Saturday Snippet Reviews | The Indigo Spell & Fangirl

There are times when Heather, Aly & I finish a book, but don’t have time to write a full, comprehensive review… or even a shorter “flashbulb” review.  BUT we still want to share our thoughts with you on what we’ve been reading. That’s why every Saturday we’ll be featuring 3 “snippet” reviews — short, sweet, to-the-point reviews that we’ll try to keep to 2-7 sentences.  So we hope you enjoy these!!

 

 

Rarely do I have such passionate reactions to books, BUT when I finished The Golden Lily about a year and a half ago, I was throw-my-Kindle-against-the-wall frustrated. (Heather can attest to the phone call in which I ranted, at very great length, about how upset I was with… a certain character.)  The reasons as to why being numerous and spoilery, but I was so much so, that I put off reading The Indigo Spell until a couple weeks ago. And I’m sorry that I waited this long. The character progression that I had been waiting for in The Golden Lily finally happened in this book, and I’m woman enough to admit that, after reading this, I think Mead was so very right in how she (so very frustratingly) paced that character and relationship development.

So the things I love about this book…

I love the interactions between Sydney and Adrian. I love Adrian’s development — who’s he’s becoming, his growing sense of  purpose, his perseverance, his breaking out of some of those destructive behavioral patterns he tends to sink into. His character maturation since I first met him in Frostbite, has been one of my favorites to read… ever. I love Sydney’s soul-searching, her determination, her courage, her compassion, her confidence, her self-doubt, her resourcefulness and willingness to help others. I love the multiple, suspenseful plot threads that kept building throughout — the crap is kinda hitting the fan… or about to. I love the ever-building sense of danger and broadening of scope. The Bloodlines series in some ways feels… smaller than the Vampire Academy series was — not nearly as political, not nearly as ” the fate of the Moroi world is in your hands!” I mean, technically, yes, Sydney’s mission in Palm Springs with Jill is vitally important to the Moroi world, but in kind of a passive way? More preventative and defensive then proactive and aggressive, maybe? However, The Indigo Spell makes me think that is about to change…. and I CANNOT WAIT for The Fiery Heart!

 

After hearing Dani rave about how much she loved this book and after enjoying Eleanor & Park earlier this year, I knew Fangirl had the potential for all kinds of awesome. I was not disappointed. Fangirl is both fluffy and deep at the same time, which is a tricky combination. While overall, it’s a pretty straightforward romance there is a strong undercurrent of dealing with some really tough issues. These issues aren’t glossed over in any way and are dealt with in a really productive, really beautiful process. The witty banter, the epic shout-outs to Harry Potter fandoms and fanfic writers everywhere, and the adorable romance make Fangirl a super fun read. Recommended to anyone who wants a fun read with some substance.

Happy Reading!