Frostbite by Richelle Mead is the second in the Vampire Academy series of books and continues the story of Rose and Lissa.  We learn more about their bond and about the spirit magic that Lissa wields.  We also get to meet Rose’s mother, legendary dhampir guardian Janine Hathaway and we see the less than warm relationship the two share.  The attitude of Moroi towards their dhampir protectors and their lack of responsibility for their own safety is started to be explored through the character of Tasha Ozera.

What I liked

Character and relationship development.  I liked how the bond between Rose and Lissa continued to be explored. it was interesting that Mead presented the developments in such a way that Rose’s absorbing Lissa’s spirit darkness was obvious to the reader long before the characters themselves worked it out.  That is a technique used rather a lot by Mead.  Another example would be Adrian’s use of alcohol and drugs to counter spirit magic’s unwelcome side effects.  For me that worked well, although some readers may be rather irritated by the characters’ blindness to these developments.

I also liked Rose’s realisation that killing Strigoi is not as glorious as it sounds in direct contrast to Mason’s attitude.  She also has to learn that there are real consequences to her actions which are all part of growing up.  While the development in Lissa’s character isn’t as noticeable, she too has to step up to the role her position in Moroi society demands.

The developments in Rose’s relationship with Dimitri are well done, too.  It’s not yet at the stage where I can believe it’s more than a teen crush on an older guy, it’s becoming clear that Dimitri is beginning to respect her growing maturity.

What I didn’t like

I didn’t mention it in my review of Vampire Academy, but I’ve seen the trailer for the upcoming movie and, while it’s difficult to judge on a two minute trailer, it really doesn’t seem to do justice to Mead’s wonderful world.  It seems to focus on the cheesier aspects of  the vampires without the depth of characters in the book.  I also felt the actress playing Lissa was having trouble with her fangs which was very distracting.  I’m not certain if I’ll go and see it – I don’t want to be disappointed the way I was in the awful Percy Jackson and the Lightning Thief movie.  Are you looking forward to the movie?  Let me know in the comments.

All in all, I gave Frostbite five stars out of five.

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