Review: The Indigo Spell (Bloodlines #3) – Richelle Mead

The Indigo Spell by Richelle Mead
Series: Bloodlines #3
Published by Penguin on 12 February 2013
Genres: Contemporary, Paranormal Romance
Pages: 416
Source: Kindle Purchase
Buy on Amazon |

Sydney and Adrian have to work together on several fronts, and Sydney learns a lot more about witch-craft than she ever thought she'd be comfortable with. As her unease with the Alchemists and their belief-system grows, she meets a renegade ex-Alchemist and has to perform a very difficult task for him in order to show where her loyalties lay. Towards the end, she has a very important decision to make, and she is thrown for a loop in more than one way.

Oh, Adrian, how you grew in The Indigo Spell, I start to understand those who loved you dearly in Vampire Academy better and better with each Bloodlines book! Sydney also made some changes in The Indigo Spell, she understood more about the Alchemists, and also more about her own powers. It was really wonderful to read about the new adventures our merry little gang of vampires, dhampirs and alchemists went through. Both Sydney and Adrian continued to grow, as they had started to already in The Golden Lily.

After the whole Who is Marcus Finch posts in the weeks prior to The Indigo Spell being released, I thought he would be a lot more present than he was. And I also thought he would be a strong character. I did not find Marcus to be very strong, charismatic, yes, but he is not a true leader in my opinion. Sydney on the other hand has both the brains and the courage to do great things in the future. Even when the odds were stacked against her, she would do what was necessary to help others, sometimes she did something that was dangerous to herself, but she would never give up.

The fact that Sydney continued to question what she always thought she knew, and that she went looking for answers herself when nobody wanted to tell her anything to help her make sense of her questions is one of the things that made me like her character even more in The Indigo Spell. I loved how she was able to let go of her negative body-image, and embrace her feminity, even if she felt a little awkward as well.

There was also a very well-organized vampire wedding, where lots of characters from the Vampire Academy novels were present. Sydney and two other alchemists were invited, and Syndey had to be careful to show her disgust for the Moroi – which worked very well until a certain, handsome vampire asked her to dance.

Syndey had to use her witchcraft a lot more in The Indigo Spell, and the way she is progressing there is nothing short of amazing. Her training, and being in an environment different from her usual one where she had to dispose of Strigoi is partly what has made her grow so much, and I find myself liking her more and more. The ending was perfect! It is not a cliffhanger, but definitely will make Sydney’s life a lot more complicated in The Fiery Heart.

If you like Richelle Mead’s vampire world, The Indigo Spell is a must-read. If you are looking for a quick, exciting and fun read, but are unfamiliar with this series, you should start with Bloodlines – or even better, with the Vampire Academy series – as I think it’s a little difficult to follow the story and the plot if you don’t know who the characters are. As always, the writing is spot-on, the pacing is just right, and my cravings for a good story were sated.

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