***SPOILER ALERT!*** 
 Rose's life becomes even more exciting. For starters, Strigoi are attacking in coherent, organized groups, slaughtering royalty and their guardians with frightening ease. Then, Rose's previously-absent mother appears--unwantingly for Rose--at the academy while the Moroi in the northwest gather to strategize defense. As if that weren't enough, her feelings for Dimitri, while returned, are constantly being rejected and turned down, as they have a duty to protect Lissa, and the risk of emotion cannot get in the way of that. 
 But does it end there? Not for Rose. Her friend, Mason, begins to show interest in her just as an old friend of Dimitri's shows feelings for him, causing even more chaos in Rose's heart. And all the while, she's lacking the company she sorely misses from Lissa, AND she's unwittingly witnessing Lissa and her new boyfriend take their relationship to the next level!