Book Review: Bloodrose by Andrea Cremer

 

**Received from Around the World ARC Tours for review**

Summary (from Goodreads):  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.

My Thoughts:  Well, I can honestly say that I did not expect the way this book turned out!  It was completely action packed and unpredictable (to me anyways) and I'm not sure I liked the ending. 

Let's begin with what I liked about this one.  I loved the different sections (water, fire, etc.) when Shay and the Guardians and Searchers had to find the swords.  It was an action packed adventure and it totally had my attention.  I sped through the middle of the book.  My favorite was probably the jungle quest (water) but I also thought the volcano quest was tense.  I could not put the book down at these parts.

I loved the relationship between Ethan and Sabine!  It was so sweet and I loved seeing how their love grew.  I also loved the relationship between Adne and Connor.  They were funny and sarcastic and I liked how they joked around.  Bryn and Ansel still have issues but I really liked how they resolved them.  Ansel, while still hurting, seemed to accept his fate slightly more.  

The war was also so intense and interesting.  It was impossible to put the book down at this point.  I hated Emile and Efron and Lumine more than ever! And Lucas was just a pain.  He was worthless except for his part in calling up Bosque.  

There were a lot of things I didn't like but don't want to say a whole lot in order to avoid spoilers.  I do not think I liked the ending.  I wasn't expecting some of the people who died to die.  I didn't like that there was no punishment for Lumine or Lucas at all.   There was no closure for them and I wasn't happy with that.  

My biggest gripe was Callie and her refusal to pick between Shay and Ren until after the war.  They both should have left her and they certainly shouldn't have been fighting over her.  I think she was being selfish in her refusal to choose.  And she led them on too which I wasn't happy with.  

I also thought the ending was kind of a cop out.  I mean, talk about resolving an issue easily.  I think Andrea Cremer cheated a little here.  I just wasn't happy with it at all.  I wanted Calla to actually have to figure this out and then take responsibility for her choices.  

Anyways, I am giving this book 3 stars because I did think the different quests were interesting and I loved the secondary characters (Adne, Connor, Sabine, Ethan, Nev, Mason, etc).  The story kept my attention most of the time and there were some great, intense parts.