❄ The characters are one-dimensional and go through minimal character development. However, because I’ve read this series before, I love the characters and their personalities.
❄ There are moments where I dislike Rose and moments where I love her. Rose can be immature at times (she’s still a teenager, so it’s understandable), but she can also be extremely mature, understanding and wise. Rose is brave, snarky, arrogant and badass. I love her voice (which is reminiscent of voices in chick-lit) and personality.
❄ I also enjoyed reading about the relationship dynamics between Rose and her mother. Their relationship is extremely strained, and they are constantly butting heads, but their personalities are extremely similar.
❄ I also love the strong friendship and bond between Lissa and Rose. However, because Lissa has a small role to play in Frostbite, she seems underdeveloped.
❄ Christian is probably my favourite character in the Vampire Academy series and his relationship with Lissa is adorable. I also enjoy the relationship dynamics between him and Rose. They tolerate each other because of Lissa, but they both get so jealous when Lissa spends more time with the other.
❄ Tasha is so cool in Frostbite. I love her strength and her straightforward attitude ,but I also know what she does in Last Sacrifice, and I’m quite surprised that I liked her.
❄ I don’t appreciate the girl hate between Rose and Mia, but I do understand that there’s a reason for their mutual hatred, so I can tolerate it. However, I love how Rose and Mia’s views change towards each other in Frostbite
❄ Adrian, another one of my favourite Vampire Academy characters, is introduced in Frostbite. It’s weird to read about him as a wealthy, flirty guy in Frostbite because his character development in the Vampire Academy series is extensive.
❄ I’m not a fan of the love triangle/love square. I like Mason’s character, but his recklessness is a bit much. I also didn’t enjoy the fact that Rose leads him on and uses him to get over Dimitri, but I could understand why Rose does it. Dimitri is a static character in Frostbite, but I found it realistic when he tries to deny that his feelings for Rose and distance himself from her because he’s her mentor. However, that ultimately backfires at the end of Frostbite.
❄ I enjoy the world-building in the Vampire Academy series. There are different types of vampires, good and evil, royalty, elemental magic etc. The world expands with each book in the series.
❄ Frostbite is slow, repetitive and predictable. I can barely remember what happens in Frostbite and this is after my third read. The school vacation trip is boring and feels out-of-place. However, the last part is where I became extremely invested in Frostbite. Rose’s emotions drew me in and I couldn’t help but feel the characters anxiety, fear, hopelessness and dread. The ending (Mason’s death, Eddie’s sadness, Rose dealing with her first kill and the death of her friend, breaking down and being comforted by her mother and ultimately getting her molnija marks) hit me quite hard.
”You can’t force love, I realized. It’s there or it isn’t. If it’s not there, you’ve got to be able to admit it. If it is there, you’ve got to do whatever it takes to protect the ones you love.” (Rose Hathaway)