Review: LAST SACRIFICE by Richelle Mead

Man, I feel like I’ve been on an emotional rollercoaster!  Reading the Vampire Academy series straight through has been emotional and exhilarating!  At times, it broke my heart—others, it made me fall in love.  I can’t recommend this series enough for anyone who enjoys YA or Urban Fantasy. 

Anyway, Last Sacrifice opens with Rose in jail for treason.  True to Abe’s word, she isn’t in there long.  Her friends stage a dangerous jail break, which sends her fleeing from the Court with Dimitri.  With the aid of the Alchemist, Sydney, Rose sets off on a journey to uncover the secrets of Lissa’s family in order to restore her royal birthright.  Along the way, they are aided by some…unlikely people.

Back at the Court, Lissa runs for election for Queen.  She doesn’t qualify of course, due to her lack of family support, but a loophole in the system allows her to run, thus buying more time to prove Rose’s innocence. 

Adrian continues to walk in Rose’s dreams, but doubts start to surface over her feelings for him.  At the same time, Dimitri’s heart begins  to thaw from its Strigoi induced guilt.  Could there be a happily-ever-after for he and Rose after all, or will Rose’s last—and greatest—sacrifice destroy their future permanently? 

I am very satisfied with the conclusion of this series.  It tied up all of the loose ends around Rose, while also leaving some strings open for Mead’s new series to tackle.  I don’t know much about the new series, only that it will center around Sydney and Jill, the Moroi girl whom Rose befriends and trails thru the periphery of the books.  I’m sure we will continue to see a lot of the characters that we have grown to love, especially Lissa. 

Overall, I give Last Sacrifice...

Plot – 5 bookmarks
Character Development – 5 bookmarks (Looking over the whole series, the differences from beginning to end for Rose, Dimitri, Adrian & Lissa are dramatic, as is the relationships between the characters.)
Love Story – 5 bookmarks (!!!!!!!)
Fight Scenes – 5 bookmarks (The final showdown between Rose & Victor is pretty cool.  Also the fight in the alley with Rose & Dimitri against three Strigoi was great.  The aftermath of that one was heartbreaking.)
Political Intrigue – 5 bookmarks
Dream Cast (otherwise known as who I pictured while reading) - Rose (Sophia Bush), Lissa (Blake Lively), Dimitri (Ben Barnes), Christian (Michael Steger), Jenna Boyd (Mia), Ed Westwick (Adrian), Tinsel Korey (Tasha), Josh Hutcherson (Eddie), Nick Verreos (Abe), Emily Browning (Sydney), Susan Sullivan (Queen Tatiana), John Slattery (Nathan Ivashkov), Diane Lane (Daniella Ivashkov).  Not sure yet on Jill.  I will have to see what comes to mind when I read the new series.