vampire academy

I read nothing but great reviews about the Vampire Academy series. I've finally gotten around to them, and I enjoyed what I read.

Rose is a Dhampir, a guardian who protects vampires. She's the specific guardian for her best friend Lissa, a vampire, also known as a Moroi. Lissa is one of the Royal Families, and is the last of her line. They're both students at St. Vladamir's, at least, they were until they ran away.

The story begins with Rose and Lissa being discovered in Portland, Oregon. Dmitri, a guardian from the school, is the leader of the pack assigned to bring them back. Dmitri wins and Rose and Lissa begin anew at their high school. The story really kicks it into high gear from here. Will Rose and Lissa be accepted back into their society? Who's pulling horrible "pranks" on Lissa? Is there something between Rose and Dmitri, her mentor? Throughout the course of the book we find out answers to these questions and more.

This is certainly an interesting take on the Vampire lore. There are twelve Royal Vampire families, and every "adult" vampire has a guardian. There are some notable exceptions, such as Lissa, but mainly the rule holds true. St. Vladamir is an academy where Vampires go to learn, and Dhampirs go to train.

Another reviewer said it best when they called this book a guilty pleasure. While it wasn't the best piece of literature on the market, it still was a great read. You really got into it, even if you didn't totally connect with the characters.

I liked Rose as the main heroine. However, she was little too rough around the edges for my taste. She certainly was a butt-kicking protagonist, though, which is what the story called for. Lissa was sweet, a bit naive, and Rose's total complement.

There were great side characters as well. Mia was a little you-know-what, someone you wanted to just shove out
of the way. The priest was funny, and in my opinion, was fleshed out well for being in just a few short scenes.

The "mystery" of the story was a little flat, and I felt like I knew "whodunit" within the first little bit, but all in all, an enjoyable guilty pleasure read. Can't wait to start book two.