3.5 starsSome of my friends said that THE GOLDEN LILY is better than BLOODLINES. I’m not sure if I can fully agree with them.
I felt that Sydney’s POV was getting old quick. I don’t know if it’s because I keep secretly hoping that she’ll suddenly turn into Rose or something, but I just wished that something MORE happened. The whole book to me seemed flat where there were some high points but overall, it seemed quite mediocre.
As I was reading this, I made this observation and I’m not really sure if anyone else has noticed it but it seemed that the characters in this series are just several different degrees of the same person. For example, Eddie (whom I adore) is basically a Dimitri in training. He aspires to be just like the Warrior God, but I just feel like practical, dependable Eddie is just like Dimitri, only a few shades...lighter if that makes sense. He’s just not as intense. I want more for Eddie’s character.
Here’s another example, Jill and Sydney...They seem so similar to me. While Jill is going out with Micah, Sydney is going out with Brayden. Both of them are dating the wrong men! It’s so frustrating when you want the right things for the characters you love.
Speaking of characters, there was one character in this book that made me go, “Huh? Who is she?” Though I read Bloodlines a year ago, I typically have a good memory on things like this but I could not for the life of me recall who the hell Angeline was. I had to go searching on Goodreads asking friends who she was to figure out she was one of the Keepers. The light blub went off immediately after that but I just felt completely lost for a long time there. Angeline just didn’t seem so annoying back then. Now I just want to beat her with a stick!
One of the things I loved about VA was the fact that there was a tight-knit group of friends. Rose, Lissa, Christian and Adrian were always around each other. I miss that a lot. I know I should stop comparing it to VA, but when you have the same characters, it’s hard not to. I think it’s because Sydney is so independent and capable of handing things herself that she doesn’t need a support group, but I just miss that aspect a lot. Friendship was important in VA and I wish Sydney opened up more to allow more people in her life.
And then there’s Adrian! My lovely, Adrian. When will he get his HEA!? No one deserves it more than him! I liked that he is taking an interest in Sydney BUT I’m not sure if Sydney deserves him. The ending of this book kind of proved that...
Part of me wants to give up on this series because I don’t think it holds the same appeal to me as VA did, HOWEVER I can’t just give up on Adrian. I need to know that he’s happy and until then, I want something that’s going to shock me and thrill me. Mead, give me something to be excited about. I don’t want to have a problem arise where they just send Sydney in to negotiate her way out of it.
I’m sticking with this series for another book because knowing Mead, book three are always the best ones. I love these characters and I only want greatness for them. Sometimes, the journey to greatness isn’t always pretty. I’m hoping the next road they take in THE INDIGO SPELL will be worth the wait.