REVIEW: The Immortal Rules by Julie Kagawa

The Immortal Rules
by Julie Kagawa

Genre: Dystopian, Young Adult, Young Adult Paranormal

Pages: 485 (hardcover)

Publication: April 2012

(Harper Teen)

Goodreads Summary: "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.

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Review: I’m going to attempt to control my fangirling long enough to give a coherent review of The Immortal Rules. It’s going to be hard, though; you have been warned.

Okay… first I need to correct a serious misconception: This isn't a vampire story, it's a human story. It's a story about humanity’s points of pride and fatal flaws. It's a story about what it is to be ‘human.’

Set in a post-apolcalyptic world that has been nearly destroyed by a plague which created zombie-like monsters, this dystopian novel is told in such a way as to feel both current and viable. And that was a big part of the thrill of reading The Immortal Rules for me; the tone of the narrative was very realistic, making this world ruled by vampires seem possible; as if this dark, terrifying alternate existence could actually become a reality.

And within this harsh and brutal world lives our heroine, 17-year-old Allison Sekemoto. Refusing to register with the vampires and provide regular blood donations for them… and to become the vampires’ property and food, Allison lives on the fringes of society with three other unregistereds. Working together, the group scavenges to find enough food and other essentials to survive. Sometimes things become so desperate that Allison decides to take the risk of going outside the vampire city and into the surrounding ruins to search for food. This is incredibly dangerous as the vampire city is the only place that is safe from rabids, the zombie-like vampires which attack anything living. It is on one of these trips that Allison’s life is forever changed and she is forced to make the choice between dying and becoming what she hates most.

Allison is a great heroine: selfish yet compassionate; young yet mature beyond her years due to the difficulties of life in this world. Strong character development allows you to understand the growth Allison undergoes throughout the novel. You will be drawn into this story immediately, cheering for Allison, and feeling her pain at the harshness of this world. She is truly the perfect blend of good and bad, and her struggle showcases the moral of this story.

In her best book to date, and her first vampire novel, Julie Kagawa uses her amazing gift with imagery and her wildly creative imagination to build a world unlike any other I’ve read about, crafting a truly fascinating tale that will keep you turning the pages. The Immortal Rules is a new spin on the vampire story that you simply must read. I know I can’t wait to read more.

Rating: 5 stars