Blue Bloods Series by Melissa de la Cruz

     Yes, it is another vampire series set in a prep school setting. Melissa de la Crux spends more time trying to assure you of her extensive knowledge of NYC fashion, cuisine, and hot spots than on developing her characters. Most of the main characters are so boring and self absorbed that I couldn't bring myself to care if any of them died in the later books, even though their deaths would allow Lucifer access to Earth.

     The relationship between Schyluer and her mother is as unrealistic as her attraction to Jack Force, a character with a Dr. Jekyll/Mr. Hyde personality who struggles against an dutiful- and eternal- bonding with his vampire twin Mimi.  Mimi for her part is by turns highly concerned with following vampire rules and order (at least when it comes to her brother) only to easily break other rules (abusing red bloods aka humans). As with most of the other story elements, coherency and continuity don't appear to be in this author's writing arsenal.

     Bliss' storyline follows in this same vein, going from chaotic blackouts in one book to visions of hell in another then straight to 'talking' with Lucifer (who is also her father who is using her as his living host; Oh and Allegra is her mother, which means Schyluer is her sister, but we don't bother to talk about that family history because it is complicated - cop out much?)

   Unfortunately for everyone in these books, the only person who seems to give a shit about what is happening is Schyluer. She has a new vampire soul with no access to any of the past lives that the rest of the vampire world can sense when they come of age (though they don't seem to use this ability with any degree of effectiveness- after all why bother learning anything after living so many lives.)  And perhaps most unfortunately for the reader, Oliver, the only human character, seems to have less and less face time as these books go on even though his back story is more interesting than any of the vampires who have more than 2000 years of history behind them.

      All that being said, I read all of these books one after another, consuming them as quickly as Mimi goes through human familiars. There was something compelling about the first book, but the more I read, the more I felt let down by the lack of story progression or character development. I was disgusted by the lack of resolution at the end of the 4th book, though I'm sure I will still end up reading the 5th book despite myself.

Bloodhound- Tamora Pierce

     Bloodhound, Tamora Pierce's second novel to cover the adventures of Bekkah Cooper, is a beast of a book. Weighing in at over 500 pages, it is a bit daunting to start off. However, Pierce's writing, as always, sucks me into the world of the underbelly of the city of Corus. This time around, Bekkah is a first year dog, having trouble keeping a partner since her "terrier" reputation precedes her. After her current partner ditches her, she is placed back with her old partners Tunstall and Goodwin for another go round. All is not well in Tortall as someone is flooding the economy with counterfeit money, known as "coles." As Bekkah starts to get the scent of this new case, she acquires a happy hound named Achoo as her companion.

     Her mysterious cat Pounce begins to act even more mysteriously, telling Beckkah she must learn to look out for herself instead of relying on him before he leaves to convene with the other constellations in the sky. The magical elements in the book are written in such a way that it sounds normal for her cat to be communing with the stars. However, some of the abilities that Bekkah has seem a little at odds with the rest of human society, even the magical ones (she talks with ghosts who ride on pigeons and hears conversations from the city's whirlwinds). She isn't a mage, but she isn't quite normal either. 

     This otherness about her usually works to Bekkah's favor as she solves cases, but it seems a tad wrongly written that she (and her friends) boast so much of them. In the first book, her unique abilites were kept much more under wraps in case they were used against her. After all, it is to her favor that people don't know that she can spy on them or keep tabs on who was killed how. And indeed, her confidence in catching criminals is often her undoing in this book. However, her trusty companions make sure she doesn't get herself killed. Achoo is particularly helpful as a mix between a scent hound and a watchdog, helping her solve cases when magical abilities alone can't get the job done.

    Of course, I couldn't put the book down during the final showdown between the colemongers (aka counterfieiters) and Bekkah's team, reading until my eyes crossed. And that devotion to keep reading, above all else, is my best recommendation for this book.