"The Last Sacrifice" by Richelle Mead (Spoiler-free)

"They come first.

My vision was growing dimmer, the blackness and ghosts closing in. I swore it was like I could hear Robert whispering in my ear: The world of the dead won't give you up a second time. Just before the light completely vanished, I saw (Avery edit- took this part out because it would tell you which guy she picked) face join Lissa's. I wanted to smile. I decided then that if the two people I loved most were safe, I could leave this world. 

The dead could finally have me.

Rose Hathaway has always played by her own rules. She broke the law when she ran away from St. Valdimir's Academy with her best friend and surviving Dragomir princess, Lissa. She broke the law when she fell in love with her gorgeous, off-limits instructor, Dimitri. And she dared to defy Queen Tatiana, leader of the Moroi world, risking her life and reputations to protect generations of dhampir guardians to come.

Now the law has finally caught up with Rose- for a crime she didn't even commit. She's in prison for the highest offense imaginable: the assassination of a monarch. She'll need help from both Dimitri and Adrian to find the one living person who can stall her execution and force the Moroi elite to acknowledge a shocking new candidate for the royal throne: Vasilisa Dragomir. 

But the clock on Rose's life is running out. Rose knows in her heart the world of the dead wants her back... and this time she is truly out of second chances. The big question is, when your whole life is about saving others, who will save you?"

So yesterday morning I finished rereading "Spirit Bound" to prepare for "The Last Sacrifice", which I had ordered from Amazon and knew was going to come anywhere between Wednesday of this week and maybe Monday of the following week. After finishing the book my parents randomly decided to take us Christmas shopping for the day and I dragged them into every bookstore we passed by so that I could oogle the "Vampire Academy" displays that they had in preparation for the release of "The Last Sacrifice" (which comes out tomorrow). I was seriously thinking about how I could convince one of the employees to go into the back of the store (where the books are kept) and open up the box of "The Last Sacrifice" novels and grab me one (ie. me refusing to leave the store at closing, me throwing a tantrum until they got it and whatnot), but I knew that in reality... It wouldn't work in my favour- so I left the bookstore, my heart in pieces (overly dramatic? Maybe... But books= my life). So imagine my surprise when we randomly stop at Wal-Mart and THEY FRIGGIN' HAVE THE BOOK OUT FOR SALE!!! I know, I know, this does happen in some cases, like Rachel Vincent's "Shifters" series for instance; I always seem to get them before the release date... But I thought that in this case, that they would be super hardcore about it. I am positive that I had just read on Cassie Clare's or some other authors website that with there are hardcore rules like "you cannot open this box until the release date", "you cannot sell the books prior to the release date", and whatnot. So despite all of that, obviously I got myself the book (I was totally standing in front of the book table at Wal-Mart hyperventilating/ slightly squealing at my dad. A Sales Associate walked by and was like, "Is she okay?", my dad just rolled his eyes and was like, "Yep, better than ever. Oh, by the way, I don't think you are supposed to be selling those books yet.")... Anyways, long story short, I got the book, I seriously just finished reading it... And now I shall share all of the fantabulousness (in a spoiler-free review) with you! 

Okay, to start off... People are obviously going to be heartbroken by this book- it is just inevitable. If you are Team Adrian and Rose chooses Dimitri, you will be hurt (and obviously she has to choose one of the guys), or vice versa, if you are Team Dimitri and she chooses Adrian, you will also be heartbroken. Sorry, but there just isn't any way around it. That being said, I will not tell you who she chooses, this being a spoiler-free review- SUCKERS! ;) I will say that I am pretty happy with the outcome, and I don't think anywhere on my blog here I have stated which team I am a member of (unlike with the MI series where I am clearly a Jace fan or with the Shifters series where I am clearly a Marc fan), so I suppose that doesn't really help you determine which guy she chooses also...

I was kinda worried with this book that a lot would be rushed, I seemed to think that "Spirit Bound" was a bit rushed, but I find that to not have occurred at all (well thank gosh, considering it is a 600 page book). And I am not going to lie; a lot of this book took me by surprise... For instance, I knew that they were obviously going to look for/ find Lissa's illegitimate sibling that she was unaware of, but I never would have guessed who that person was. Or who murdered the Queen? In my opinion all the evidence pointed in one person's direction irrefutably, and then BAM! That all goes out the window when another is revealed to be the killer.

A lot of old characters are reintroduced in this book and after reading it, it becomes evident that Richelle put a lot of thought behind everything, as everything from the first to last book is woven so well together and flows perfectly. What I loved most about this book (besides for the ending), is that it allowed us to learn so much more about the characters and really see sides of them we had never seen before. For instance, how carefree Dimitri can really be, or how serious Adrian can be, and how truly caring Christian is. Shockingly, I also found myself feeling sorry for a lot of characters I never imagined I would, like Robert and Victor for instance.

One concern that I do have though, is about Lissa, specifically her relationship with Rose... A few major things happen towards the end that can completely alter the outcome of the... (oh yes, in case you didn’t know about this) SPIN-OFF SERIES COMING OUT NEXT AUGUST (The 23^rd I believe)!!! The spin-off, called “Bloodlines”, is not going to be told from Rose’s point of view, though she will make an appearance. It is going to be told by someone in the Moroi court. Prior to reading this book I thought that hands-down it was going to be told from Lissa’s point of view, but after reading this, I just don’t think it is... I am more leaning towards that *hush, hush* illegitimate sibling’s point of view- though I really don’t want it to- give me my darn ROSE! Anyways, back to my original point. I think that the outcome of this book is obviously going to change Lissa and dare I say it? I am worried that it will not be a change for the good. And the guy that Rose doesn’t choose? Well, I think we really need to keep our eye on him too, because I can totally see him in the future being an evil guy like Victor, plotting against Rose and Lissa.

Anyways, great book- you will love it... It vastly exceeds a rating of 10/10.

PS. Don't forget to check out MY FANTABULOUS FIRST GIVEAWAY!