Review: The Immortal Rules by Julie Kagawa

The Immortal Rules by Julie Kagawa

Hardcover, 485 pages
Published: April 24, 2012 by HarlequinTEEN
Source: ARC - NetGalley
Buy the Book: Amazon : B&N : Goodreads


From Goodreads: 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 the News*

On April 19, 2012, Julie Kagawa and Harlequin TEEN announced that Palomar Pictures has optioned The Immortal Rules for the big screen! Read my post with their press release!

Now, on to the regularly scheduled programing: the review!

I jumped for joy when I found out Julie Kagawa was writing a vampire story. I had a feeling that it would be written to suit my taste compared to most that been published lately. I was absolutely correct. The premise, logistics, and characters define what will be one of my top books this year. This is the way it should be done.

I connected instantly with Allie in Chapter 1. The heartache and struggles she has dealt with in her short life make her both vulnerable and strong. She's a survivor and she'll do what it takes to keep it that way. How Allie manages to still have kindness in this decaying world and through the changes she experiences is beyond me. Throughout the book, I watched her grow and strengthen her resolve to even higher standards. I believe I see the path that she is headed down. If so, the next two books are going to highlight these strengths tremendously. Zeke. He's adorable. The "boy next door" personality he carries is addictive. He goes through his own trials and tribulations alongside Allie, but he remains himself and refuses to be changed. Any reader should be able to feel the trust he exhumes from the beginning. The evil characters, there are no exclusions to only vampires, humans, or other, that Allie encounters can actually give you chills. I have only had this type of response to characters in a well-done horror flick, let alone inside my own mind reading a book. The rabids in particular are the most disturbing to me. I do not like the idea of being hunted and I kept waiting on each page for one to jump out...

The plot and pacing steadily builds as the story progresses. From the humble beginnings where we learn about Allie and the life she leads until the culminating sequence of events at the end that will leave you breathless. It did slow down for me during the time just after she becomes a vampire, but this was just because I felt I having to relearn her all over again. I don't see this as detrimental because Allie was also doing the same and I knew it had to be that way.

-Slight Spoiler-

An aspect I was not expecting was the concept of knowledge in this book. Its uses and regulations regarding it hit very close to home for me. Books and information have become my bread and butter in my career and degrees. It cuts me deeply to know that in this world its not available to all. The phrase "Knowledge is Power" is taken very seriously in it and only those with power are allowed to have it. Any others are severely punished if caught with materials that could enlighten them. Institutions for knowledge and learning are nonexistent and/or destroyed. It is a part of the core plot and it will be interesting to see how it is dealt with and, hopefully, overcome in the following books.