The Golden Lily (Bloodlines #2)

The Golden Lily (Bloodlines #2) by Richelle Mead

Rating: 3 stars

Flat line, flat line, flat line _________________________________, tiny bump, a little bigger bump, THE END.
Ugh, flat line, flat line, flat line!!! How big are the two tiny bumps at the end? TINY!

OK, if you have no idea what I'm talking about, don't worry, I shall enlighten you now: this is the plot line of The Golden Lily. Yeah, I know right, I can imagine you all going "What the hell?" or along those lines. That was exactly my thoughts after reading this book.

There was almost no plot in this book, nothing much really happened. The events took place were also very predictable. The whole story just seemed to drag on. To me, it was as if Richelle Mead was pulling a short story out into a thread so thin it was about to snap. That was how little substance there was of this book. I mean, if you don't have a long enough story that's good enough to last six books, then don't write six books! Why not just write three books and make it a brilliant series instead of dragging it out? Sure, there are six books in the Vampire Academy series, but that doesn't mean this new spin-off series Bloodlines needs to have six too! I'm really sick of this commercial type of writing. These authors are self-destroying their reputations.

Ah, sorry about my little rant up here, I was just so frustrated and exasperated after reading this. The main part of the book were essentially Sydney's thoughts. We didn't really see anyone else's perspective at all. It would have been fine, as it was written in first person in Sydney's perspective, if it hadn't been so narrow in what she saw or described. The book dealt solely with some of the relationships centering Sydney. A normal plot usually involves the book building up towards a climax (or maybe more than one climax) and then lead back down (sometimes an anti-climax) to the end. This book had no dramatic point or build up. It was describing Sydney's everyday life and all the supposed 'drama' happened in her head. Some things regarding relationships did happen I suppose, but it was so flat and single-minded that it almost drove me to put the book down. I started it excitedly, but then after the first few chapters was starting to get bored (not a good sign). I contemplated putting it down, but all my friends were reading it and I don't really want the story to be ruined for me. So then, I picked it up again and read at a very slow pace. I even skimmed through some parts. 

Sydney thought too much. Even though it is one of her known characteristics and that she was over responsible and thoughtful, it annoyed me to have to read so much back-and-forth brain battle with herself because I'm in her mind (sort of literally). For a smart person, she really didn't seem too bright in this book. Mostly of the time she didn't figure out a problem until the absolute last minute. There were several things going on at once, but no centre. There wasn't really one big thing that was leading toward. I still wasn't used to having Sydney as the main character because I just didn't think she was the main character kind of material. She still struck me as weak and conflicting, constantly unsure of who she was, what she should do, just like in Bloodlines. Nothing really changed with her or improve. She also didn't mature over the course of events. If anything, I seemed to be more distant from Sydney than before. There was no connection between me as the reader and her as the main character.

In contrast, Adrian seemed to have matured. I mostly gave it a 3 star because of Adrian. I really liked him as a character and found it hard to give it anything lower than a 3. He changed quite a lot from the Vampire Academy, as well grew up from Bloodlines. Sydney did seem to be a good influence on him, but as I read, I thought: "Adrian really need to stop loving people he can't have and get into impossible relationships!". He kept hurting himself, and I kept feeling sorry for him. However, I also thought that the amount of sympathy might have been an overkill. He needed to be stronger still, and though he is adorable and have a whole bunch of charismatic qualities, he didn't have strong enough characteristics to be a good main guy character. But he was still my favourite character of the book.

The relationship of Adrian and Sydney had went through some twists and turns in this book, and there was a lot of confusion between these two. On the other hand, Jill seemed to be out of control. She really changed from the innocent and determinded girl I pinned her for before. Here I didn't know who she was anymore. She was so unstable and weird that I don't like her anymore. Her relationships were some of the most frustrating ones. I hate to say this, but I didn't connect with any of the characters in this book and didn't like them very much either. 

Nothing happened in the plot until the very end, almost about 20 pages from the end. Some small event took place and there was a bit of excitement. Quite a bit of action took place in a very short amount of space/pages. However, it finished very quickly and we were once more back to the flat line. The ending was a shocker. Well, not really, it was somewhat expected, but just the way it finished was shocking. I didn't like it at all.

The quality of writing for this book was great, as always with Richelle Mead. The only saviour of this horrible plot was the writing. It was not overly descriptive yet flowed seamlessly. It was comfortable to read. The writing was the best part of the book. 

Overall, the ending was supposed to leave the reader wanting more, but I'm not exactly eager to read the next book. Everything about this book screamed predictable. It was a huge let-down. If this series is going to continue with the same kind of plot and quality, I am in danger of giving up reading it. 

Synopsis

The second thrilling installment in Richelle Mead's Vampire Academy spinoff series

Tough, brainy alchemist Sydney Sage and doe-eyed Moroi princess Jill Dragomir are in hiding at a human boarding school in the sunny, glamorous world of Palm Springs, California. The students--children of the wealthy and powerful--carry on with their lives in blissful ignorance, while Sydney, Jill, Eddie, and Adrian must do everything in their power to keep their secret safe. But with forbidden romances, unexpected spirit bonds, and the threat of Strigoi moving ever closer, hiding the truth is harder than anyone thought.
Populated with new faces as well as familiar ones, Richelle Mead's breathtaking Bloodlines series explores all the friendship, romance, battles, and betrayals that made the #1 New York Times bestselling Vampire Academy series so addictive. In this second book, the drama is hotter, the romances are steamier, and the stakes are even higher.