Vampire Academy (Vampire Academy #1)

  One of my reading goals for last year was to finally read the popular Vampire Academy series by Richelle Mead, which I've been told by several people is a great series. I read the first book of the series, Vampire Academy, back in January and have managed to avoid writing a review until now. Why? I had reader's guilt for not liking the book, which put me in a reading slump for about a month or so before I could myself out of that hole.

Description: Two years after a horrible incident made them run away, vampire princess Lissa and her guardian-in-training Rose are found and returned to St. Vladimir's Academy, where one focuses on mastering magic, the other on physical training, while both try to avoid the perils of gossip, cliques, gruesome pranks, and sinister plots.

Review:  I really don't have to tell you that the Vampire Academy series is extremely popular. It's heralded by some as the best YA paranormal romance series featuring a great, exciting story that stars a strong female protagonist. It's even got a spin off series that is doing remarkably well on the bestseller's list.
 With all of the numerous glowing reviews I read of this book, I was expected to be blown away, to be reminded of why I ventured into the paranormal genre in the first place. My expectations were high and I was incredibly saddened when it didn't meet them. I actually felt I was either reading the wrong book or completely missed what everyone seemed to love about it. I just wasn't connecting with this book at all.
  Since the book has been reviewed by many others, I won't spend time on the plot of the story. In fact, I actually had a problem in finding the book's plot. All throughout the book, I felt like a third person listening into a conversation while Rose and Lissa talked. They were the A and B in the conversation while I saw my way out- constantly. I understood that the girls had a strong connection to one another, but hints to huge plot developments stumped me as they weren't explained at all and when they were, it was more like an afterthought. It was as if the author wrote down all the big plot points and then be told by an editor that the holes needed to be filled with explanations, except these didn't come until about 20 pages or so after the event happened. I quickly grew bored and frustrated. I even fell asleep on numerous occasions when there were action sequences.
    I know that Rose is prized amongst many readers as an incredibly strong female character. Unfortunately for me, I didn't see her that way at all. I thought Rose was abrasive, obnoxious, over-the-top, and to be completely honest a bit hypocritical. She constantly tries to defend herself from being labeled promiscuous, yet falls into random make-out sessions with guys. I didn't really find many redeeming things about her besides her strong loyalty to Lissa. Sure, she had some great snarky lines but that's about it. I know that there's a reason behind her personality, but I don't have the patience to read about it for half of the series (there are five) to find out the answer and for her to change as I've been told by other friends who enjoyed this series. Rose gave me a headache and I just wanted to put her on pause.
   As for the other characters, none of them stuck out for me. I thought they were your average paranormal romance characters- the aloof love interest with a hard exterior but with a heart of gold, the suck-up, the upper class who whines about being in the upper echelon and facing the pressure of meeting other people's expectations, etc. I did, however, find it interesting to incorporate some issues such as depression, gossip/slander within the book. Too bad these weren't expanded and dealt with in the book.
   The worst part of my reading experience is feeling guilty for not having one ounce of excitement. Guilty for falling asleep during the 'exciting' moments. Guilty for not wanting to know what happens next or heck, even look up spoilers online. Guilty for setting aside time to read all five books in this series when I had to force myself to finish the first book while desperately trying to find what made this book so popular. As I said, I felt so downtrodden that it took me a good month to get out of my slump and get back to this genre.
 So tell me, am I being too harsh? Should I give the series another shot? Have you ever had reader's guilt and if so, how did you overcome it?

Rating: 2 stars

Words of Caution: Strong language, heavy make-out scenes with some nudity, underage drinking, and disturbing scenes. Recommended for Grades 9 and up.

If you like this book try: House of Night series by P.C. and Kristin Cast, Blueblood series by Melissa DeLa Cruz, Evernight series by Claudia Gray