The Immortal Rules by Julie Kagawa

The Immortal Rules
Julie Kagawa
485 pages (hardcover)
Harlequin Teen
Source - Publicist/Netgalley

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.

In a world where vampires rule, Allison Sekemoto tries scrape by without drawing any attention to herself. So, when she's faced with an unthinkable choice, she chooses to become a vampire. Suddenly, Allison finds herself trying to learn the rules of immortality while attempting to keep what little humanity she has left. Her stubborn yet dedicated and caring personality becomes more endearing with each page, and Allison eventually becomes a vampire heroine readers will root for.

The Immortal Rules is what a vampire novel should be - exciting, dangerous, and yet surprisingly relatable. Allison's actions in her human life proved she was brave, but Allison's actions in her vampire life brought out more facets to her personality. The more Allison struggled with her emotions and her Hunger for human blood, the more intriguing the story and her character became. Kagawa paints a bleak picture for the world Allison lives in and for the vampires who inhabit this society, and yet Allison's character makes readers question a human's negative view of vampires. Entertaining, frightening, thoughtful, and even amusing,  The Immortal Rules  is a definite hit.

Highlights: Kagawa's view on vampires and rabids was interesting, as was the history this vampire-ruled world. Everything in this novel was fully realized, from world building to character development. The dilemma between good and evil was fascinating. The surprises and twists kept this book exciting and difficult to set aside. Plus, Allison's katana sword was very, very cool.

Lowlights: While the beginning had some exciting moments, it did not grab me the way the latter half of the novel did. It was a struggle to get past those beginning 100 or so pages.

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