warning: Please do not read this review if you haven’t read Shadow Kiss]

Blood Promise was an enthralling journey of love, promises, bond, hardships and moving on. This, by far was the most emotional read for me. 

As Rose sets her first step in Russia, she is determined to do one thing. Kill Dimitri. At first, the book begins with Rose trying to find any Strigoi who might have information about the whereabouts of Dimitri. I was really desperate to get to the part where Dimitri finally appears which is why the first ¼ of the book didn’t quite hooked me. When Rose finally meets Dimitri’s family, I can see how Dimitri grew up into a wonderful and strong man, who came to love Rose. I loved Dimitri’s family and how they are close to each other. But when she finally finds Dimitri after more than half of the book, I exclaimed with joy! Yes, she is finally meeting Dimitri and I did like Dimitri as a Strigoi in the beginning. I liked the way he changed and how he still had affection for Rose. As I read more about him as a Strigoi, I changed my mind. He was evil and he forced Rose to change as a Strigoi so they both could live forever. When Rose finally ‘stabbed’ Dimitri in the chest with the stake, I felt as though my heart was the one being stabbed. It was painful. I couldn’t imagine being faced with this mission like Rose, to kill her own lover. The story was a rollercoaster ride. There were lots of ups and downs, surprises and heart-breaking scenes such as flashbacks from when Dimitri was still with Rose in the academy. I almost thought I couldn’t survive this book. Although I did expect the ending since I knew that Dimitri will still be alive until the end of the book!

Characters:

Rose, as usual, never disappoints. She has become such a strong and mature character that she is willing to endure this trip to find Dimitri and kill him. Although there were parts in the book where she still hoped that Dimitri would be back to himself and this became her weakness, which was the one of the reason she couldn’t kill him in their first encounter, she still did it and tried to move on. I adored her for this. Letting go of something you love is difficult. No matter how, it will always be within you. But, you can move on and remember it as an important memory you’ll never forget. This is how Rose basically feels. I was able to understand everything she has been through in this book, making her one of the most unforgettable heroines out there.

Dimitri, as a Strigoi is actually very interesting. I never thought he would still have affections for Rose and wanted her so much. I thought being a Strigoi would make someone be this whole new person where they won’t care who they loved, who they were, as long as they feed blood. Dimitri was different than what I expected. I can still see the past Dimitri somewhere within him and I can imagine how it must be so difficult for Rose to kill him because she thought there was still hope. 

The characters were written very well, as always. No matter how evil Dimitri would be or how bad Rose is, I can never hate these characters. They were just so hard not to like!

 

Overall:

How far would you go to save the one you love? For Rose, she will kill to save Dimitri. Make sure to grip on your seat tightly and be prepared, because Blood Promise will take you to a whole new journey in Russia full of surprises, love and sadness. Blood Promise is a ride you’ll never forget.

 

5 Forget-me-not flowers for Blood Promise!

Favourite Quotes:

"Roza." His voice had the same wonderful lowness, the same accent...it was all just colder. "You forgot my first lesson. Don't hesitate."

But when the other end of the line picked up, it was his voicemail that answered, not the man himself. "I know how devastated you must be to miss me," his cheery voice said, "but leave a message, and I'll try to ease your agony as soon as possible."