Blue Bloods - Review

Title:  Blue Bloods
Author:  Melissa de la Cruz
Publisher:  Hyperion

Goodreads Summary:

When the Mayflower set sail in 1620, it carried on board the men and women who would shape America: Miles Standish; John Alden; Constance Hopkins. But some among the Pilgrims were not pure of heart; they were not escaping religious persecution. Indeed, they were not even human. They were vampires.The vampires assimilated quickly into the New World. Rising to levels of enormous power, wealth, and influence, they were the celebrated blue bloods of American society. 

The Blue Bloods vowed that their immortal status would remain a closely guarded secret. And they kept that secret for centuries. But now, in New York City, the secret is seeping out. Schuyler Van Alen is a sophomore at a prestigious private school. She prefers baggy, vintage clothes instead of the Prada and pearls worn by her classmates, and she lives with her reclusive grandmother in a dilapated mansion. Schuyler is a loner...and happy that way. Suddenly, when she turns fifteen, there is a visible mosaic of blue veins on her arm. She starts to crave raw food and she is having flashbacks to ancient times. Then a popular girl from her school is found dead... drained of all her blood. Schuyler doesn't know what to think, but she wants to find out the secrets the Blue Bloods are keeping. But is she herself in danger? 

My thoughts:

I really really wanted to like this book.  But I really didn't.  I recently read a book by de la Cruz that I loved, The Witches of East End,  and I saw this series and thought, why not?  I like young adult books and vampires, so I figured it would be a fun read. 

I don't know where to begin with what I didn't like - the names of characters were all over the place, with characters named Bliss and Schulyer and Allegra and I think one named Perfection? mixed with Jack and Dylan and Oliver.  Then there is the constant brand name dropping- I felt I was reading Vogue magazine, and not being all that knowledgeable about fashion, I had no frame of reference for these clothes, handbags, etc.  Then, for the actual book itself- vampires who are angels who were involved in the missing colony of Roanoke, and have ties to ancient Rome? Say what?  That just seemed one step somewhere too far.  The constant talk of rebirths and fallen angels and who is who and what is what, drove me nuts and left me feeling like I needed about four flow charts of characters who they were in the past, their angel names, how they are related to whom, and so forth.

I was disappointed, I don't know why I expected more but I did. It is safe to say I will not be reading the rest of this series.

The Witches of East End - Review

Title:  The Witches of East End
Author:  Melissa De La Cruz
Publisher:  Disney-Hyperion

Goodreads Summary:

The three Beauchamp women--Joanna and her daughters Freya and Ingrid--live in North Hampton, out on the tip of Long Island. Their beautiful, mist-shrouded town seems almost stuck in time, and all three women lead seemingly quiet, uneventful existences. But they are harboring a mighty secret--they are powerful witches banned from using their magic. Joanna can resurrect people from the dead and heal the most serious of injuries. Ingrid, her bookish daughter, has the ability to predict the future and weave knots that can solve anything from infertility to infidelity. And finally, there's Freya, the wild child, who has a charm or a potion that can cure most any heartache.

For centuries, all three women have been forced to suppress their abilities. But then Freya, who is about to get married to the wealthy and mysterious Bran Gardiner, finds that her increasingly complicated romantic life makes it more difficult than ever to hide her secret. Soon Ingrid and Joanna confront similar dilemmas, and the Beauchamp women realize they can no longer conceal their true selves. They unearth their wands from the attic, dust off their broomsticks, and begin casting spells on the townspeople. It all seems like a bit of good-natured, innocent magic, but then mysterious, violent attacks begin to plague the town. When a young girl disappears over the Fourth of July weekend, they realize it's time to uncover who and what dark forces are working against them. 


My thoughts:


I am a huge fan of books with magic and mystery and folklore and legend- I was the kid who loved fairy tales and Scooby Doo, I just never grew out of it.  This book was a pleasant surprise- I didn't know what to expect, and to be honest, I didn't expect too much.  I really enjoyed the three main characters in the book, Freya, Ingrid, and Joanna.  I probably liked Ingrid the best, which makes sense - Freya would be my past, and Joanna my future.  I am at the point in life that Ingrid's character represents.  Joanna got on my nerves a teensy bit, but it was easily overlooked.  She seemed more of a peripheral character, more than a main character too, which was odd.  Maybe that is why is was easy to overlook her.  


One thing I really liked was that these witches were something different- usually when I read a book about witches, they are generally celtic.  The witches in this book were Norse Goddesses, which I thought was unique.  Their history has inspired me to want to read more Norse mythology.  I love when a book makes me want to learn more!  I had heard of Freya and Loki, but not the rest of the myth.  


This book was a little slow moving in places, but picked up at the end- and then leaves you with a cliffhanger!  I am looking forward to the second book in this series, when we get to learn more about Freya and Ingrid's mysterious missing brother.