The Golden Lily: A Bloodlines Novel [Hardcover]

After facing death by strogoi, Sydney is now back to her normal life, or whatever pass as normal with her latest mission. She poses as Jill's sister (a moroi princess in hiding) along side with Adrian & Eddy (her supposedly brothers) and Angeline (their fictional cousin). Along with the merry gang are former strogoi Dimitri & Sonia, trying to discover why strogoi restored by spirit magic can't be turned again. At first look it seems to be all fun but things gets complicated when a band of human attack Sydney and Sonia, wanting to kill the latter because "she's an evil creature of the night". What a mood killer!

If you remember, Bloodlines had been a bit of a let down for me, but I'm happy to report that I think The Golden Lily was better! To my dismay, Jill still won't be in danger in that book, which honestly bothers me because the whole mission was set to protect her from vindictive moroi who might want to kill her to remove Lissa from the throne, but this latest installment brought a lot of interesting elements to the table.

Let me start by talking romance because surprisingly there's a lot of it! Jill's relationship with Eddy's roommate Micah evolve, to Eddy's dismay because he's in love with her, but Eddy isn't left out as new comer Angeline has it big for him. The whole situation would be hilarious if it wasn't so pathetic. Poor Jill is completely blind to Eddie's affections and his broken heart is hard to bare. On the other hand Angeline won't miss an occasion to rub herself against him, oblivious to his disgust toward the whole thing. I could really picture his discomfited expression, holding back eye rolls because it wouldn't be professional. This love square (?) evolve in a rather interesting manner during the course of this installment, and I can't wait to see where it'll go from there in the next book.

Beyond all expectations, Sydney will also have some "romance" of her own. I use quotation marks here because let's be honest, Sydney's definition of romance is kind of sketchy. She meets a barista that's just as stuck up and socially inept as she is, which makes for some really awkward moments, for the reader's enjoyment. Watching them around each other I didn't know if I wanted to burst out laughing or bang my head on a wall, let's say it was entertaining in a weird way. Sydney also has a love triangle of her own even though she is completely oblivious to it. Adrian really pays her special attentions, in the sweetest way and I loved every moment. You can see that she is really special to him, even though he doesn't want to want her and she really has no clue. Their interactions really were the stellar point of this novel for me.

Now let's talk about some plot shall we? Sydney is no Rose, and the Bloodlines series can't compare to Vampire Academy action wise, but The Golden Lily took it up a notch this time around and I was pleased. Attacks, kidnapping and rescues are on the menu and it did wonders to Sydney's otherwise intellectual habits. After being helpless in a situation, Sydney decided to take matters in hands and take self defense classes, and she even considered magic as a potential defensive option, which showed a lot of growth on her part, considering how deadpan her opinions usually are on the matter. The situations she faces will really push her to grow, which makes me really excited because she used to be borderline boring with all her self restrain. Richelle also brought to the game a new interesting faction in the strogoi/moroi/dhampir/alchemist world and I'm curious about the fall out.

The conclusion was surprisingly action-packed and the very end was a shocker. I don't want to tell you anything about it, because it would suck to spoil it for you, but I was ecstatic, bewildered and stunned all at once. I'm highly anxious to see how everything will play out in the next book with the bomb Richelle Mead dropped right at the end! The third book in the series, which as no title as of yet, is scheduled for release in 2013, and the wait might just kill me!

Overall, The Golden Lily was a great installment in the Bloodlines series, making me hopeful for the upcoming books. Romance, action & witty comebacks are on the menu, everything to please adults and young adults alike.

It's no secret that I'm a huge fan of Bloodlines (and Sydney Sage!) ever since I first read the new Vampire Academy spin-off last year. I've yet to read Vampire Academy, but I still highly recommend Richelle Mead's new series to those new to her VA world; you'll be spoiled for a few things but it's kind of intimidating at times to start a new series with a large number of books that are already released. So this is another good way to immerse yourself in Richelle's world and writing :)

I loved Golden Lily- it had all the same elements I loved about Bloodlines, just amped up a bit more! Which is fantastic because I like a strong sequel that picks up where the first book left off and then improves on a solid foundation.

Reasons to Read:

1.Real issues that we can relate to:

Not everyone is going to have the same problems that Sydney has, but I love that she's a realistic character with issues often found in real life, so that the Bloodlines books blend the distinction between paranormal and contemporary. Usually we think of paranormal books as largely (or only) dealing with paranormal issues (you know, like vampire problems). And contemporary books tend to deal with real issues (like eating disorders or relationships). But I LOVE it when a book can have both and The Golden Lily is another fantastic example of this (another good book that does this, if you're interested, is Storm by Brigid Kemmerer). And while they aren't completely dealt with, we do get to see a better picture of how toxic Sydney's self-esteem issues are and even relationships with others, such as Adrian's failing relationship with his father.

2.More EVERYTHING (including romance):

One of the biggest complaints I read about Bloodlines was that there wasn't enough romance for readers- I think The Golden Lily will amend this for them! I actually didn't mind the lack of romance in Bloodlines (I'm a fan of the anticipation/build up, what can I say!) and The Golden Lily doesn't involve a LOT either. But it's there and it's good- Richelle's talent for writing chemistry between two characters and gradually amping it up is phenomenal! Plus there's more development for characters- we get to see some different sides to Sydney, Adrian, Trey and Jill in particular. And more drama (of course- what's a good book without drama?) but the good kind. Action too, because that's necessary in a good paranormal book ;)

3.Sydney & Adrian:

I know that everyone and their mother is rooting for Sydney and Adrian to hook up finally, but I want to talk about how much I love their pre-romantic relationship as well. I adore that we can see all the little ways they pay attention to each other, and the ways they show that they care. They have a friendship, a bond, that just seems to grow stronger with time. And while it isn't perfect, especially since he's a vampire and she's an Alchemist so they really shouldn't get along that well, it's refreshing to see two people that care about each other... as friends. It's sweet and I love it!

4.And I just really love Sydney:

I love Sydney for a multitude of reasons, but largely because she isn't your typical YA character. She's extremely awkward (and not always in an endearing way), she's realistic and analytical to a fault (there aren't that many analytical characters out there- they tend to be more impulsive in YA) but it's nice to see a type of personality that stands out. Sydney is a lot more what I'm like, both as a teenager and even at my age now. She's a control freak and picky, and she doesn't want to let anyone get to close to her... but somehow she starts to let a few people see the real her. I love her, and she's one of my favourites because of this.

We get a few more answers in this one about what's going on, but the sense of mystery stays strong. I still have so many questions regarding some of the weird things happening! But there's so much packed into this book, I couldn't put it down! An excellent sequel for a fantastic series that I'd recommend to most YA readers :)

ARC won in giveaway from blog (whatchYAreading)

I loved how the Vampire Academy books branched off but still included old characters. I can't wait till the next book!