Review: The Golden Lily by Richelle Mead

Title: The Golden Lily (Bloodlines, #2)
Author: Richelle Mead
Published: June 2012 (Razorbill)
Format: Physical copy, borrowed from the library
Summary: Tough, brainy alchemist Sydney Sage and doe-eyed Moroi princess Jill Dragomir are in hiding at a human boarding school in the sunny, glamorous world of Palm Springs, California. The students--children of the wealthy and powerful--carry on with their lives in blissful ignorance, while Sydney, Jill, Eddie, and Adrian must do everything in their power to keep their secret safe. But with forbidden romances, unexpected spirit bonds, and the threat of Strigoi moving ever closer, hiding the truth is harder than anyone thought.

My Review (Warning: Contains spoilers for Bloodlines and the Vampire Academy series.): The Golden Lily kept me up until 2 AM. Literally. I started it a little after 7 PM while I was working out at the gym, and I didn't stop for more than the tiniest of breaks until I finished it in the middle of the night. Even though I had to work in the morning. It simply grabbed a hold of me, and I was powerless to resist! Which I obviously didn't want to do, anyway.

You would think that with me being unable to tear myself away from the book, it would be because of the incredibly gripping plot, right? WRONG. The main plot was somewhat intriguing and mildly suspenseful, yes, but honestly I really do think that was the book's main weakness. I found the plot twists not so twisty, and I wasn't all that invested in it. Which may be because every time it would cut to something that was actually relevant to the plot, I would pretty much "NO, I NEED MORE ADRIAN/SYDNEY TIME. D:" Even without this factor, though, I thought the plot could have been a little stronger.

Mead really has a knack for writing interesting characters. I loved Eddie and Jill and all the others. Sydney was kind of different for me, because we are incredibly similar in a lot of ways. But at the same time, some things about her were not relatable at all. She had serious self-esteem issues, particularly related to her "too big" size 4 body. These were finally addressed to an extent in this book, though, which I definitely appreciated. She was also seriously oblivious to things even when they progressed to obvious levels. I still really liked her as a character, though.

Of course, not surprisingly, the romantic aspect of the Bloodlines series is the thing I love the most. You have absolutely no idea how happy I was when nothing happened between Adrian and Sydney in the first book. Even though it had been forever and five days for us, it was only a very short time since the end of VA for them. So it really would have made no sense. Not to mention the fact that I prefer my fictional romances to progress at the speed of a turtle on depressants, and to have loads of chemistry while they do so. Adrian and Sydney? Have this in spades. Their explosive chemistry continued in The Golden Lily, and may have actually even grown even MORE intense. I don't know how Mead concocted such an brilliantly explosive and beautiful couple for me to root for, but I love her for it.

Another thing I love about Mead. No matter the series, no matter the characters, she's not afraid to rip out your heart and tear it into a million tiny pieces. But she still makes you love her, even as she does it. Because you know that it will all work out in the end. At least, you're losing feeling in your fingers and toes from crossing them so hard HOPING that it will.

The Golden Lily was a great read! It had a decent plot, and some interesting developments were made on the continuing story arc. The interaction between Adrian and Sydney was smoldering. It made me laugh, cry, roll my eyes, curl my toes in anticipation, and have just about every reaction possible. I am already geared up for the long wait until #3. Although, currently, Goodreads is saying that #3 is coming out in February, which means we won't have to wait all the way until summer. Score!

Also, I want to marry Adrian Ivashkov and have since the VA series. Just saying. I can't write my first review of a book with him in it and not mention that. So, there you have it. Good day.

❝...I made sure to sigh heavily and let her know in a passive aggressive way how inconvenient this was for me.❞

❝You made your own jean shorts...with a butter knife?❞

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