The Ruby Circle

Title: The Ruby Circle (Bloodlines #6)
Author: Richelle Mead
Genre: YA
Rating: 3/5
Cover: 2/10

"The epic conclusion to Richelle Mead's New York Times bestselling Bloodlines series is finally here...

Sydney Sage is an Alchemist, one of a group of humans who dabble in magic and serve to bridge the worlds of humans and vampires. They protect vampire secrets—and human lives.

After their secret romance is exposed, Sydney and Adrian find themselves facing the wrath of both the Alchemists and the Moroi in this electrifying conclusion to Richelle Mead’s New York Times bestselling Bloodlines series. When the life of someone they both love is put on the line, Sydney risks everything to hunt down a deadly former nemesis. Meanwhile, Adrian becomes enmeshed in a puzzle that could hold the key to a shocking secret about spirit magic, a secret that could shake the entire Moroi world."

***

Having to write down that 3/5 up there nearly killed me; I've been an avid Mead fan for years now, so it pains me to have to write a less favourable review.

This book was about Sydney and Adrian, apparently. I hardly noticed them amidst the Rose and Dimitri show. To be honest, the only saving grace of this entire novel was Rose and Dimitri's continued presence. They made things interesting, brought the fun of the Strigoi and gave us some pretty awesome news and twists.

Aside from that though, the book was rushed, and the problems easily brushed aside. Something I often look to when I buy the last book in a series, is the length of it. And, the first signifier that Ruby Circle would fall short came at the quick comparison between Ruby Circle and Last Sacrifice. Whereas Last Sacrifice could be used as a door stopper, Ruby Circle hardly hit 300 pages - and I'm being kind. The result of that was a plot that, while slightly more compelling than that of the last two books, felt cramped, rushed and we were left with a disgruntled, unfulfilled feeling, as in the end Sydney simply swept all their troubles under the rug, easy as pie.

And I won't even talk about how OOC (out of character) some characters were, because I could spend a day harping off that; but let's just say I didn't buy one second of Daniella's sudden change of heart, and kept expecting her to turn on everyone... except she didn't, she apparently just really doesn't care if her son married a human - this from a woman who threw a fit that would make a prima donna proud when he brought Rose to dinner.

Was I happy with the ending? In many ways, yes. I feel like it's probably time Richelle stepped away from this world for a while, since the characters seem to be evading her, and focus on writing us an awesome Loki for Age of X. I also very much liked the... situation the book left some characters. It was cute, and way overdue.
But at the same time, it felt a bit like a repeat of the Dark Swan series - a tantalising possibility for a future filled with everything we've ever wished for, forever left out of our reach. So, while I think maybe some time away from the VA world might be good, I have to say, I do very much hope she comes back to it one day; even if it's just another short story, to let us know what's going on in Rose and Dimitri's life, and if he managed to get her down the aisle finally.