4.5 stars 
 This was an improvement over book one, but still not perfect. I can't really find any particular passages I liked, so I'm kind of thinking this book did the literary equivalent of compulsion on me, otherwise known as the spark. 
 Nevertheless, there were more good than bad things about this book. Despite her acquisition of what my sister calls a "man-harem," Rose had better things on her mind in this book that to disrespect anything and everything and it helped me get a bit more into the world of this series than last book, despite the fact that there is still no explanation for why the vampires are Russian or all the names and whatnot. Rose was not the greatest character but I felt a lot more sympathetic toward her in this book than the last one. 
 I put my hands on my hips. "Look, I'm just grumpy, okay? Didn't get much sleep. Besides, I'm not like you. I don't have to be polite all the time." 
 That was me yesterday. 
 I was also really blown away by the ending. Not the ending ending but the climax-ness. 
 I don't know, but there was something about how it catches you off guard. 
 However, Rose's love life also grows during this book and one of the parts that really annoyed me was Adrian. He - like most of the older Moroi guys - is sexy and dangerous and smokes, calls Rose "little dhampir" and the moment they meet telling her he needs a guardian and hinting not-so-subtly that it could be her. Not only that, but after one meeting - despite "dating" Mason despite a lack of love (the trope!) - she dreams about Adrian. Dreams! The trope! 
 You know what, Adrian reminds me a lot of Anatole Kuragin from Natasha, Pierre and the Great Comet of 1812. 
 He's sexy, dangerous, stupid, and yet the heroine falls in love with him at first sight without any thought. 
 Granted, Rose is a bit smarter than Natasha in some respects, but a great deal of YA heroines could learn from her mistakes. 
 Otherwise, a good sequel.