Blue Bloods by Melissa De La Cruz (Blue Bloods #1)

Released: May 1st, 2006

Publisher: Hyperion 

Pages: 302

Rating: 5/5

Schuyler Van Alen has never fit in at Duchesne, her prestigious New York City private school. She prefers baggy, vintage clothes instead of the Prada and pearls worn by her classmates. But when she turns fifteen, Schuyler’s life changes dramatically. The death of a popular schoolmate haunts her in unexpected ways.  And strangest off all, Jack Force, the most popular boy in school, is showing a sudden interest in her.

Once an outcast, Schuyler is thrust into Manhattan’s most exclusive social circle.  Its members are the powerful, the wealthy, and – as Schuyler soon discovers – the unhuman.

They are Blue Bloods, an ancient group of vampires, and for centuries they’ve been invincible. Now something is preying on this elite group, and Schuyler wants to find out the truth.  But is she the most vulnerable of them all?

I LOVED this book! I seriously regret not picking this novel up sooner. I have been putting off this book for a while, I think all of the misleading reviews have put me on edge. It didn't help that this book is described as an average tale of rich vampires of New York City. But what I found in this novel was a complete different take on vampires. However Melissa De La Cruz offers an original twist on this topic: the Vampires are known as 'Blue Bloods' and they're part of the New York elite. They're rich, young, beautiful and popular. Thought to be immortal, their world is shattered when one of them is found murdered.

The main character is Schuyler, who has always felt like a misfit at school. She finds out early on that she is a Blue Blood and the novel shows how she comes to terms with this. Her mother lies in a coma and Schuyler knows little about her family background. Slowly, we find out more about this and this keeps the reader interested throughout. Schuyler is a very likeable main character and I am sure many teen girls will be able to relate to her.

The novel uses several different narrators throughout which I found interesting. It would often leave one character's story on a cliffhanger for several chapters, but this wasn't a problem as the other characters are also interesting and well developed. Bliss was one of my favourites. She's moved to New York recently and finds herself friends with the elite popular girls. However, she struggles with this, as she would like her own independence and individuality.The novel was reasonably original. The vampires are rich and elite so it showed a glamorous view of them. Teen girls would also like the many references to fashion and celebrity life but this does mean that it will date quickly.

The novel does contain some romance but this isn't the main focus. Instead it concentrates on themes such as friendship groups and peer pressure. It is a fast-paced book and has a lot more action and dialogue than description so I think it would keep most teen readers interested, as well as many adults. There are plenty of twists and turns along the way as the mystery of the murder is unfolded.

This was a definite page-turner for me and I would happily read more in this series, but be warned - the book is left open-ended and you'll probably be pressed into buying the next in the series.