Review: The Ruby Circle by Richelle Mead

The Ruby Circle (Bloodlines #6) by Richelle Mead

Steph's Rating: 3.5 stars

Overall Rating: 3.5 stars

Format: E-book

Publisher: Razorbill

Publication Date: February 10th, 2015

Pages: 348

Goodreads Synopsis: 

Sydney Sage is an Alchemist, one of a group of humans who dabble in magic and serve to bridge the worlds of humans and vampires. They protect vampire secrets—and human lives.

After their secret romance is exposed, Sydney and Adrian find themselves facing the wrath of both the Alchemists and the Moroi in this electrifying conclusion to Richelle Mead’s New York Times bestselling Bloodlines series. When the life of someone they both love is put on the line, Sydney risks everything to hunt down a deadly former nemesis. Meanwhile, Adrian becomes enmeshed in a puzzle that could hold the key to a shocking secret about spirit magic, a secret that could shake the entire Moroi world.

Steph's Review: *Minor Spoilers!*

The Ruby Circle is a solid ending to the Bloodlines spin-off series. It was a bit shorter than I expected (in comparison to Vampire Academy's Last Sacrifice at least) but for the most part I think Richelle Mead did a pretty good job of wrapping up Adrian and Sydney's story. That being said, this received a 3.5 from me because I felt some parts were truly phenomenal, while other parts were either rushed or just fluffy additions to the book that wouldn't really have changed the outcome to the series.

The whole center of this story revolves around finding Jill and the whole mouse chase that Adrian and Sydney are led on in order to solve the mystery of her kidnapping. The first few chapters were a bit of a slow start in my opinion, and I had a harder time getting into this book that the previous books in the series. This is largely the fluff of the story and to me it felt like it was a long drawl of things we already heard before: old, recurring problems (relationship problems and Adrian problems!) cast once more in the light again that could have been compressed to leave a bit more room for the engaging final climax and action that definitely can be dropped into the phenomenal bucket. Adrian's POV during this period was a bit on the infuriating side to read. Once you get past the slow start and our characters seem to get their acts together, The Ruby Circle flies off the page is pretty much everything we love about Richelle Mead. There was still a little fluff sprinkled around, but the twists and turns and suspense and shocks that are part of nearly every one of her books make their appearance here as well. 

For those who have missed Rose and Dimitri from VA, the dashing couple take on a more significant role in this book than the previous five. And yes, we do finally get to know the shocker of Dimitri's parentage (fluff, but oh so interesting fluff). I missed their faces and I thought giving them a more prominent role in The Ruby Circle was a good idea on Mead's part because it gave a more satisfying conclusion to the entire VA world rather than only just Adrian and Sydney's chapter. Had it been solely the latter, I'm sure I would have felt like I was still dangling on a precipice, because I would be wondering what the other beloved characters were up to. And speaking of a satisfying ending...the most squeal-worthy portion of The Ruby Circle would definitely have to be that epilogue. Oh. My. Gosh. *winks*. 

With the sixth book of Bloodlines and the twelfth in the Vampire Academy World, it is time for me to sigh and close the cover on this series...for now. I felt like there were still several unanswered questions left hanging in the air about the intricacies Richelle created in The Ruby Circle that she could possibly turn into openings for another series. Whether she will act on those or not, I do not know, but I contently await her upcoming books!