Ok so a while back I read a dear friends first book, its her spin on vampires and I truly enjoyed it here is my review that I gave her and it made her cry....
Ashie,
As I read Blood Purple I took notes, its something I'd gotten in the habit of doing over the years, I find that it helps me remember the things that I liked or didn't like about a book. So going into this it was no different than any other book I would read, about around the end of chapter 3 with Nikole being taken I realized that this was just not going to be like any other book I've read. For starters usually by the 3rd chapter I would have had at least one thing I didn't like. It just wasn't the case for me with Blood Purple. I loved the history you gave us before starting the story, then that scene with Hashim crowning Ikram I think I cried as if he was my own dad. It was pretty obvious to me that you were going to take me on a journey that just was going to demand every bit of my attention and pull me in.
You didn't need the blown up drama that others in the past used to create a "conflicting" family dynamic, it was just there as is true for "real life" family dynamics, we all have at least one hot head in the family and siblings always have their sibling rivalry. So right out of the gate you had my respecting you for giving the history in the beginning so my enjoyment of the story wasn't hindered, you had me in tears and you had me intrigued because it wasn't something fake. Around the middle of chapter 4 I realized this story wasn't going to focus on any one "romantic" relationship, it was a story plain and simple and nobody does just "stories" anymore. That is not me saying it didn't have "relationships" in there there was its just I liked that my focus wasn't some whirlwind romance that at the end of the book I wouldn't buy.
Now I was like a little worried because for most authors who try to focus on the telling of a story and there is no relationship to capture a reader tend to fall off the scale and I didn't want that for you but I hadn't needed to really worry at all. You had me hard press to stop going to the next page to take notes, because the story was just that good. I remember reading Nikole's testing, which again was at the start of the book and how well written that scene was, I remember raging with her when Nasir got her while she was distracted with Zayn. Even I was a little hard press to admit that they had her fair and square. That scene stuck with me because there were many like it in the book that just demanded I keep reading.
As I came to the ending of the book you had me in tears again. Zayn's pain was real,Nikoles pain and insecurity was real, Adara's quilt was just so very real. I'll start off with Nikole...she had a right to feel safe in her own home, to realize you're not safe in your own home does something to you. I should know I learned that lesson pretty quick. Alec being right there for her even though it was clear that Zayn was going to freak was real. I keep saying real because it all comes down to most authors (not all) have to create these impossible situations to have conflict in their stories and to keep a reader interested in them as an author. You're just so good at telling a story and using what's not blown way out of proportion was where you had me hooked. Adara, man that whole situation sucked for her didn't it? To want to be with somebody, but to have that quilt resting on your shoulders because your best friend knows how to wound you the most, yeah I can say I'd have probably threw my hands up and left too. Purely because in that situation you're NOT going to win. Zayn...Zayn, Zayn what to say about him. He had the perfect parents, a sister he loved very well and to have that serenity ripped from you, I see where he'd have clung to Nikole and been possessive of her to the point it bordered on insanity. Then to realize that no matter how hard you try...you're not always going to be able to protect the ones you love....yeah I was bawling at the end of the book and what sweetened the pot was how you kind of paralleled those three's moods at the end. You had Nikole crying and clinging to Alec once again unsure of herself and her decision, you had Adara in her pain and you had Zayn well he was freaking out but the paint through that whole last scene of Nikole leaving you understood his rage at the end. He lost his sister...who meant more to him than anything and he lost Adara....
Needless to say I was already in tears so to come to the end was like. WHAT??!!! I have to wait for the next part??? So naturally go to my note book to look back and see where that left me....I kid you not Ashie I wish I knew how to do a scan and print screen for you...I had nothing bad to say, I had page after page of scenes I liked that I probably should have just highlighted them on my kindle as opposed to trying to keep track of them all on paper. I've never had a book so full of scenes that I loved so much that I didn't want to forget over time as I did with this book. So I tried to sit and wrap it all in a neat little package and narrow it down which was still impossible to me though looking at this I did manage to pick a reasonable amount of scenes. The scenes I picked for this email weren't in any particular order of favorite to least and some weren't even the most prominent in my mind....they just best showed that I was doomed from the moment I opened the book. I seriously love the fact that you gave me the history up front, I hate having to go through page after page of back story just to know what's going on. I loved that they had magic and their eyes weren't all the same. I loved that you had certain things only the royal family was supposed to be able to do. I loved that you kept it real and didn't feel the need to "drama" it up any. The drama was there plain and simple in the history lesson you had the conflict, you had the drama you just needed to put the words for the in between and you did it.
It was a wonderful journey and you are a fantastic writer. Its really easy for those starting out to follow the "trend" just because they are so new and don't want to be ripped apart for being different, you it was like you were saying "Fuck you" in the only nice way there is to say it. You stepped out of the box, created your own world your on spin on something so loved and popular. It was like this perfect cocktail blend a little bit of history, throw in some vampires, magic, sibling rivalry shake it up add umbrella and enjoy. You kept things you were comfortable with as a comfort blanket and threw caution to the wind with the rest and succeeded better than I thought anybody could have in a long time..
Truly not enough I could possibly say and I could just go on and on with what scenes I loved but I'd basically be repeating the book to you. So its easier to say I loved the book in its entirety and so can't wait for Blood Yellow. I've not been this excited about something since waiting on pins and needles for Acheron.
Ok, Ok, Ok...maybe Qhuinn and Blay too....but to be up there on that list you know is a feat. Truly thank you for writing that
Cat
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