The Golden Lily

Author: Richelle Mead
Format: eBook
Print Length: 423 pages
Publisher: Penguin Publishing
Published: June 12, 2012

The second thrilling installment in Richelle Mead's Vampire Academy spinoff series

Tough, brainy alchemist Sydney Sage and doe-eyed Moroi princess Jill Dragomir are in hiding at a human boarding school in the sunny, glamorous world of Palm Springs, California. The students--children of the wealthy and powerful--carry on with their lives in blissful ignorance, while Sydney, Jill, Eddie, and Adrian must do everything in their power to keep their secret safe. But with forbidden romances, unexpected spirit bonds, and the threat of Strigoi moving ever closer, hiding the truth is harder than anyone thought.

Populated with new faces as well as familiar ones, Richelle Mead's breathtaking Bloodlines series explores all the friendship, romance, battles, and betrayals that made the #1 New York Times bestselling Vampire Academy series so addictive. In this second book, the drama is hotter, the romances are steamier, and the stakes are even higher.

My Thoughts

Richelle Mead is a master storyteller, the Golden Lily being her newest masterpiece.  I was unable to put this book down.  Staying up way too late for a mommy of two toddlers, but honestly it was worth it.  The novel entices the reader into a world of budding romance, mystery and of course action.

I love the world that Sydney lives in, especially her ingrained opinions of vampires.  The opening of the Golden Lily is extremely telling of the strict draconian society that Sydney is a part of.  Sydney has not changed much from the last book, still relying on facts instead of intuition.  However, she does allow for some personal changes.  Watching her struggle with the intricacies of dating and relationships is hilarious.  Adrian of course is as amusing as ever.  He starts to care about others more than himself, this growth stunned me.  The reason behind the growth will not.

The characters that we have grown to care about through Bloodlines, and the Vampire Academy series go through a lot in this book.  The new threats to their secret come from various angles.  At the end of the book, I was shocked and awed.  Adrian’s honesty and belief in Sydney through-out the book stunned me.  I was very grateful that he the hurt that he was feeling over Rose was not showing as much.  While Sydney is my favorite character in the series, I could not help but want to shake her a little at the end.  My heart literally broke for her and as I closed my eyes to sleep I thought “Sydney how dumb can someone so smart be?"

My Rating 5 out of 5 stars

Other Characters

Jill- spirit bound to Adrian, Princess who has to go into hiding due to political shenanigans.
Angelica- Jill’s roommate, sent to protect her.
Trey- Sydney’s friend at school, sets her up with her boyfriend.  Sydney begins to worry about him due to some behavior changes.
Eddie- Jill’s guardian, secretly has feelings for her.