Book Giveaway #2: Vampire Academy - Richelle Mead

Wow! I don't know if I can do this one justice, but I'll give it a try, here goes!

In Vampire Academy by Richelle Mead, characters Lissa, a Moroi (vampire), and Rose, her Dhampir (half human, half vampire) guardian-to-be are brought back to the Vampire Academy from which they ran away two years before. The social scene which they must once again become a part of is brutal, as allegiances change daily, sometimes faster. Rose has the double pressure of keeping track of Lissa while restricted to her studies and training to catch up in her guardian skills, and as punishment for taking Lissa away from the Academy in the first place. Lissa meanwhile struggles with rare powers that the girls are afraid to admit to, one that is a double edged sword, and the other which is a talent whose use has been forbidden. Add to this all the normal troubles that teens on the verge of adulthood face, and the hidden political agendas of adult Moroi royalty, and you have one rollercoaster of a story! And I thought my high school years were bad! LOL!

Vampire Academy kept me turning pages as quickly as I could, and it was only through extreme willpower that I put it down last night to go to sleep with only 30 pages left to go, it was torture!!! Rose's character really came alive for me, her struggles to take care of Lissa and do the right thing while trying to keep her reckless nature in check. Very fast paced and dark, yet still fun. Billed as a teen book, it's anything but fluffy, the other elements of the story were very good. It wasn't just the competition to be popular for popularity's sake, other issues emerge strongly, such as abuse of power, and choosing right from wrong when the wrong would seem so righteously satisfying.

I enjoyed it immensely and am looking forward to getting my greedy hands on books 2 and 3! *evil cackle*

Here is Richelle Mead's Website to learn more!

And now... you too and can enjoy this book, because I'm holding a giveaway for it, as promised! Once again, it is a Bookcrossing book (I'm happy reader #2 for this copy!), and while you do not have to join bookcrossing if you don't want to, I would appreciate it if the winner would make a quick journal entry to let me know it was received, which you can do anonymously. Think of Bookcrossing as the "Where's George" for books, that site that you can track money with? The actual Bookcrossing site can explain it much better than I, but it's a lot of fun, and if you aren't already a Bookcrosser, I hope you'll check it out! Here is the journal entry for this book so you can see a sample, and the link to the main Bookcrossing site.

Now, on to the giveaway! If you are interested in winning this book, please post a comment here telling me how much you want it, and leaving me a way to contact you for your address! :D The winner will be announced June 1.