Stacking the Shelves (4) : A look at Some New (and Old) Releases

**"Stacking the Shelves" is run by Tynga @ Tynga's Book Reviews and I'm linking up with some of the great books I found this week.**

Hey Guys,

I hope you're all doing well! Thank-you for joining me in another Stacking the Shelves update. This week, I got my hands on some darling delicacies as well as a few irresistible childhood loves. School is back in session, so that means no ARCs or author/publisher provided reads; I've got to hit the books hard, and not those of my preference. I actually ended up returning stacks of books to the library, simply because my mom is having nothing less than A's from me this semester! I had to say goodbye to:

No! My pretties...

Come back to me!

:'( *Sigh* Hopefully you can make out the names of the books on their spines because writing them all down would not only be tedious, but saddening. These are the lost ones. A moment of silence, please?

They shall be missed. 

It hurt to say goodbye, and a few librarians probably thought I was a looney to be returning them all at once, but it had to be done. I'll be reading still, but mom and I have a deal that little library loans as possible will be taken out during the school term. I can read the books I own, but little else non-academic. Now don't get me wrong, my mother supports my reading habit in an incredibly BIG way; most of the money that I use on books comes from her pocket, and this could never be possible without her, because for starters, she taught me how to read. So I get it; the need to push me is all so that I succeed, my parents love me and this is why those books had to make a direct exit stage right. To make it up to me though, she let me buy: 

**Sabrina: The Magic Revisited by Tania Del Rio**

**Starling by Lesley Livingston**

**Enshadowed by Kelly Creagh**

**The Rise of Nine by Pittacus Lore**

**Alice's Adventures in Wonderland and Other Stories by Lewis Carroll, John Tenniel**

Note: Enshadowed was pre-ordered and finally arrived, Sabrina came from an Abebooks extension of BookDepository, and Alice was an awesome find on Barnes and Nobles! The pink on the hardcover of Alice is to die for, the lovely gold accents making this book a keeper. All in all it was a great week for reading; see why I love my mother? She is amazing, I hope everyone meets someone as loving as she is.

But without further adieu, that is it, my stacking the shelves entry is complete! I'll be back next week, but 'till then, respond in the comments below with your weekly conquests and I will be sure to reply and visit you in turn :)

I love you guys! XX Lots of love,

Review: Vampire Academy: The Graphic Novel by Richelle Mead

Vampire Academy: The Graphic Novel by Richelle Mead

My rating: 4 of 5 genies

Genre: YA+, Graphic Novel, Vampires, Magic, Paranormal, Action, Romance

Published: August 23, 2011

Illustrator: Emma Vieceli

Pages: 144

Publisher: Razorbill

Source: Purchased

Format: Paperback

Goodreads Summary

After two years on the run, best friends Rose and Lissa are caught and returned to St. Vladimir’s Academy, a private high school for vampires and half-bloods. It’s filled with intrigue, danger—and even romance.

Enter their dark, fascinating world through a new series of 144-page full-color graphic novels. The entire first Vampire Academy novel has been adapted for book one by Leigh Dragoon and overseen by Richelle Mead, while the beautiful art of acclaimed British illustrator Emma Vieceli brings the story to life.

My Thoughts

So this graphic is pretty much perfect. Pretty much, meaning that I'd change the pace to something much slower since the story is pretty quick. Then again it is a graphic and can't be as long as the novel itself. 200+ pages is decent for any graphic, length-wise, so there aren't many grievances there, I honestly enjoyed it! The characters seemed very true to themselves and were fabulously drawn.

That is except Lissa. I hate how pale she seemed! So what if she's a vampire?! She's supposed to be super-model glamorous and Lissa just wasn't and neither was Christian. They were alright and a far cry from the hotness described in the books, I was kind of disappointed. Also Rose's eyes were tiny! I loved how her figure was drawn - perfect to my imagination - but her eyes were miniscule peas. Shootness! I was appalled. How could the fabulous artists of this ultra-cool graphic capture sumptuous curves and fail at eyes?? Man, it still puzzles me.

Luckily... there was Dimitri!!! WOOT. WOOT. Ladies, if any of you are even mildly as creepy as me when it comes to their fictional crushes and visualizing them and if Dimitri Belikov happens to be near the top of that list? This book is so for you. Wow, he was beautiful...and perfect...and all I imagined him to be.

Haha, so while every book has its weaknesses, it also has its own major plus points. The important thing, is that the positives by far outweigh the negatives. Luckily, this is very much the case! Beware of that steamy half-naked scene, but otherwise this one isn't a V.A. addition to be missed. Get it!