I am losing patience with this series and I can't pin down exactly why that is. It took me a long time to finish The Indigo Spell. I would sit down to read it and find it difficult to trawl through, which led to me putting it down and forgetting about it for days at a time.
Not a good sign.
I guess the issue is that this series is an Adrian/Sydney love-fest. Literally, there is no plot or storyline or arc other than for those two to get closer/over their issues/break out of their moulds or some other nonsense. And sure, I bought it in The Golden Lily, but I'm not buying it anymore, because it exists at the cost of actual storytelling.
Here are a few of my issues:
1) What is the Goddamn point of have a supporting cast of characters if you will never, ever use them or let the reader known what's happening with them?
2) Where the Hell are all these random revelations coming from? Seriously, if this is what you were planning, lay some foundations so it doesn't leave the reader confused. Most of the plot devices are meaningless because they don't fit with what we already know about the VA world and there is a distinct lack of evidence (in other words, hints) dropped around in the previous books that support these revelations.
3) Because of the above random revelations, that are massive holes in what little plot does exist that make the story hard to buy.
4) Why oh why can't this Goddamn series manage to be consistent? Why?
This spin-off is losing the plot. Literally and figuratively. It doesn't seem to know what it's supposed to be doing and does a poor job pretending it does. If there is meant to be a grand, old arc connecting all the books, I can't find it. All I can see is the bumpy relationship development between Sydney and Adrian, which is rapidly losing my sympathy.
Sure, I love Adrian. He is absolutely brilliant in the Bloodlines series, but one strong character isn't enough to cover all the plot holes, all the absent characters or the flat characters, or the poor storytelling. He cannot carry this series alone, which is why I am debating continuing it.
As for Sydney, Goddammit she annoys me. The more I learn about her, the more I want to slap her. She's also becoming inconsistent and OoC, and I know she's meant to be changing and growing and acting out a little, but even if you take that into consideration, she still has moments that stretch the realm of belief too far. Also, the way she treats Adrian throughout this book made me want to throttle her.
Now to the storyline. Or storylines. Because the Bloodlines series sees a great deal of plots occur simultaneously, and becomes a living example of "Jack of all trades, Master of none." We get all this "action" going on at the same time, but we only get the surface details. None of the threads are deeply examined, all are flawed as a result, and all feel rushed and somehow unnecessary. I guess this is because Adrian/Sydney become the centre of all them.
I kid you not. No matter what the mission/plot, Adrian and Sydney become the centre of it. Witch-hunting ... no, an opportunity for Adrian/Sydney to get some action in. Conspiracies ... oh no, a way for Adrian to show his fierce protectiveness over Sydney. Defence training ... nope, more time for Adrian and Sydney to spend together.
Every thread, story, mission, aspect of the book meant to NOT be about relationships/love, gets turned on its head, left at the wayside so that the spotlight can be shone on Sydney/Adrian and they can get a little bit closer. No wonder the plot can't develop. Everytime it tries to, it gets kicked aside so we can get more Sydney/Adrian time.
It's a shame because Richelle Mead usually juggles relationship development and plot development really well (see Vampire Academy and Dark Swan for reference). However, the focus in those other books IS the plot (dhampir issues and Strigoi attacks, friendships in danger, depression, ruling a gentry kingdom and exorcising rogue spirits) and the relationships grow alongside or as a consequence of events that happen in the story.
This is where the Bloodlines series falls flat. It puts the relationship before the story and fails to stir interest in either as a consequence.
2/5 stars
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