Beautiful, beautiful, beautiful!! Now, I am not the biggest fan of vampire books, but slowly - slowly! - I am being re-converted, by stunning unique novels such as 'The Vampire's Daughter' by Shayne Leighton and now, by my favourite author, Julie Kagawa and her fantastic new series 'The Immortal Rules'.
The novel starts off in a world where humans are nothing but prey - easy pickings for the ruthless hordes of vampires that occupy the Inner City. Leaving the humans with little to no resources and no means with which to defend themselves, the vampires have made it impossible to live normally and comfortably. Humans are reduced to becoming 'Registereds' - like a kind of willing blood donor - simply to survive, to get a glimpse of the Inner City's decadence. Most humans have lost that spark, that purpose in their hearts and minds...they are unable to rise against those that are inhuman, out of fear.
Most...but not all.
Groups of Unregistereds - humans who refuse to be vampire fodder - live on the Fringe, rebelling agains the vampires in anyway they can. Struggling to survive they scavenge and steal with self-preservation being the main agenda on each of their minds.
Allison Sekemoto is no different. Having no family and no future in the world she lives - more like exists - in, Allie spends her days as a Fringer and an Unregistered, slipping into the woods to try and hunt and sometimes even braving the wall that separates the humans from the vampires - the wall of the Inner City. Allie knows the main Fringer rule: NEVER GET CAUGHT. She knows the dangers she and the motley group of Unregistereds face. That it's every man (well, boy), and woman (well...girl), for themselves. And not to mention the main piece of knowledge that is ingrained forever in her mind: VAMPIRES ARE THE ENEMY.
Little did she know what her future held.
A scavenging trip.
A Rabid (kind of like a vamp but diseased and weird and creepy!).
A wave of pain.
A pair of dark, dark eyes.
And Allie's life changes forever. Literally...when she is given the ultimate choice: To die young, with her whole life unlived, or to be turned. To become what she fears and hates most.
A vampire.
Full of witty banter, Puck-like attitude problems (*snicker*), betrayal, friendship, courage, good vs evil, light vs dark and dark vs darker, this novel is a roller coaster ride of adventure. I loved the vampires - the way the good ones (if I can call them that!) acknowledge the fact they are demons. That they are not good, that they live a cursed existence. But what you see is how Allie strives to live and to fight with every (non) breath she takes - to be a good inhuman being to the best of her ability. To fight for what she loves. Who she loves (*cough Ze...-*).
Creepy. Dark. Touching. Addictive.
Now you should all leave here, read it, and leave me to read it again!
I am currently at the place where she gets turned into a vampire, to me it has been a little slow but I am hoping it picks up after she turns. :) I have never read this author before, though I do have the first book in her other series I just never got around to reading it. I am more a vamp girl and fairy. :) Glad to hear you liked it!
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