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.
Hardcover, 485 pages
Published April 24th 2012 by Harlequin Teen
Four Stars: The dark side of Kagawa!
Allie keeps her eyes on the sliding sun. The last fingers of daylight are scraping across the land. Allie knows that once the light dies, the dead roam. In New Covington, the vampires rule. As an unregistered human, Allie leads a harsh life. Always on the verge of starvation and in danger, she attempts to remain free of the vampire registration. As a human in this city, you are either a pet, registered human which is a blood donor, or an unregistered like Allie. Those who submit to the vampires rule and become registered receive food and protection in exchange for blood donation. It is a cruel world. Outside the city roam the rabids, waiting to feed on any stray humans. Allie has found a stash of food outside the city walls, now all she needs to do is grab her companions and claim it. This food is a life line in their dreary world. Unfortunately, luck is not on their side and they are struck down by a band of rabids. Allie fights mercilessly but to no avail. She awakens in tremendous pain to find a vampire standing over her, offering a choice. She can choose to die, and hope to remain human and not turn rabid at her death or become immortal, a vampire. Allie has spent her whole life hating and fearing these blood sucking fiends and now she must decide to become one of them or die. Allie’s will to live is strong and she chooses to become a vampire. Will Allie survive as a vampire?
What I Liked:
- I was eager to pick up this book to see how Julie Kagawa would create a dystopian vampire society. As usual, Ms. Kagawa does not disappoint. She crafts a cruel, dark, extreme world inhabited by blood thirsty creatures. Humanity is on the verge of extinction thanks to a plague, and vampires rule the world. Her atmosphere is thick with tension and downright scary at times. It is a complete departure from the Iron Fey and the Nevernever. This is truly a dystopian landscape, bleak and frightening. Ms. Kagawa is a master in world building and if you are fan of her world building skills, you will not be disappointed with her work in this book.
- I admired the main character, Allie. She, too, is acompletely different from Meghan Chase. Allie is a fighter, bent on survival at all costs. She is tough as nails, determined and kick butt. I loved her character.
- One of my favorite aspects of this book was the struggle to let go of old ideas and doctrine. Allie has hated vampires her entire life, now as a vampire she must somehow accept her fate. She chooses, despite the warnings from her master that it isn’t possible, to try to hang onto her shreds of humanity. She fights to control the monster and refrain from unnecessary killing fueled by blood lust. It is a constant battle to keep the demon at bay, but Allie refuses to become the monster of her nightmares. Zeke, on the other hand, is a human raised by a religious zealot. Taught that vampires are evil and the reason for all the ills of today’s world. His adopted father was merciless in imparting these teachings to Zeke. Now after meeting Allie and developing a bond with her, he is distraught to learn that she is a vampire. He struggles to accept that a vampire could possibly be something other than the monster he believes them to be. I loved watching both these characters try to come to terms with their situation and see things in a new light, one that shines beyond their previous notions. This to me was the best part of this book.
- I was glad that this book gets us back to the vampire roots. No handsome, glittery, romantic vampires in this story. Instead we are presented with the vampires of legend; dark, scary blood thirsty monsters, the creatures that haunt your nightmares.
And The Not So Much:
- I was caught up in the exciting and scary existence in the vampire city. Once Allie is forced to flee New Covington the story drags a bit. Allie wanders around in the wilderness with a band of humans led by a preacher. I thought it was a little too convenient that this group of people chose to travel at night, making it easy for Allie to blend in with them. Other than meeting Zeke, this part of the story is rather boring. I longed for her to get back to the city. About three quarters of the way through the action picks up and the last few chapters are full of danger and excitement, so it is worth the wait.
- I was fascinated by the master vampire, Kanin, who created Allie. Unfortunately his character exits the story early on and does not return. I was disappointed by this because he was one of the most interesting characters and I wanted more of his story. At the end of the book it was clear that he will be back for book two and I hope it is a larger role this time.
Immortal Rules is a gritty and scary tale of vampires, rabids and humans trying to survive extinction. Fans of Iron Fey will be surprised to see the darker side of Julie Kagawa. I loved that she is such a talented and multi faceted author. Julie Kagawa has amazing world building skills that to me rival Stephen King. Leave any ideas of the Nevernever and the Fey behind as you plunge into this ravaged land of vampires and rabids. A world where only the strongest survive. Do you dare enter?
Favorite Quotations:
“The shadows lengthened like grasping fingers, sliding over the ground.”
“In this world, you were either strong, or you were dead. You did what you had to if you wanted to survive.”
“Sleepily, I gazed at him as the pain faded to a distant throbbing that belonged to someone else. Blackness crawled at the edges of my vision like a million ants.”
“I would not suffer anyone to endure the path I walk. My road must always be traveled alone.”
“I am too old to turn from my path,” he said, staring at something I could not see. “I cannot believe a demon has a soul, that it can be saved. This I will not believe. I will be lost if I begin to doubt...”
“the closer you got to someone, the more it would destroy you when they were inevitably gone.”
“Will you choose to become a demon with a human face, or will you fight your demon until the end of time, knowing you will forever struggle alone?”
