"The Indigo Spell" by Richelle Mead

Release Date: February 12, 2013

Publisher: Razorbill

Pages: 401

From Goodreads: "In the aftermath of a forbidden moment that rocked Sydney to her core, she finds herself struggling to draw the line between her Alchemist teachings and what her heart is urging her to do. Then she meets alluring, rebellious Marcus Finch--a former Alchemist who escaped against all odds, and is now on the run. Marcus wants to teach Sydney the secrets he claims the Alchemists are hiding from her. But as he pushes her to rebel against the people who raised her, Sydney finds that breaking free is harder than she thought. There is an old and mysterious magic rooted deeply within her. And as she searches for an evil magic user targeting powerful young witches, she realizes that her only hope is to embrace her magical blood--or else she might be next.

Populated with new faces as well as familiar ones, the Bloodlines series explores all the friendship, romance, battles, and betrayals that made the #1 New York Times bestselling Vampire Academy series so addictive—this time in a part-vampire, part-human setting where the stakes are even higher and everyone’s out for blood."

While I had all but declared my undying loyalty to "Vampire Academy", specifically Rose and Dimitri, vowing to never like any other characters/ books written by Richelle as much I liked theirs, I must admit that with each installment of this series, the "Bloodlines" series, I find it increasingly more and more difficult to keep that promise. That being said, I must admit that this installment of the series didn't impress me as much as the previous book, "The Golden Lily" did.

I think that my largest complaint about this book was Marcus Finch. Prior to the release of this book there was a huge marketing campaign surrounding Marcus ("Who is Marcus Finch)- essentially everyday we were given a fact about Marcus which we were to piece together to reveal his true character. The provided information about him lead me to believe that he was a huge bad-ass, a revolutionary of sorts. However, after having read this book, instead of coming across as a bad-ass he came across as a stereotypical surfer dude or highly excitable puppy. 

Furthermore, I am learning that I am more so about the chase, than the actual relationship. I personally prefer when characters haven't truly confronted their feelings for one another, tiptoeing around one another, throwing flirty banter here and there. Oftentimes when they do come together I feel like they loose some of their spark- becoming far too domestic-y for my liking.

That being said, I loved the actual character growth in this book- something which I think is far too rare in YA novels. Both Adrian and Sydney are truly coming into their own- Adrian assuming more responsibilities and learning his place in the world and Sydney learning that there is more to life than she has been lead to believe and that change is good. 

All in all, while I didn't quite like this book as much as I did the previous book in the series,  it is still one of my most favourite books of all time. With a killer ciffhanger ending I can't wait to see what Richelle has in store for us next in the fourth installment of the series, "The Fiery Heart"!

Rating: 4/5