Vampire Academy - Richelle Mead
4.5 starsI had seen this so many times in Waterstones and had never picked it. I had never heard of these books. However, I picked it up in an offer and I am so glad I did. First time I read it a was drawn in from that first page and couldnt put it down. I stay up all night to finish it. I have now re-read it so many times my poor copy is falling apart. Its a story I just love returning to and I always find something new that I have missed on previous reads.The characters in the story is probably what really drew me in. There are so many different characters and they all bring something different and unique to the story. There is a few that really stand out for me. Rose is my favourite character. Rose is a dhampire (half-vampire, half-human) she is strong, very fiesty and isn't afraid to fly off the handle from time to time. She isn't like most girl that are in book I have read recently. I really like a strong lead role in books and Rose does the job. Her best friend, Lissa, is the total opposite from Rose and that why the friendship between them work so well. Lissa is the ractional one out the two, always thinking things through, whereas Rose is often reckless. At times, I didn't like Lissa just because sometimes I felt like she just so helpless and hopeless in herself I just wanted to jump in book and shake her.Aswell, as great female characters we get some candy. In the form of Dhampir Guardian Dimitri. He is the strong silent type that I know for fact makes girls and women week at knees. I liked the relationship that developed between him and Rose and how its just screamed sexual tension.Vampire Academy is the first book of the Vampire Academy Series. It's an excellent start to the series with a fresh and orginal take on the vampire. With its fast paced storyline and intriguing bunch of characters Richelle has created a story that really sucks you in from the very first page.However, it loses half a star just because of one thing and its a silly thing really but I didn't like it. In the story near the begining Rose is talking about her mum and says she has a ridiculous accent. That really annoyed me because Rose's mum is Scottish, I'm Scottish and I love my accent. As I said its a silly thing but still really annoyed me.Not Suitable for Younger Readers due to some bad language and moderate sexual content.