At St. Vladimir's, Rose and Lissa's lives have gone back to normal. With help from medication Lissa's mood seems to have stabilized and with all the extra training, Rose has caught up with her classmates despite having missed two years worth of instruction. 
 Rose has an important Guardian test but before she could undergo assessment she and Dimitri stumble upon the site of a massive Strigoi attack. In the name of safety, the school decide to go to an exclusive ski resort for the holidays to get out of the way of the Strigoi assassins. But things are anything but safe on the slopes. Rose's mother arrives with the Moroi she protects and a strange Royal keeps popping up everywhere Rose turns. To top it off Rose finds herself battling her feelings for Dimitri and protecting her friends from the Strigoi... and from themselves. 
 I loved the first one book in the series and this was a great follow-up. Rose is just as feisty and strong. Lissa's entertaining and I liked the development of her powers, her relationship with Christian and her accepting her position amongst the Moroi as the representative for the Dragomir Royal Family. 
 This book is a lot more concerned with the politics of the race as well as their evil enemy, the Strigoi, with less attention paid to the dynamics of high school. I liked how the series is progressing and I can't wait to read the third book however I missed Rose interacting with the rest of the students at St. Vladimir's. 
 In terms of action - this book had a lot. There was a lot of violence, murder and a fantastic fight scene towards the end of the book that near broke my heart. I loved the new characters of Tasha and Adrian who were introduced and I can't wait to read the next book to see what we find out next - about the world of the Vampires and about just what happens next in Rose's life romantically.