Review: Frostbite by Richelle Mead

Synopsis (from Goodreads)

Rose loves Dimitri, Dimitri might love Tasha, and Mason would die to be with Rose... 

It’s winter break at St. Vladimir’s, but Rose is feeling anything but festive. A massive Strigoi attack has put the school on high alert, and now the Academy’s crawling with Guardians—including Rose’s hard-hitting mother, Janine Hathaway. And if hand-to-hand combat with her mom wasn’t bad enough, Rose’s tutor Dimitri has his eye on someone else, her friend Mason’s got a huge crush on her, and Rose keeps getting stuck in Lissa’s head while she’s making out with her boyfriend, Christian! The Strigoi are closing in, and the Academy’s not taking any risks... This year, St. Vlad’s annual holiday ski trip is mandatory. 

But the glittering winter landscape and the posh Idaho resort only create the illusion of safety. When three friends run away in an offensive move against the deadly Strigoi, Rose must join forces with Christian to rescue them. But heroism rarely comes without a price...

Frostbite is the follow up to Vampire Academy, which I reviewed last week. This was a really addictive read which I read in around 7 hours straight because I could not put it down. It was great to see old characters and relationships develop and I loved the new plot line.

As I said, it was great to see the old characters develop from the first book. I felt that Rose really matured in this book. She was more aware of how her actions were going to impact her and the people around her. In saying that she still had the trademark Rose recklessness. I also liked getting to know Dimitri better, and I loved the way that Rose could see through him and notice things that no one else really noticed about him. We saw less of Lissa in this book, but it was great to see her open up more to Christian and to see her stand up and take control when it was required.

The new characters that were introduced in the story were interesting, particularly Janine, Adrian and Tasha. It was interesting to watch the Rose’s relationship with Janine overcome some roadblocks and for Rose to start seeing the similarities between her and Janine. I loved Tasha’s determination to change what she thought needed to be changed. I really liked her character, I liked her rebelliousness and her dedication. I loved Adrian. He was so charming and, basically, just swoon worthy. I really liked that you got to see some of the depth that his character has. I think that his ability was interesting and added something new to the story. I can’t wait to see more of him in the next books.

I really enjoyed the plot. There was plenty of danger and action, which I liked. I found all the political tensions and then the people trying to figure out how they were going to handle it interesting. I also found the increased role of the strigoi interesting, as well as the addition of their allies. I felt like the ending was what was required of the book, even if I didn’t necessary approve of the outcome.

This was a great read and I can’t wait to read the next book. I give it 5/5 stars!

Mel.

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