Bloodrose by Andrea Cremer [REVIEW]

       

Bloodrose (Nightshade #3)
by Andrea Cremer

Summary from Goodreads:

"Is true love worth the ultimate sacrifice?

Calla has always welcomed war. But now that the final battle is upon her, there’s more at stake than fighting. There’s saving Ren, even if it incurs Shay’s wrath. There’s keeping Ansel safe, even if he’s been branded a traitor. There’s proving herself as the pack’s alpha, facing unnamable horrors, and ridding the world of the Keepers’ magic once and for all. And then there’s deciding what to do when the war ends. If Calla makes it out alive, that is. 

In the final installment of the Nightshade trilogy, New York Times bestselling author Andrea Cremer creates a novel with twists and turns that will keep you on the edge of your seat until its final pages. A dynamic end to this breathtaking trilogy."

Rating:

Alas! We’ve come to the end of the Nightshade series. I’m surely going to miss Calla and the rest of the guardians.

Bloodrose, the third instalment of the Nightshade series, is definitely a breath taking book. It’s full of adventure, suspense, and romance and I loved every page and scene… except for one in particular which I believe a lot of team Ren members out there would definitely agree that that part was really an oh-you-didn’t-just-do-that-to-Ren moment. I’m not really torn over the Ren-Calla-Shay love triangle because I think I found it obvious that the author was already reeling the romance bit between Calla and Shay.

So am I happy about Calla being with Shay? Up until the end of this series, I still don’t know. It’s just not something I found myself thinking about. I guess I just settled in with what the author provided and just went with the story. Plus, I guess I was so focused on the mythology and history of this book that I hardly noticed whom would fit better with Calla as a co-alpha. Is that a good thing or a bad thing? Well, you decide.

Anyway, speaking of mythology and history, I’ve got to hand it to Andrea Cremer for such a unique creation. I mean I can’t imagine how much research and devising she had to go through to create something so artistic and beautiful!

Did I mention that I love the action and adventure? Well, let’s get into the details. So Shay’s supposed to find all the pieces to assemble the Elemental Cross, and of course the task comes with going into restricted and dangerous territories which eventually have booby-traps, puzzles, killer-guards and all that riff-raff.  I thought this was going to bore me out because I was thinking that the obstacles were going to be not so surprising. You can’t possibly make the obstacles any different from the usual ones we see on TV, right? This is one of those moments that I’m thankful I was wrong. Another round of applause for Cremer please because that was one heck of an adventure! Every area the characters went to really tested their abilities and there’s not a time that I didn’t feel my heart pound with tension and excitement.

So I guess you can say that I loved this book… yes, but not entirely. The surprise by the ending wore me out a bit. It wasn’t something I expected but in a sense I guess that part was fitting to the story, and I’m glad to see many of them happy. Still not okay with the Ren part though… *shakes head in dismay*

The verdict: Two thumbs up! If you’re looking for a unique and action-packed series, the Nightshade books are your best bet.