Review: Infinite Days by Rebecca Maizel
Author: Rebecca Maizel
Series: Vampire Queen (#1)
Release Date: August 3, 2010
Pages: 325
Rating: 5/5 Owls
Summary
"Throughout all my histories, I found no one I loved more than you...no one."
Those were some of Rhode's last words to me. The last time he would pronounce his love. The last time I would see his face.
It was the first time in 592 years I could take a breath. Lie in the sun. Taste.
Rhode sacrificed himself so I, Lenah Beaudonte, could be human again. So I could stop the blood lust.
I never expected to fall in love with someone else that wasn't Rhode.
But Justin was...daring. Exciting. More beautiful than I could dream.
I never expected to be sixteen again...then again, I never expected my past to come back and haunt me...
Review
Tired of incessantly predictable vampire novels rife with love triangles?
Then this book is for you!
Hi, my name is Hayden, and I just read a book called Infinite Days.
My ultimate goal today is to get you to want to read this book. If my catchy hook at the top of this review didn't grab your attention, hopefully the rest of this review will.
Section 1: I Can't Believe It's Not Like Every Other Vampire Book!
Yes, folks, it's true. This book is actually unique. I know this word isn't paired with many books of its kind, but I think it applies here.
I know, I know! I was surprised, too!
Infinite Days distinguishes itself from the crowd in many ways. Here are just a few:
1) The book features the mean, evil vampires we don't see many of these days. Most of the vampires we catch glimpses of are Twilight-y and sparkly and nice. Not this time, folks! These vampires are bloodthirsty and evil.
2) The absence of a love triangle, which I will cover in further detail later.
3) The heroine actually possessing a brain. Turns out, she's a 500-some-odd year-old vampire and the beginning of the novel is filled with -- *gasp* --intelligence! Something practically unheard of in the world of YA! Used to "he went here" and "she did that"? Fear for your brain cells no longer! This book will make you smarter rather than dumb you down.
4) Lenah doesn't want to be a vampire. Yes, that's right. You heard me correctly. No more "Bite me, Edward"'s. Lenah hates vampires. Even though one of her loves is one, she still didn't want to be a vampire. This part requires a bit more explaining (see Section 3).
Section 2: Love Triangle 2.0
Tired of love triangles? Yet again, Maizel delivers, yet I'm not sure everyone is going to be so happy about this one. Lenah, our main character, has been alive for 500-ish years, so obviously, she's had her fair share of romance, and odds are she hasn't spent all 500 years with one person. She's engaged in a love pentagon of sorts. As the novel progresses, she crosses some of those corners off, but she's in quite a sticky situation.
This might bug some people, how it makes Lenah seem very Mary Sue-ish, but I don't think she is. She's very smart, and she's aware of that. For goodness' sake, she was a vampire. She knows she's smart. She's not a shy and docile type heroine, which is refreshing.
Section 3: Synonyms
This is probably my favorite thing about Infinite Days. If I had to choose one word to describe Infinite Days, it wouldn't be unique. Although that word does apply, it's not the main one I would use. That word is unconventional. From the get-go, we are thrown face-first into a dilemma: Lenah wakes up naked on a floor, disoriented, not sure what's up. It turns out she has been transformed from a vampire back into a human. Her vampire lover, Rhode, went through a complex ritual to restore her to her original state. Soon after, she's enrolled in a boarding school and meets some interesting people.
I love how a lot of things are different than normal about the book. Maizel really knows how to add emotion to scenes: in one, I nearly began crying, even though it was only a page or two. I really felt for the characters.
In conclusion, I'll hop to the conclusion of the book. The book ends on such a massive cliffhanger. It was absurdly awful. I would be ranting a lot more right now, rather than being so calm, if there wasn't an excerpt from Stolen Nights in the back. ;) That excerpt gave resolution to the cliffhanger, so now I'm happy.
Overall, Infinite Days was a refreshingly unconventional book. I really enjoyed it, and I think you will, too!
(Hopefully, this review worked and you want to read the book now. Just sayin'.)
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