Richelle Mead

Two years after a horrible incident made them run away, vampire princess Lissa and her guardian-in-training Rose are found and returned to St. Vladimir's Academy, where one focuses on mastering magic, the other on physical training, while both try to avoid the perils of gossip, cliques, gruesome pranks, and sinister plots.

Vampire Academy

St Vladimir's Academy isn't just any boarding school - hidden away, it's a place where vampires are educated in the ways of magic and half-human teens train to protect them.Rose Hathaway is a Dhampir, a bodyguard for her best friend Lissa, a Moroi Vampire Princess. They've been on the run, but now they're being dragged back to St Vladimir's where the girls must survive a world of forbidden romances, a ruthless social scene and terrifying night time rituals. But most of all, staying alive.

Beyza

"Yes, Roza. I did want you. I still do. I wish... we could be together."

"Because of the age thing, right?  Because you're my mentor."

"That's part if it. But also... well, you and I will both be Lissa's guardians someday. I need to protect her at all costs. If a pack of Strigoi comes, I need to throw my body between them and her. 

If I let myself love you I won't throw myself in front of her. I'll throw myself in front of you.

"I want you to break the spell. Finish it off."

"That spell is done. It burned itself out."

"No. I keep thinking about him. I keep wanting to..."

"My dear, that was already in there, long before I set that up.

[...] the attraction - physical and mental - was already in you. And in him. It wouldn't have worked otherwise. The spell didn't really add anything new - it just removed inhibitions and strengthened the feelings you already had for each other."

"Even if you choose not to tell, you need to understand that it was a mistake. And it is never going to happen again"

"Because you're too old for me?  Because it isn't responsible?"

"No. Because I'm just not interested in you in that way.

It only happend because of the spell. Do you understand?"

arwen

Riley Bell

Note to future self if I decide to read this again as an adult: idc idc idc what you think with your adult brain do not lower the stars this deserves 5 for the absolute chokehold this has on me as a teen!! I even love the movie!!! Period!!

Rosibel Silva Pineda

love it. Sad sometimes...mostly of times.

Didn’t think I’d like it as much as I did. Good fast-paced writing style. 

Salomé Gleusteen 

becky oh

This is just another trashy vampire-romance book. But then why do I want to read on?

RTC

*This edition features exclusive movie cover artwork*A brand new movie tie-in edition of the international Number 1 bestselling Vampire Academy series by Richelle Mead - a dark and dangerous paranormal romance . . . Read it before it hits cinemas in April 2014!Higher Learning. Higher Stakes.ONLY A TRUE BEST FRIEND CAN PROTECT YOU FROM IMMORTAL ENEMIES . . . Lissa Dragomir is a mortal vampire. She must be protected at all times from the fiercest and most dangerous vampires of all - the ones who will never die.Rose Hathaway is Lissa's best friend - and her bodyguard.Now, after two years of illicit freedom, they've been dragged back inside the iron gates of St. Vladimir's Academy. The girls must survive a world of forbidden romances, a ruthless social scene and terrifying night-time rituals. But above all, they must never let their guard down, lest the immortal vampires take Lissa - forever . . . THEY SUCK AT SCHOOL.'Exciting, empowering and un-put-downable.' MTV's Hollywood Crush'We're suckers for it!' - Entertainment WeeklyAlso available in the Vampire Academy series:Vampire Academy (Book 1)Vampire Academy: Frostbite (Book 2) Vampire Academy: Shadow Kiss (Book 3)Vampire Academy: Blood Promise (Book 4)Vampire Academy: Spirit Bound (Book 5) Vampire Academy: Last Sacrifice (Book 6) And don't miss the bestselling Vampire Academy spin-off series, Bloodlines:Bloodlines (Book 1)Bloodlines: The Golden Lily (Book 2)Bloodlines: The Indigo Spell (Book 3)Bloodlines: The Fiery Heart (Book 4)Bloodlines: Silver Shadows (Book 5)About the author:Richelle Mead is the New York Times and global bestselling author of the Vampire Academy series (soon to be a movie blockbuster in Feb 2014), the Bloodlines series and the Age of X series. Richelle lives in Seattle, Washington.

Nessa Luna

Read this review, and many more on my blog October Tune!

Vampire Academy tells the story of best friends Lissa Dragomir, a Moroi (mortal) vampire princess; and Rose Hathaway, a Dhampir (half-vampire), and Lissa’s guardian. Two years before the story starts, they escaped from St Vladimir’s Academy; two years they have been enjoying freedom, living among the humans. But now, they are being dragged back to the Academy, and they have to face the consequences of their escape. They also have to earn back the respect of their teachers, their trainers and their peers. But that is not so hard when you’re a vampire princess. And things aren’t all rainbows and sunshine anymore at St Vladimir’s. Dead animals, threatening messages, and the constant threat of being attacked by Strigoi (the ‘dead’ vampires).

I have to admit, I am not a fan of vampires. To me, they are the Umbridge of mythical creatures. I’d rather avoid them if I can. But someone challenged me to read this book for my Day Zero challenge, so I knew I had to at least try. I ended up getting an ebook version of it, because I didn’t really feel like spending a lot of money on a physical book about a subject that I probably wouldn’t like. And indeed, I couldn’t get myself to read further than fifty pages the first time. A while ago, I decided to watch the movie, just because. Afterwards, I realised that the book would probably be a lot better, so I decided to try again. I got myself a physical copy of the book and started reading. And wow, I was surprised.

What I liked:
I liked that there were three different kind of vampires. The Moroi, good, mortal vampires; The Strigoi, bad, ‘dead’ vampires; and the Dhampir, who are half-vampire, half-human and usually guardians of Moroi vampires. Rose Hathaway, the main character of this book, is a Dhampir and training to be Lissa Dragomir’s guardian. Lissa is a Moroi, and a princess as well. She is the last of the Dragomirs and the heir to the throne. And that’s not all, Rose and Lissa share a bond. Rose almost always knows what Lissa feels. When she’s in danger, Rose will know and will be able to find her wherever she is.

I liked Lissa, she was a very likable person from the beginning and I started liking her more and more throughout the book. Sometimes, I wasn’t really that happy with the things that she did, but of course every character has flaws. I also liked Christian, who had a bit of a tragic background. Parents who turned themselves Strigoi, and were murdered in front of his eyes. Being shunted away by the other Moroi because they felt he was tainted, even though he wasn’t Strigoi himself. I also liked Dimitri, though I kept imagining the person who played him in the movies the entire time (who, in my opinion, was not as handsome and sexy as he was described in the book). The only character I wasn’t really a big fan of in the beginning, was Rose. But I’ll get to that later.

The Moroi could also do magic, which at first I thought was a bit silly. Because vampires are not witches, and in my opinion only witches/wizards should be able to do magic. But in the end, I realized that it was actually kind of cool. Moroi could specialize in any of the four elements – water, fire, air, earth – and they could do all kinds of things with it. Unfortunately, Lissa – at seventeen – still hasn’t specialized, but according to her teachers that would come soon.

The writing was very good, and I found myself wanting to read more and more, I even stayed up late a couple of times to continue reading, even though I had to get up early the next day. Things were explained very well, like the different vampires, the magic, the feeders, the royals, etc. And of course how – since they are vampires – they have a complete different time schedule than we humans have. Their school day starts when the sun has gone down, and they go back to sleep when the sun rises. I have to admit, before I read this book, I was a classic vampire stan. In my opinion, vampires should have been 100% unable to walk in the sun (Moroi can walk in the sun, but not for long), be ‘allergic’ to garlic (no mention of that in the book, but still that might be mentioned in another book); and be completely (un)dead and also immortal unless they got a stake through the heart. But I started liking the Moroi and the Strigoi (okay not so much) and the Dhampirs.

What I didn’t like:
Like I said before, I would get back to Rose as a character. Yeah, I wasn’t a big fan of her in the beginning. She kept on talking about how she wanted to get semi-naked with people, about how handsome and sexy certain characters were, how she looked A M A Z I N G in a bra while other girls did not; how she was so incredibly sexy. While I was reading, it felt to me like all the boys thought of her as nothing more than a lust object. It felt like all the boys were only thinking about making out with her, or having sex with her, or just seeing her naked. There was one sentence in the beginning of the story, where one of the novices (a guardian in training) told her that “it’s always a good time to think about [Rose] naked.” Yeah, ugh. (Of course, I fully support characters who know they are pretty and who don’t think of themselves as the ugly duckling while they are actually quite pretty, but there is that and there is being Rose Hathaway).

In the end, I got used to her being like that, and I did start to like her especially when she was protecting Lissa. But yeah, the whole flirting thing kind of annoyed me.

What I also didn’t like was that sometimes things were said, like Rose who ‘destroyed school property’, and that it would take another hundred pages before you were told what Rose had destroyed and why. I am a fan of things being explained right away, so that was kind of something I was annoyed by.

Conclusion:
In the end, I really liked Vampire Academy. I thought that the book was a lot better than the movie, though the movie was quite true to the book (apart from some minor things, but I don’t remember much of the movie to be honest). It surprised me, and it made me want to read the rest of the series. I hope people are proud of me that I am finally (maybe) getting over my irrational dislike of vampire books. Now only werewolves and angels remain.

makenna!!! 

2.5 stars ⭐️. the plot was there but it felt over complicated and like i was reading a poorly written wattpad book at times. the characters in the book also got on my nerves A LOT!

Diana Budman

Anna Ureta

Yes, I will admit to only reading this book because a), it came HIGHLY RECOMMENDED by a very good friend of mine, and b), because the movie was coming out so I wanted to do a comparison of the two. I have the entire Vampire Academy collection but I hadn’t brought myself to start reading it, until now.
 
I can CLEARLY see what all the hype is what with all the memorable characters, incredible story and playful writing style. I wish I could have been as badass as Rose when I was in high school, maybe I could have had more fun and been a better person. Don’t you just LOVE kickass female protagonists!?
 
After two years of freedom, Moroi Princess Lissa, and her Dhampir Rose are caught and dragged back to St. Vladimir’s Academy aka Vampire Academy. It’s just like any other high school except its students are vampire royalty and their guardians-in-training. Trying to finish their senior year, Rose and Lisa come face to face with the challenges of being teenagers, dealing with gossip, forbidden love, and the evil undead Strigoi, who are trying to turn Lissa into one of them forever.
 
Let me just start off by saying, from someone who hadn’t read the books before seeing the movie I thought the movie was pretty good; I had no complaints about it, and would gladly see it again! If you’ve read the series I definitely think you should check out the movie, and if you haven’t read the books you should still see the film adaptation. It’s nice to put a face to a name don’t you think?
 
I’d always been skeptical about YA novels, probably because I thought myself above all the drama and poor decision-making a lot of the characters made. Recently I’ve found that even romance novels feature female leads who make terrible life choices….*coughcoughKierafromtheThoughtlesseriescoughcough* But I’ve actually come to enjoy YA recently, and am glad I started off with this series.
 
Strong female leads definitely help, and Rose is definitely a snappy, snarky, badass, strong female lead! Not to say Lissa isn’t badass herself, she just has a different role to play throughout the story. It’s easy to forget this is taking place in a high school because Rose acts so much more mature than her age. She’s so SELFLESS and CARING and always puts Lissa before anything else. That’s real and true friendship right there. The kind that people can only wish for.
 
Skipping to the GOOD STUFF because I’m such a fangirl Yes, I will fully admit to DROOLING HEAD OVER HEELS for Dimitri Belikov. Omg, I swoon every time I say his name and just…THINK ABOUT HIM he’s so hot! Danila Kozlovsky did an EXCELLENT job playing Dimitri in the movie (although I know Ben Barnes is a popular online choice – he definitely is sexy…but not bulky enough for the role of a guardian). He is TOTALLY SEXY and yes, his Russian accent DEFINITELY got me. Oh man, the tension and chemistry between him and Rose just makes you want to DIE! <3
 
All of a sudden, it occurred to me that he was still holding me down. The skin on his fingers was warm as he clutched my wrists. His face hovered inches from my own, and his legs and torso were actually pressing against mine. Some of his long brown hair hung around his face, and he appeared to be noticing me too, almost like he had that night in the lounge. And oh God, did he smell good. Breathing became difficult for me, and it had nothing to do with the workout or my lungs being crushed.
 
Aside from Dimitri we’ve got Christian, Mason, Natalie, Victor and Mia. All memorable, all wicked and/or evil, but such lovable and memorable characters. You could definitely find someone you relate to or someone you’d hang out with if you were going to Vampire Academy. Second to Dimitri’s hotness, Christian comes REALLY CLOSE. I hate how we love the dark and broody boys. I think it’s because they have so much potential, so much growing and change in them that we just want to be there to watch it unfold. Despite Christian’s dark nature, he’s actually a really cool guy and I’d definitely love being in league with him.
 
I really do hope they make more movies, I love watching book adaptations. I also can’t wait to read the next book in the series! Oh god I’m smiling like a crazy fangirl! AHHH!!!! Seriously, I need to see some more Rose on Dimitri action like…ASAP. That girl needs to have a shag like IMMEDIATELY!!!
 
4/5 Hearts of Love
 *I was going to give it 5 but that was just because Dimitri was so damn hot* haha

Check out the rest of my reviews at http://www.akiikomorireading.com

Midori Kobayashi

4/5stars


i was kinda skeptical going into this (i thought it was gonna be yet another cringy vampire story yk) but this was surprisingly good. there is the usual sprinkle of vampire stuff but the overall world, politics, intrigue, romance, friendships. it had me. it really did. just a couple of pages in i was hooked, i know it was one of those easy reads but i liked it nonetheless. def gonna read the whole series asap!

A good book, with a good plot. Although it was predictable in parts I was still shocked by some of the plot twists. Altogether a very good read

i did not expect to enjoy this even half as much as i did! 

jana 

Nicole Goldstein

I didn't hate it as much as I thought I would in the beginning. Having read a bunch of other books in 3rd person POV, it was a little rough to come back to first person. Especially to a view such as Rose Hathaway, who was just filled to the brim with snark. When I didn't want to slap her, I was laughing at her running commentary. I felt lost for the first half of the book with the constant flash backs and the little explanation to what this world consisted of but slowly it started to reveal itself to me and I started to really dive into the world and politics of the academy. And the politics of high school is basically what this book consisted of. You had your popular rich kids, your wannabes, outcasts, jocks and everyone in between. The author stayed true to the archetypes of high school students and just gave them a magical and mystical world to play in. I really loved how the romantic aspect of so many other books out there took a backseat to the stronger bond between Rose and her best friend Lissa. I think this book and hopefully series keeps with that trend.

Talia Dominguez 

amazing! loved the whole selfless Rose Hathaway ! She only thinks of her best friend Visilisa ;in protecting her from evil and Her love interest Dimitri; her mentor.

I really didn't think that this would be a book that I'd like; I'm normally not that much into vampire books, but Vampire Academy turned out to be so much more than I could have possibly anticipated.

The quality of the writing is fantastic, and while I can't pinpoint a singular aspect that made it great, if you're looking for a book with good prose (and plot!), you should probably give Vampire Academy a try.

Which brings me to my next point. The plot was perfect, in depth yet simple enough for me to wrap my head around without much effort. I don't wanna reveal anything, but it should suffice to say that the plot is very good, at least for a vampire novel.

I have slightly mixed feelings about the characters. On one hand, the MCs are all greatly developed with them actually feeling like real humans. No Mary Sue's (yet?), but I find myself feeling that Tatiana could have been focused on more, and some non-Academy characters could have been brought in. Not a deal breaker though.

All in all, Vampire Academy was an absolutely great novel that I think that most people could enjoy with little effort. Hope that the next books in the series don't disappoint, because I'm not going to be able to put this down.

Devansh Patil

I really didn't think that this would be a book that I'd like; I'm normally not that much into vampire books, but Vampire Academy turned out to be so much more than I could have possibly anticipated.

The quality of the writing is fantastic, and while I can't pinpoint a singular aspect that made it great, if you're looking for a book with good prose (and plot!), you should probably give Vampire Academy a try.

Which brings me to my next point. The plot was perfect, in depth yet simple enough for me to wrap my head around without much effort. I don't wanna reveal anything, but it should suffice to say that the plot is very good, at least for a vampire novel.

I have slightly mixed feelings about the characters. On one hand, the MCs are all greatly developed with them actually feeling like real humans. No Mary Sue's (yet?), but I find myself feeling that Tatiana could have been focused on more, and some non-Academy characters could have been brought in. Not a deal breaker though.

All in all, Vampire Academy was an absolutely great novel that I think that most people could enjoy with little effort. Hope that the next books in the series don't disappoint, because I'm not going to be able to put this down.

Nicole Sonja

I read this book thinking vampire fiction was boring and mainstream, until I read this. Ms. Mead brought me into St. Vlad's, the world of Moroi's, dhamphir's, and Strigoi. In this world, instead of all the vampires being the bad guys, they were all classified according to their ranks and stature. Its pretty unusual but it turned out well. I was surprised too, because Ive read better books over the past couple of months but I really wasnt very drawn into the story. This time, I felt every single emotion our protagonist, Rose Hathaway, conveyed. She was a rule breaker, she was stubborn and frustrating and very impulsive. I didnt like her very much, although Im a young adult myself. I really cannot relate to her, at all. She's very self-confident, to the point of arrogance. She's very aware of her poularity and fame, especially the effects she has on guys. She uses these things to get her way, and she gets very frustrated if she doesnt get her way. Which is why, when her "god-like' instructor comes along, Rose goes crazy from the lack of attention he gives her, which is something unusual for her. I guess Richelle Mead wants her to be that cool girl, the popular, stunning, badass heroine, but in my opinion, she tried too hard. Or maybe my definition of 'cool' just doesnt match with hers.But aside from that, Rose was definitely very bad ass, strong-willed and could stand up for herself. She has her share of misfits and mistakes (mostly caused by her frustratingly impulsive nature), kinda like Buffy. She seems to learn her lessons too, and there was a lot of character development in just one book. I seem to recall feeling the exact same way towards Katniss and Bella. 
I also dissaproved of the shifting dialogue. At times it was poetic but sometimes it got stilted, which was why I was confused about Rose at the beginning. 
 
The story was good, loved the colorful characters, loved the story and I absolutely adore Dimitri. Looking forward to seeing more of rose and the gang.

Kelsey Joëlle

Annabella

Reread for the show. Still flew through it

Welcome to St. Vladimir, Vampire Academy. This book introduces the friendship between Rosa - half-human, half-vampire, and Lissa, a mortal vampire princess. This is book 1 of a series of 6 books (thus far!). Vietnamese translation by Vu Gia An. In Vietnamese. Distributed by Tsai Fong Books, Inc.

Janna Niemi

Soooo good. At first it didn't seem to meet my expectations but then all the good stuff started. Dimitri and rose are just perfect for each other. Of course all the mysteries are addicting too. And i never suspected the real villain. Just unbelievable! Now I just have to read the whole series!

Kira Butler

Good book to relive my teenagers years, takes a while of setting up the scene and a lot of school girl bullying type stories they didn’t majorly interest me not being in that phase of life anymore but the ending was interesting and an enjoyable plot twist

riven

read all the books when i was younger and was OBSESSED. now probably not so much but they bring nostalgia

Courtney Gendreau

I read this book due to is many good reviews. I am dissapointed with it though it was slow, I didn't care for the characters, and I just couldn't get into it.

Sofia de Anda

The book was okay. I liked the story idea, but I am not sure I loved the characters. The main characters are 17year olds and You can definitely tell throughout the plot. They seem a bit immature. Rose and Lissa are supposed to be the best friends ever and Rose is extremely attached to Lissa and concerned for her well-being, but I just don't see the friendship in them. I don't see what it is that makes them best friends. Throughout the book they keep repeating over and over how close they are but I feel like they just never show it. Overall though, there is a good plot twist and the story line is good. Maybe the next one of this series will be better.

Vampire Academy

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