Karissa E. (ophelia99) reviewed The Immortal Rules (Blood of Eden, Bk 1) on + 2527 more book reviews
Helpful Score: 1
I loved Kagawa's Iron Fey series, she put a grittiness into her writing that no other YA faerie novels had. So I was super excited to get an eARC for The Immortal Rules through NetGalley(dot)com for review. This was a very well done book; much different and for a slighly older audience than her Iron Fey series but well-done and creative.
Allison lives in the Fringe of a vampire city. She refuses to Register with the Vampire Nobles to give blood to them and wants to live free. Life as an Un-Registered is tough though and, on a run to get food in the dangerous land outside the city, shen is attacked and mauled by Rabids. A vampire that happens to be near by gives her a choice, die or be turned. Allison doesn't want to die but can she face life as the very thing she hates with such vengence? When Allison seeks to run away from her own vampire nature she joins up with a group of humans who are seeking the mysterious cure to the illness that drove humans mad and made the Rabids.
This book is an interesting mish-mash of genres. It takes place in a very dark and dank post-apocalyptic setting. The Rabids are basically zombies of a sort, they are filled with mindless hunger and attack and eat anything the moves. The illness that turns things into Rabids makes them bleed from their eyes (which is creepy and slightly disturbing). Then there is the vampire part of the story which gives the story a bit of Dystopian feel; the vampires seem to be some sort of genetic mutation or other race that takes over when humanity is on its last legs. They provide humanity protection and food for a price. Oh yeah and these aren't sparkly vampires, these vampires are viscous and downright dangerous. Allison also spends a good portion of the book in a group of human survivors and that portion is very much survivalist; they are trying to survive however they can.
So there is a lot to take in here. This is a very complex world with a lot of problems and strange things going on. It's a lot to absorb and the beginning is a bit of an info dump...I didn't mind that too much though because it was interesting. This book reminds me of a lot of different things. The main story line reminds a bit of Vampire Hunter D; humans are the minority after a huge life-ending event and Vampires rule in the post-apocalyptic world. There is a bit of Mad Max here too; Allison runs into a Vampire City that has a very post-apocalyptic-punk feel to it if you know what I mean.
Romance is a driver here, but not a huge driver...not like it was for the Iron Fey. Allison and Zeke are drawn to each other and grow to respect and even love one another, but that doesn't stop Allison from doing what needs to be done. The characters are more driven by the events that surround them than by their feelings...personally I liked this but other die-hard Iron Fey fans might feel differently.
Everything said and done I have a hard time reviewing this book because I wasn't drawn to any of the characters. I loved, loved, loved the world. I loved the complexity of it. I loved the mystery behind the rogue vampire that turned Allison, but he wasn't present for very long. Allison herself I had trouble with, she does a lot of bad things, but she is a survivor above anything else...so sometimes if you are a survivor you aren't the most admirable person. Zeke was a bit too bible-beating for me, although he changed as the story continued.
This story is much grittier than The Iron Fey series so readers should be aware of that. There is more violence, more gore, and beatings. People are struggling to survive here and that makes people violent and desperate. As such, I would probably recommend for older young adults. I did find the story completely engaging and I thought it ended in a great spot.
Overall I enjoyed the story. I think this series may become something exceptional, but I am withholding judgement for now. I loved this world to death and loved the mishmash of genres. It reminds of Vampire Hunter D and has a bit of Mad Max in it too. I had trouble liking the characters though and the story moved a bit slower than I expected; there is a lot of info dumping especially in the beginning of the story. Don't get me wrong this was a great book and I look forward to the next one. I recommend for older young adults and older who are interested in post-apocalyptic stories. I am definitely looking forward to the next Blood of Eden book.
Allison lives in the Fringe of a vampire city. She refuses to Register with the Vampire Nobles to give blood to them and wants to live free. Life as an Un-Registered is tough though and, on a run to get food in the dangerous land outside the city, shen is attacked and mauled by Rabids. A vampire that happens to be near by gives her a choice, die or be turned. Allison doesn't want to die but can she face life as the very thing she hates with such vengence? When Allison seeks to run away from her own vampire nature she joins up with a group of humans who are seeking the mysterious cure to the illness that drove humans mad and made the Rabids.
This book is an interesting mish-mash of genres. It takes place in a very dark and dank post-apocalyptic setting. The Rabids are basically zombies of a sort, they are filled with mindless hunger and attack and eat anything the moves. The illness that turns things into Rabids makes them bleed from their eyes (which is creepy and slightly disturbing). Then there is the vampire part of the story which gives the story a bit of Dystopian feel; the vampires seem to be some sort of genetic mutation or other race that takes over when humanity is on its last legs. They provide humanity protection and food for a price. Oh yeah and these aren't sparkly vampires, these vampires are viscous and downright dangerous. Allison also spends a good portion of the book in a group of human survivors and that portion is very much survivalist; they are trying to survive however they can.
So there is a lot to take in here. This is a very complex world with a lot of problems and strange things going on. It's a lot to absorb and the beginning is a bit of an info dump...I didn't mind that too much though because it was interesting. This book reminds me of a lot of different things. The main story line reminds a bit of Vampire Hunter D; humans are the minority after a huge life-ending event and Vampires rule in the post-apocalyptic world. There is a bit of Mad Max here too; Allison runs into a Vampire City that has a very post-apocalyptic-punk feel to it if you know what I mean.
Romance is a driver here, but not a huge driver...not like it was for the Iron Fey. Allison and Zeke are drawn to each other and grow to respect and even love one another, but that doesn't stop Allison from doing what needs to be done. The characters are more driven by the events that surround them than by their feelings...personally I liked this but other die-hard Iron Fey fans might feel differently.
Everything said and done I have a hard time reviewing this book because I wasn't drawn to any of the characters. I loved, loved, loved the world. I loved the complexity of it. I loved the mystery behind the rogue vampire that turned Allison, but he wasn't present for very long. Allison herself I had trouble with, she does a lot of bad things, but she is a survivor above anything else...so sometimes if you are a survivor you aren't the most admirable person. Zeke was a bit too bible-beating for me, although he changed as the story continued.
This story is much grittier than The Iron Fey series so readers should be aware of that. There is more violence, more gore, and beatings. People are struggling to survive here and that makes people violent and desperate. As such, I would probably recommend for older young adults. I did find the story completely engaging and I thought it ended in a great spot.
Overall I enjoyed the story. I think this series may become something exceptional, but I am withholding judgement for now. I loved this world to death and loved the mishmash of genres. It reminds of Vampire Hunter D and has a bit of Mad Max in it too. I had trouble liking the characters though and the story moved a bit slower than I expected; there is a lot of info dumping especially in the beginning of the story. Don't get me wrong this was a great book and I look forward to the next one. I recommend for older young adults and older who are interested in post-apocalyptic stories. I am definitely looking forward to the next Blood of Eden book.
Paranormal/ Dystopian teen fiction by Julie Kagawa. The vampires rule the cities 60 years, post plague. Humans receive some protection from rabid zombie-like creatures, if they register, and donate blood to the vampires regularly. Food and other resources are tightly distributed. Allie is an Unregistered human. Instead of donating to the vampires, she lives on the edge of the city, foraging for resources. Until the unthinkable happens. Pretty good book.
Stephanie S. (skywriter319) -
Despite the oversaturation of the market with vampire stories, Im still constantly on the lookout for something fresh. Julie Kagawa brings a refreshing grittiness to vampires in her new paranormal-dystopian series, starting with THE IMMORTAL RULES, which, while far from perfect, is still an enjoyable read for the forgiving, vampire-crazy reader type.
I like that Kagawas vampires dont glitter. They dont try desperately to mimic humanity for the sake of a romantic story. They are manipulative and volatile and scary as all helland thus, when the uncommon vampire displays some semblance of human emotion or empathy, you know its because of the character, not just for the sake of a story.
THE IMMORTAL RULES is also written in a controlled yet smooth-flowing manner, keeping a tight rein on potentially overdramatic situations, and yet moving the story along from event to event, dialogue to dialogue, in a natural-feeling way. It was nearly effortlessat least for meto become immersed in the story. Its not fast-paced, per se (to be quite honest, I have no idea how this book managed to run longer than 400 pages; that number of pages was probably not all necessary but it didnt deter from my reading experience either), but it is easy to read.
I was quite keen on the first part, where Allie learns about being a vampire and begins to see her city in a different light, but where THE IMMORTAL RULES stumbled for me began when Allie met the humans. There is no nice way to say this, because the human characters in this book are such clichés. Theres a mean girl whose hatred of Allie is unfoundedno, really, Im not even being overly subjective here, the girl heard that Allie came from a city and was all like, You beeyotchuh, wut?whose main purpose for being in the story seemed to be to make readers even more sympathetic to Allies difficult situationbut if you liked her enough in the first part of the book, then you already are sympathetic to her. Theres a preacher-esque leader who speaks in the destiny-speak of adults who think they know everything. Even Zeke, as a love interest, was bland in his perfection: the guy is nice to everyone, likes Allie even though shes sullen and secretive, andthis is my favoriteengages in very lame banter with his male BFF. Im telling you, the humans come straight out of a CW beach town drama. I found myself groaning and wishing we were back in Allies old city (with Kanin, he of the badassery and no-nonsense nature).
Im not sure how there came to be such a disjuncture between the effortless grittiness of the first part of the book and the forced camaraderie/backstabbing/bravado of the rest. The villain talks like a done-thrice-over villain from a 1940s comic. Science gets pushed to the wayside for the sake of good triumphing over evil (the wet gun, the wet gun!). My best guess is that Kagawa had a great setting and the ideas for sequels and didnt allow her characters to get from Point A to Point B without a whole lot of interference in characterization from her.
Despite my frustrations with this novel, I would still be interested in reading the sequel (but there better be fewer stupid humans), because I found Allie sympathetic and the vampire-human tension interesting. THE IMMORTAL RULES wont be everyones cup of tea, but those who enjoy True Blood over The Vampire Diaries or Twilight might consider giving this one a try.
I like that Kagawas vampires dont glitter. They dont try desperately to mimic humanity for the sake of a romantic story. They are manipulative and volatile and scary as all helland thus, when the uncommon vampire displays some semblance of human emotion or empathy, you know its because of the character, not just for the sake of a story.
THE IMMORTAL RULES is also written in a controlled yet smooth-flowing manner, keeping a tight rein on potentially overdramatic situations, and yet moving the story along from event to event, dialogue to dialogue, in a natural-feeling way. It was nearly effortlessat least for meto become immersed in the story. Its not fast-paced, per se (to be quite honest, I have no idea how this book managed to run longer than 400 pages; that number of pages was probably not all necessary but it didnt deter from my reading experience either), but it is easy to read.
I was quite keen on the first part, where Allie learns about being a vampire and begins to see her city in a different light, but where THE IMMORTAL RULES stumbled for me began when Allie met the humans. There is no nice way to say this, because the human characters in this book are such clichés. Theres a mean girl whose hatred of Allie is unfoundedno, really, Im not even being overly subjective here, the girl heard that Allie came from a city and was all like, You beeyotchuh, wut?whose main purpose for being in the story seemed to be to make readers even more sympathetic to Allies difficult situationbut if you liked her enough in the first part of the book, then you already are sympathetic to her. Theres a preacher-esque leader who speaks in the destiny-speak of adults who think they know everything. Even Zeke, as a love interest, was bland in his perfection: the guy is nice to everyone, likes Allie even though shes sullen and secretive, andthis is my favoriteengages in very lame banter with his male BFF. Im telling you, the humans come straight out of a CW beach town drama. I found myself groaning and wishing we were back in Allies old city (with Kanin, he of the badassery and no-nonsense nature).
Im not sure how there came to be such a disjuncture between the effortless grittiness of the first part of the book and the forced camaraderie/backstabbing/bravado of the rest. The villain talks like a done-thrice-over villain from a 1940s comic. Science gets pushed to the wayside for the sake of good triumphing over evil (the wet gun, the wet gun!). My best guess is that Kagawa had a great setting and the ideas for sequels and didnt allow her characters to get from Point A to Point B without a whole lot of interference in characterization from her.
Despite my frustrations with this novel, I would still be interested in reading the sequel (but there better be fewer stupid humans), because I found Allie sympathetic and the vampire-human tension interesting. THE IMMORTAL RULES wont be everyones cup of tea, but those who enjoy True Blood over The Vampire Diaries or Twilight might consider giving this one a try.
