Review: The Immortal Rules by Julie Kagawa

*photo courtesy of Goodreads*

Title:  The Immortal Rules

Subtitle:  Blood of Eden Book 1  

Author:  Julie Kagawa 

Genre:  Young Adult Dystopian/Paranormal

Publisher:  Harlequin

Imprint:  Harlequin Teen

Format:  NetGalley Digital Galley

Release Date:  April 24, 2012

MY VAMPIRE CREATOR TOLD ME THIS:

“Sometime in your life Allison Sekemoto, you will kill a human being. The question is not if it will happen, but when. Do you understand?”

I didn’t then, not really.

I DO NOW.

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 Allison 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 must soon decide what—and who—is worth dying for. (Summary courtesy of NetGalley and publisher)

I may possibly be one of only a few people in the world who has not read the Iron Fey series, so this gave me the unique perspective of reading Julie Kagawa’s new series without any expectations. You know what I mean; when an author you love comes out with a new book or series, you read it expecting it to be just as good, if not better, than their previous work. It has a lot to live up to. Well, I have to say, if Kagawa’s Iron Fey series is even half as good as The Immortal Rules, I must read it!

Kagawa weaves an amazing story of vampires set in a dystopian future, a world where many humans have died from a horrifying disease and vampires now rule. Humans are seen as cattle to be used and, well, eaten. The only way to not become a vampire’s dinner is to remain unregistered—a human without the mark of a vampire master. But these humans live in horrifying, depraved conditions—little to no shelter, starving and fighting amongst themselves. This is how Allie lives everyday. She refuses to become a “pet” serving the vampires. There is nothing she hates more than the vampires that have destroyed everything she has ever had or loved. When Allie is forced to choose between death or becoming a vampire after nearly dying in a rabid attack, she begins to question everything she ever believed about herself.

The world Kagawa has created is very complicated and detailed. There is a vampire hierarchy, beginning with the master vampire and progressing down from there. There are humans of various sorts—pets, registered humans, unregistered humans and those who don’t fit anywhere. A disease has killed off most of the human population. But somehow, Kagawa manages to write so flawlessly that following the intricacies of the story is not a problem. She is a master storyteller; you don’t feel like you are reading a story so much as you are living it. 

Kagawa’s vampires are more the traditional type—they must sleep during the day, drink human blood or face madness and they are able to create other vampires. I loved that Kagawa kept her vampires as the traditional type and went so far as to explain certain things about them to better help the reader understand how they live.

The characters in The Immortal Rules are nothing short of amazing. Kagawa brings them to life so flawlessly that I began to feel as if I stepped into the pages of the book and was living side-by-side with Allie. She is the perfect protagonist—she learns and grows as the novel progresses, she has flaws, but they make her a better person and she’s realistic (even after she becomes a vampire). Allie’s struggles to learn to accept what she has become are monumental and watching her overcome them is nearly heart-wrenching. The reader can feel the good seeping out of Allie, touching everyone around her. She is definitely not your normal vampire.  Zeke is also another fascinating character. So much about him is a mystery, and as the layers are peeled back, you grow to love him. The “bad” vampires, Sarren (aka psycho vamp) and Jackal are pure evil, but sympathetic because the reader can almost understand how they got to be the way they are. I for one want to learn more about them. Even minor characters are written so they are interesting enough to help carry the story.

I absolutely loved The Immortal Rules and I am anxiously awaiting the next book in the series. I want to see where Allie goes and what she does. I want to know what happens with Allie and Zeke. I want to know what happens to Allie’s vampire creator. While the book had a satisfying end, it still left a lot of unanswered questions. It will be nice to get them answered.

This is a definite must read. Kagawa has done a great job combining the paranormal with the dystopian and I look forward to learning more about the world she created and her vampires.

My grade for The Immortal Rules by Julie Kagawa: