Rewind & Review: Last Sacrifice by Richelle Mead

Last Sacrifice (Vampire Academy #6) by Richelle Mead
Published: December 7, 2010 by Razorbill
Received: given by my sister :)

Murder. Love. Jealousy. And the ultimate sacrifice.

Rose Hathaway has always played by her own rules. She broke the law when she ran away from St. Vladimir’s Academy with her best friend and last surviving Dragomir Princess, Lissa. She broke the law when she fell in love with her gorgeous, off-limits instructor, Dimitri. And she dared to defy Queen Tatiana, leader of the Moroi world, risking her life and reputation to protect generations of dhampir guardian to come.

Now the law has finally caught up with Rose—for a crime she didn’t even commit. She’s in prison for the highest offense imaginable: the assassination of a monarch. She’ll need help from both Dimitri and Adrian to find the one living person who can stall her execution and force the Moroi elite to acknowledge a shocking new candidate for the royal throne: Vasilisa Dragomir.

But the clock on Rose’s life is running out. Rose knows in her heart the world of the dead wants her back... and this time she is truly out of second chances. The big question is, when your life is about saving others, who will save you? {goodreads.com}

I did it. I finally finished the Vampire Academy series & wow what a finish that was!  I began my journey with Rose at St. Vladimir's back in December of 2010.  I lost myself in the adventures she always seemed to find herself in.  I became wrapped up in the mysteries of this vampire realm that Richelle Mead so beautifully crafted.  But it was the passion between Rose and Dimitri that scorched my heart and kept me turning the pages in each new installment.

It's rare I'll follow a series with this many books in it.  Usually after the third, either the story needs to wrap up or you've lost my interest.  Richelle Mead is the master of 3+ books in a series!  This woman knows how to write a story with so many twists and turns that you're cheating yourself if you don't pick up that next book.  I have no idea how I waited so long to finish this one.  I think part of me wasn't quite ready to say goodbye.  I knew Richelle Mead had been working on a spin-off from this series (Bloodlines).  I also knew that Rose and Dimitri would not be in that series, and I think it was having to say goodbye to these two characters which I wasn't quite ready for.

Last Sacrifice has all the ingredients for how a mega series as this one should end.  The final installment begins with high tension, left over from the ending of the previous book (which is so Richelle Mead fashion).  Immediately you are sucked back in and holding on for dear life.  There is a certain scene, in a hotel bedroom, that sealed the deal for me.  The passion was literally smoking from the pages!  I knew I was in for it.  The adventure and mystique never let up, either.  Just when you think you're getting answers, Richelle Mead throws a curve ball and even more questions are developed.  The ending to this epic story wrapped up very nicely.  Knowing that a few characters would continue on in Bloodlines, I did not feel as though I was left hanging.  Towards the very end I found myself marking quite a few pages and re-reading lines because the words were so beautiful.  They captured the essence of Rose and Dimitri's love so perfectly.

If you're looking for a paranormal series with high tension, passion, and a killer ending - then I highly recommend starting the Vampire Academy series by Richelle Mead.  Even though I took my time finishing this one, Last Sacrifice did not disappoint; if anything it's made me want to start all over from the beginning and lose myself in this epic tale again.

Rewind & Review is a monthly feature hosted by Lisa is Busy Nerding & myself, that showcases older books from our collection to read & review.