September 18, 2013

NOVELLA REVIEW: Homecoming (Vampire Academy #6.5)

Homecoming (Vampire Academy #6.5), by Richelle Mead
(Part of the anthology, Foretold, edited by Carrie Ryan)
Published August 28, 2012
Publisher:  Delacorte Books for Young Readers
Format: hardback, borrowed from the library
Genre:  paranormal romance
To Buy: Amazon * Barnes & Noble

Rating:  5 STARS

(From Goodreads) Homecoming is about Rose and Dimitri, the couple from Richelle Mead's Vampire Academy series.They are going back to Russia to see Dimitir's family, something that both of them sorely need. Dimitri had finally been restored into a dhampir, after being forcibly changed into strigoi. his family needs to see him for themselves, and Rose needs to go back to Russia and face her trauma from the trip she made before.

So, I was on Richelle Mead's blog a little while ago reading a post about the new Vampire Academy movie and the books, and she happened to post this little tidbit:


And, I was like, "What the WHAT?" A Vampire Academy novella that takes place after the last book? How is it that I didn't know about this sooner? Here I thought I was a crazy VA/BL fangirl who knew it all. So, what did I do? I immediately went to my library and checked it out. I couldn't wait another day knowing there was a piece of Rose and Dimitri's story out there that I had missed. 

Homecoming is included in the anthology, Foretold, 14 Tales of Prophecy and Prediction. It's rather short, even as far as novellas go, at only 40 pages. In it, Rose and Dimitri travel to see his family in Russia. You might remember that he never had a chance to go see them after the events in Spirit Bound (Vampire Academy #5). Rose had a chance to meet them all while she was there during Blood Promise (Vampire Academy #4), though. While there, Rose and Dimitri are called upon to rid the area of a nasty strigoi. 

Honestly, it doesn't get much better than this. The way that Rose and Dimitri are together now that they're officially together is just so satisfying and sigh-inducing. They still bicker and snark at each other. Rose jokes around with him. Dimitri chastises her. It's them and yet... it's not. In addition to what we've come to expect, Dimitri is tender and romantic. There's talk of marriage and forever stuff. There's concern for each others' safety. It's exactly how I pictured they would be together once they really got used to being in a relationship. 

And, of course there's some kick ass action. Rose and Dimitri have always fought well together, perfectly complementing each others' moves. It was like a bit of nostalgia reading about them battling a bad guy together again. They're joined by Mark, who Rose met in Blood Promise, and is also a former Guardian. 

If you are a Vampire Academy fan, you really need to read this novella. It won't take you long, but the payoff is totally worth it. Now, we all need to ban together and convince Richelle to write about a certain wedding...

2 comments:

Rose1026 said...

Hello, my name is Rose. I am a big fan of the VA series. I was disappointed that Richelle had ended Rose and Dimitri's romance abruptly. I had felt that they needed to work on their relationship and was eager to see how that would go, along with their guardian jobs...as well as the controversy of having a serious relationship with another dihampire. I first started reading them when I was in high school, and throughout college I just had to reread them. I had read the short novella about Rose and Dimitri's trip to Russia- it wasn't long enough to satisfy me- but it was wonderful and just like that, I was addicted again! I never know what quite to expect with these two characters, and that is what gets me so hooked! PLEASE continue this mini novella with a wedding...or another book added to VA for Rose and Dimitri. It would mean so much to me and so many other readers.

Rose1026 said...
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