Bloody Battle Comes to a Close

Going against all you ever known is not only incredibly brave, it is incredibly terrifying as well. In the first two books of the Nightshade series, Calla has struggled to find out who she is and what she believes in. Now that she knows who is bad and who is good, she is willing to risk everything for what is good and right in the world, even if it costs her everything. In Bloodrose, by Andrea Cremer, Calla and the other wolves are preparing for the battle of their lives.


The Nightshades that have come with Calla to join the Searchers know to trust their alpha. So when she brings back Ren, her former mate, they know he is necessary for the mission. Only Shay, the boy Calla loves, can't help but be bitter by Ren's presence. Since all three are alphas, this is not a pleasant love triangle to be a part of. But despite their own personal problems, the alphas and their pack have bigger problems at hand. 


Now that they know Shay is the Scion, the only person alive who can banish the demon who is responsible for the evil the Keepers use, they must find the the four elemental pieces of the Scion's weapon. The four pieces that are separated and protected by other guardians who don't believe in Calla and the pack's cause, come together to form two swords. Those swords are the key to banishing the evil lurking in the world for good. The pack has a plan to get each piece, but each piece becomes harder and harder to get. When Calla is taken hostage by the Keepers, she thinks the mission is over. What she doesn't know is that a lot more people than just her small pack of wolves want to help rid the world of the Keepers and their evil. But until all the pieces come together, the Keepers cannot be defeated. Can they do it?


Such an interesting end to the story! I am not going to lie, there were a few times when I was not happy with the ending, but when all was said and done, I was quite impressed with the risks Cremer took to end her story. It may not be the picturesque perfect ending, but it certainly is an interesting, strong ending. At times I was a little perturbed with the love triangle between Ren, Calla, and Shay, but it was mostly because I just wanted to get to the final battle. Looking back, it was a necessary subplot to tackle, so I get why it was dealt with so frequently. I can't say I would have changed anything about this series, but honestly I can't say I would end it this way either. I think if you read the series, you are either going to love or hate this ending. There will be no such thing as an ambiguous sentiment towards Bloodrose!

Light My Fire!

Who needs vampires, werewolves, zombies, and pixies?! We have Draki! Draki are descendants of dragons who have evolved to shift between their dragon form and their human form. This is how they live amongst the rest of the population, by shifting between forms. Unfortunately, there are enough hunters out there who now about dragons. The only thing that keeps the dragons safe is that the hunters don't know they can take human form.

Jacinda is rare even for a dragon. One of the first fire-breathers in generations, Jacinda is the prized possession of the dragon pride. In fact, the alpha has ideas of mating her with his son in order to produce more fire-breathing draki. While Jacinda isn't completely sold on this idea, she isn't completely against it either. She actually loves being a draki, and loves being a dragon even more. When she and a friend tempt fate by sneaking away from the safety of the pride's village to fly, she finds herself surrounded by hunters. She hides behind a waterfall, but a young hunter with soulful eyes finds her. Thankfully, he doesn't tell the other hunters she is there and lets her go free.

When the pride finds out what Jacinda did, endangering herself and the entire pride, they begin scheming. They want to make sure their prized draki doesn't leave the pride. But Jacinda's mother, a former draki who let her dragon die when Jacinda's twin sister, Tamra, didn't present as a draki, has other plans for the girls. Together, Jacinda, her mother and her sister flee the fertile lands of the mountains and the protective mist and head for the desert- a place where the inner dragon is literally dehydrated from the draki's body.

Although Tamra is thrilled for the move and a chance to live a normal life away from being the pride's outcast, Jacinda is horrified- until she sees Will, the hunter who let her go, at school on her first day. Will seems to bring the dragon out of her even in such an arid climate. Unfortunately, he brings out the dragon so much she almost manifests into her dragon just by being near him. As she gets to know more about Will, she realizes he isn't like the rest of his family. Will isn't a ruthless hunter. She also knows she can't reveal her secret to him, though, for fear of endangering her family and the rest of the pride. Although Jacinda knows she should stay away from Will, she can't keep herself away from him. Will she be able to keep her secret from him and his family, or will this be the end of the draki?

This is a fun supernatural story with loads of fun mythology and lore. Everyone loves dragons, right?! Well now you get dragons rolled into romance and death-defying stories! I love the stories about the actual draki, all of which have different abilities. Some can produce the shielding mist, some understand plants and herbs and are therefore amazing cooks. Some are water dragons, while others are made to fly. They dragon personalities and talents seem to manifest in their person as well. For instance, Jacinda's fire breathing seems to come out in the hot-tempered, impulsive person she is when she demanifests into a human. So interesting!

The story is at a moderate reading level, perfect for middle school through high school. It is probably a book more aptly suited for girls, although the dragons might intrigue some boys. It is also the start of a continuing trilogy, so we can expect to see more from Jacinda and the other draki in the future! The only question to answer now is, what kind of dragon would you be?