Review - Vampire Academy: Blood Promise by Richelle Mead

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?

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The fourth Vampire Academy novel sees Rose take on a quest that might just be the end of her – saving Dimitri from the Strigoi. She knows she’s most likely already too late - and if he’s become one of them, she has promised to kill him, whatever the cost to herself. She travels to his home country of Russia where she faces the difficult task of telling his family about his fate. Meanwhile, she feels guilty for leaving her best friend, Lissa, behind, especially as she’s starting to use her spirit powers again and is spiralling out of control. But Rose finds herself facing an impossible choice: to kill the man she loves, or become a monster herself.

I thought this book was much slower-paced than the previous ones, although there is still plenty of action, and given the killer cliffhanger at the end of Shadow Kiss, it was impossible not to want to keep turning the pages to find out what happens next. It’s packed with emotion, tough choices and a number of new characters, some of whom I suspect will come to be significant later on. I did find some plot elements to be a tad predictable, but this was nevertheless a great read, and sets the stage for the next book in the series!

Rating: ****