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Sep 11, 2013forbesrachel rated this title 4 out of 5 stars
The plot of Bloodfever does not advance much, and few of the main questions are addressed; like Alina's death, who the Lord Master is, what Barrons is, etc. This is done in favour of building up its characters, especially Mackayla; a necessary step in preparation for the coming volumes. Essentially, book one was about Mackayla losing her place in the world, while book two is about her finding her new place in it. She may be more insecure, and still unsure of her identity, but as she learns about her powers, she becomes more grounded in her reality. As she herself changes, the frequency of her amusing remarks grows (ex. "blood and green goo are no friends of detergent" pg 24). Whereas Darkfever focuses on setup, this one focuses more on building relationships between the characters. Mackayla's reactions to the idea of romance are priceless. So many girls want to get swept away by a hot, mysterious, or brave male, but she backs away from these. She notes that she is part of "sex is just sex generation" pg 38, but has come to realize that she wants something more worthwhile, a true love type romance. The men that surround her, especially the death-by-sex Fae V'lane, do not match this ideal. She acknowledges that the things these guys do are what someone reading the romance genre would love, but calls them out for what they are; a particularly interesting view coming from a character in a cross-genre urban fantasy/ romance title. It makes her all the more likable, because she is not playing hard to get, but is hard to get. At the same time she is also a bit of a hypocrite, completely denying any potential feelings she has for Barrons. Barrons becomes more mysterious, getting a new roster of powers, while continuing to have those spells that make him act... different is the only way to describe it, as the author has yet to reveal what he is. There is the slightest hint that he too is changing, becoming more conscientious of Mac's state of mind. He is also starting to get possessive towards her, and is very irritated any time she has anything to do with V'lane. V'lane, who becomes a more prominent character certainly cannot understand her. He is fascinated by her, and so tries to teach her about the Seelie culture to a degree, his alien qualities are what inhibits trust between them though. Lastly, Mackayla meets Rowena, head of the sidhe-seers, and immediately they butt heads. Rowena will do whatever she can to stop the Fae, but that includes risking the lives of others. Mackayla is learning that she needs to hold onto this human quality, or risk turning into more of a monster than the Unseelie are. In her diary she nicely sums up these key players, and how she fits into the scene, certainly all want to use her for their own purposes. She quickly picks up on the evade and interrogate style of speech that they all use, and answers do trickle her way. Other characters are given brief introductions, but for now their roles are unknown. Once again near the end, Mackayla does something to place herself in danger, and more so than last time, a few lessons are knocked into her. At last, the Maullece thread gets tied up, and then, the author leaves things on a cliffhanger.