Review: The Immortal Rules

I received an ARC of "The Immortal Rules" by Julie Kagawa via NetGalley -- to be published by Harlequin on April 24, 2012.

ABOUT THE BOOK:

 Author: Julie Kagawa

In a future world, Vampires reign. Humans are blood cattle. And one girl will search for the key to save humanity. 

Allison Sekemoto survives in the Fringe, the outermost circle of a vampire city. By day, she and her crew scavenge for food. By night, any one of them could be eaten. 

Some days, all that drives Allie is her hatred of them. The vampires who keep humans as blood cattle. Until the night Allie herself is attacked—and given the ultimate choice. Die… or become one of the monsters. 

Faced with her own mortality, Allie becomes what she despises most. To survive, she must learn the rules of being immortal, including the most important: go long enough without human blood, and you will go mad. 

Then Allie is forced to flee into the unknown, outside her city walls. There she joins a ragged band of humans who are seeking a legend—a possible cure to the disease that killed off most of humankind and created the rabids, the mindless creatures who threaten humans and vampires alike. 

But it isn't easy to pass for human. Especially not around Zeke, who might see past the monster inside her. And Allie soon must decide what—and who—is worth dying for.

BOOK REVIEW:

Let me start this review by saying...

holyfreakinshizzthisbookisabsofuckinlutelyamazing!!! *catches breath* 

Kagawa delivers, baby! I am not going to doubt the fiction goddess ever again. Doubt, you ask? Yes, I must confess, I did doubt her. Because let's face it, there is no way in hell that the Vampire Genre will rise again after it has been stabbed, whacked, staked, hanged and burned by horrific-works-of-fiction-I-refuse-to-name-but-you-probably-already-know. *catches breath again*

I was dissappointed. YES. Dissappointed that my expectations were utterly wrong but I aint complainin'. No, sir!

The Immortal Rules is action-packed and well-written. I am very proud to say that I didn't stifle any yawn while reading this book. That alone is a big accomplishment for the author, you know.

Okay, okay. I'm going to stop gushing now and tell you what I did not like. Just one tiny little thing and that's the....

BOOK COVER

It just did not work for me (don't worry Julie, I know it's not your fault). This is what I imagined Allie would look like:

Hell yes! Saya Otonashi all the way. But the live action movie ruined it for me. That was just dumb.


ANYWAY...


The story first started at the Fringe and it's divided into sectors. Allie, our heroine, lived at sector 4 with her band of misfits. The Fringe is just another part of New Covington because it also has the Inner City where all the Vampires reside. Protecting the Fringe and Inner City from the dangers of rabids is the Outer Wall.

This is how I pictured New Covington:

MIDGARD! FF7 YEAH! I miss my Final Fantasy PS1 games. I want 'em back! Where did my childhood go?!


MOVING ON....


Allison "Allie" Sekemoto is not a girl to be fucked with especially with her stab first ask later policy. I love this girl! She is not a wuss. She is a bit brooding and mysterious. But I don't have a problem with that.

When she was given the choice to die or become an immortal, she decided to go for the most believable and logical choice. But not without a little bit of regret and a whole lot of pain, both physical and emotional. Though to be fair to her, she kept her emotions throughout the novel in check.

Aside from her badass personality, she also owned a katana. If you ask me, she could do more damage with a gunblade, but oh well. Oh, and speaking of katanas and sharp objects, she decapitated... things. How awesome is that?!

*wipes off drool*

In this novel, vampires burn in the sun. Yes, they burn NOT sparkle, which is the way it should be anyway. They are blood-sucking, hungry, scary, dangerous creatures that will make you scream "Vampire! Help!" the instance you see one.


Kagawa not only gave us your regular, plain-jane vampire, but we also received special editions... zombie vampires! And it just gets better and better... zombie animal vampires! *hyperventilating* Please Kagawa, you are killing me. Can I hug you now? Pretty please?

Ahem. *regains composure*

The storytelling itself is excellent, compelling and commendable. Everytime Allie was in pain, I suffered (especially the scene with Jackal). Every detail in the book was told in absolute clarity. There were no confusing parts, and I appreciated that.


The characters actually have real personalities in this book. I've grown fond of Zeke and his selfless ways -- his weaknesses were also his strengths. Allie and Zeke looked good together. The feelings they had for each other seemed very real to me.They both made decisions that actually benefited everyone (I hate senseless actions).

The supporting characters were interesting as well. Jeb creeped me out, but in a twisted way, I understood his intentions. And I worried about Kanin towards the end of the book. But I did a little victory dance when the lying and conniving cow, Ruth, was --- okay, no spoilers, I promise!

RATING:

To sum it up, The Immortal Rules is a highly recommended book. I would recommend it to my family, friends, dogs, Buffy, bookworms, worms, books, Edward Cullen, Inuyasha, myself, Hermione, Zeus, Hades, the man who invented the elevator, Britney Spears, the kid across the street, K.A. Tucker, my neighbors, the neighbor who stole my mangos, Vincent Valentine, GR friends, blog readers and the list just goes on and on!