Bloodrose

audio-Shay, Ren and Calla-A triangle of love and history, and loyalty. Calla must save Ren, even if it hurts Shay. She is trapped in this place between both men, balancing on a tight rope. The lives of her fellow Guardians and the Searchers depend on them working through this. They will face the greatest danger, lives will be lost, hearts broken. The ending bittersweet.
This was not a nice easy closing of the series. It is gritty and 'real' in it's emotional delivery. I knew one of the major elements of the story (thanks to spoilers) before I read it and I was still surprised. I am glad I read it, Ms.Cremer, is a great storyteller.
3.5 stars

I was eagerly awaiting the third book in this series and praying that I wouldn't find out any of the plot's details till I was able to read the book myself. The second book for me dragged a little because of all the details that needed to be inserted, but I understood why they needed to be in there. Also I prefer Ren to Shay so I was a little wary of where this book would be taken. I was able to flip through the pages quickly as I was on the edge of my beach seat so into the book. The book had nonstop action that the readers will not be expecting all the turns that Bloodrose takes. In other books I can at times predict what is going to happen, but with this there were so many surprises that made the book enjoyable. Andrea Cremer knows her stuff when she brings elements, the latin and craft elements into the book. Her characters are strong and witty that the readers can't help to love, and stay true themselves through the whole series. The ending is still hitting me and a must read!

This book made me sad, I don't like love triangles right now because she didn't end up with the guy I wanted her too.

this book made me cry, sigh, and smile.. what an amazing ending to a beautiful, intense trilogy!

Review: I was so sad to get to the last book of this series. I couldn’t wait to get my hands on the book but I didn’t want it to be over so I tried to take my time. I couldn’t I rushed through it as fast as the audio would let me. I loved this last book. It was a bitter sweet end to a wonderful journey.Long story short :There isn’t much to say about the book’s plot. Readers have seen what’s coming. Nightshade started it and Wolfsbane prepared for it, now Bloodrose will end it. The final showdown, the final battle between Keepers and Searchers, each with wolves by their side. Loyalties have been changed and the packs divided. Now it is time to end it all. Calla will finally have to make a choice between Shay and Ren and become alpha.My thoughts :I loved the ending to this series. Well at the time it was the ending to the series. Now there is a fourth installment. I am happy about that but I am not sure which direction the book will take us. Bloodrose had a pretty closed ending, and ending I thought was fit for the series.This book definitely had my emotions all over the place. I was sad, happy, excited, confused, irritated, frustrated and so much more. The same beautiful writing style, the same awesome storytelling skills, and of course some really cool characters. I really wasn’t sure what the ending would look like and I never expected what I got. For sure the book was full of surprises and shocks.I must say that I think Calla frustrated me the most in this book. By the third book, she should know what she wants and make up her mind. The playing with both boys hearts really had me at wits end. I loved both boys. I started out liking Shay and Hating Ren… then I put up with Shay and I started to feel for Ren… in the end I loved them both. They both had their great qualities, their weaknesses, and a place in my heart. I knew in my heart who Calla should choose but it didn’t make it any easier for me. Sometimes I really thought Calla didn’t deserve either one of them. In the end Calla figured it all out and redeemed herself in my eyes.The other characters in the book are really the best characters for me.. Conner, Bryn, Ansel, and so many more. I love them all. I grew so close to each and every one of them and it broke my heart every time they were hurt. Andrea Cremer does not shy away from hurt, pain, broken hearts, and even death.I think this was a wonderful ending to a great storyIn the end :A roller coaster of a ride, so many twists and turns and heartache and joys. Loved it!

BloodRose, A NightShade Round Up

I won't lie; I have a mostly hate/hate relationship with the Nightshade trilogy. The heroine is tough as a frying pan with friends yet pliable like a rubber spatula in battle, both heroes are flying all over the pages and the world is falling out from beneath everyone as the Nightshade Trilogy closes up nice in a bloody package.

I've stated my distaste for the series from Book one, why did I continue? In hopes that it'd get better and hell, it's only three books, I could endure. I'll even let you in on a little secret; Bloodrose is by far, the best out of the three books. I'm not just saying this because of a 'Phew, so glad that’s over' reasoning, because even though part of me is feeling relief for that, but I honestly felt that Bloodrose breathed a little life into this otherwise lacking trilogy.

Point of Interest
There was a 6 month break between the release of Wolfsbane and Bloodrose so I half expected things to feel rushed and I like to point out grammar error on page 272:

"He gaze struck me as odd."

It’s placed about the Third paragraph down. I bought this book, (Gods yes, bought) relatively close after the release date so I don't know if future copies have been corrected, but go ahead, check it out. A relatively small mistake, but it’s something that should have been caught easily in editing.
Bloodrose picks up right where Wolfsbane leaves off, in the Haldis mountains in what was supposed to be the Haldis Pack's home. Calla finds Ren, coaxes him out of hiding with tender kisses and promises of love, and introduces him to his half-sister. Then they all go back to the academy for a heartfelt reunion and lemonade. What we ACTUALLY get is a testosterone battle between Shay and Ren and Calla insists she's choosing NEITHER until this war is through. She does, however, do a little manipulating of both men to keep them happy. Not fair to anybody, INCLUDING Calla. Nobody should feel the need to scrub themselves past the point of clean so that their ex doesn't catch the scent of their current boyfriend all over them. Ren should know that by letting Calla run off with Shay in the first place, that the two had a relationship that went beyond just "I'M PROTECTING HIM". Likewise, Shay should know by now the history behind Calla and Ren.

But as Calla states, Ren is her past, Shay is her future.

So I won't knock the girl for her choice, regardless of how I feel about either party.

I do feel as if though Ren's death was a cop out to her choices. Let’s forget that the guys attempted to make it for her, let’s forget that Calla fought for those reasons. By the spoiler stated above, it made Calla's choice, one that we knew she'd make, easy. We spent two and a half books pointing to Calla and Shay being the Alpha Pairing of Nightshade and now Ren is out of the way, permanently.

That said, Points to Andrea Cremer for actually being able to do this to one of her more popular characters, it's one of the things that I felt gave the trilogy life. With war comes casualties. I didn't expect everyone to survive. The only deaths we had been dealt were mostly behind the scenes like with Calla's mother or with minor characters we only just met like Monroe.


I felt more happened in this book then Wolfsbane. Calla stood her ground more, which was refreshing though there were still strong undertones of her going back and forth. I felt a little disheartened over only one of the original 5 Bane members to occupy Haldis surviving the whole ordeal. It felt similar to how Slytherians were viewed in Harry Potter. Most of them were bad or had evil intentions. This is despite the fact that it was written in Bloodrose that a few Bane members followed Nightshade to victory, Bane's were still viewed as bad.

On Topic of Casualties, Spoilers Ahoy!
Fey was the only Nightshade member of the original five to perish in the war at the jaws of Calla. Dax died in a similar fashion by Ren, Sabine gave up her wolf to Ansel, Ren died during the fight with Emile. Does anyone even remember Cossette? The youngest and shyest of the Bane pack who followed Sabine around? She's seen once in Wolfsbane and mentioned again which brought tears to Sabine's eyes. Her suicide is mentioned once in Bloodrose. There was no discussion with the other pack members about this. They mourned for the loss of Dax, Fey and Ren while Sabine mourned a little for the loss of herself. It could have been brought up off screen, I suppose, but with the deaths of so many other pack members, why wouldn't it have been brought up? Particularly with Sabine having an important role in the epilogue, I thought something would have been mentioned.

Honestly, while Calla appeared to be stronger in this novel, for me it was Sabine who shone brighter. She volunteered to be an intengril part of the plan given her history with the Bane's leader, Efron. She took out Efron too with a careful placement of claws to his throat and even spits on his corpse, TWICE. She then gives her wolf to Ansel. She feels like the Neville of Nightshade to me. Sabine sacrificed more in Bloodrose then Calla did in three novels. Most characters sacrificed more than Calla did in three novels.

Shay
With Ren around, he pretty much has moved away from harassing Calla about her EX, hell, with him around Shay gets to show off how hot his ego burns. Shay is by far my least favorite character in the trilogy. I get that he's supposed to be something like a Jack Dawson to Calla's Rose Dewitt Bukater, but with the direction Calla seemed to be headed, I suspected that she'd follow Rose's lead and head off on her own, find love elsewhere after so much loss and time. While he doesn't appear to be so pushy in this book, Shay spends most of his time spinning his swords and doing flips like Yuna in Final Fantasy 10-2. His parents being alive was a poorly executed plot twist as he gets a 10 minute reunion with them, they say about 10 words combined and haven't yet grasped what happened to their son.
Blood, Sweat and Teeth
Bloodrose didn’t go without its own rapidly climbing use of Flashing Fangs. Blood roaring or screaming in ears also took the cake for being over used.

Final Thoughts
As I've said, I liked this book far better the its predecessors. I feel as if the 6 months between the release of Bloodrose and Wolfsbane made for a hastily written ending to an otherwise mediocre series. It shines with Ren's death, Shay's parents and the Guardians turning into full on wolves.

Will I read Rift and Rise
No, the trilogy has ended for me. I'm not curious as to how this whole mess began because I felt like it was detailed enough in the first three books. I wouldn't have minded a novella explaining the events prior to the series, but a whole new series? Not a lot has been released about Rift and Rise, but I'm told that they center on Ren's mother. Personally, I think the need to know about Ren's lineage died with him.

Calla digs herself a hole when she decides she’s going to try to rescue Ren. She knows she will tick Shay off but tries anyway. Shay is learning what he has to do as Scion. He’s also trying to prove to Calla that he is capable of being her alpha mate. The wolf pack and Searchers overcome the obstacles thrown in front of them. Shay and Calla finally get all the information on what the Scion must do. Will Calla and Shay be able to stay together? Or will Cally lose Shay forever?

This final book in the Nightshade trilogy had me laughing at moments, but also had me in tears. Some great people leave us. There are also choices and sacrifices to be made by others. I’m happy to have read this series. I like that it mixed witches with wolves.

Sabine became my favorite in this book. She may be snarky, but she is loyal and will do what needs to be done without question.

I think the ending was great. There was a sense of peace to all those involved.

Predictable end. It's been about a day since I finished it and that is all I can really think about when looking back on it. There was the typical love triangle (which bugged me anyways) but I was hoping that while that was typical, Cremer would give us a twist for the end. But no, it was a typical ending for a typical love triangle. As a young adult book it was entertaining but beyond that I didn't get much out of the three books. It was engaging enough that I wanted to read the whole series and see what happened but now that I've read it I have no problem moving on. Props for the idea.

BLOODROSE has been sitting on my shelf for a while. I didn't want the series to end and, so, I was putting off reading it. I put it off long enough that I had to play catch-up figuring out which characters were wolves and which were Searchers. It didn't take long before I was up to speed and very involved again in the struggle to defeat the Keepers and the evil Bosque Mar.When the story begins, Calla is rescuing Ren and urging him to join with her wolves and the Searchers in the upcoming fight. Ren has always seen his Calla as his future mate and is eager to join. He is still coming to terms with the new things he is learning about his family. He has always hated his father Emile and knew that his father hated him too. He begins to understand it when he learns that his real father was a Searcher and that his mother was killed in an attempted revolt against the Keepers. He is also surprised that he has a sister among the Keepers - Adne. Having Ren join the fight causes problems for Calla though. Now she has to juggle her relationships with Ren and Shay. She loves both of them but in different ways. She grew up thinking that Ren would be her mate but meeting Shay caused her to look at her future in a new way. She feels especially guilty when Ren tells her that he loves her and can't imagine living without her. She has to keep the two boys from each other's throat and balance things without making a decision.The main focus of this story is protecting Shay as he gathers the pieces of the Elemental Cross which is needed to banish Bosque Mar from this world and seal the Rift that will keep him out. They travel to mountains in Switzerland, a cenote in the Yucatan, and a volcano in New Zealand to gather the pieces. They have to fight their way through Guardians under control of the Keepers at all the sites. Once they have all the pieces the real battle can begin in Colorado. All of the characters are tested to the limit and there are losses and recoveries. The book was filled with excitement, battles, and tough decisions. I really enjoyed this story and thought that the conclusion was perfect for this trilogy.

I finally was able to pick this book up and dive into it. From the very beginning, I fell in love with this series that sadly is now coming to an end.The plot line in this book, I have to say, was the best out of all three books. It was one that never made want to stop reading, and had me biting my nails for the final battle that would decide everything. Who was going to win? Well, for that answer, you will have to read for yourself.Okay, there is one thing that had me caught off guard. I was not expecting this to happen at all. I can't fully say I am happy with the way the love interest turned out but I am happy. I wish it ended differently but you can't always get what you wish for. I don't think I am the only person who may think this but who knows.Well the ending is approaching and as I am about to finish, something else happened. This book has a lot of stuff that I was not expecting. But thats what makes it a good book. I now wish the ending was different but, this book was one that left the ending open for interpretation. Was it good? Or did you wish it was different?This book unfolds the truths that weren't let out before, ties that were loose were not tightly swen. You also as the reader fall more in love with the girl who will make the hardest decision of her life. So what else can I say about this book but to go read it.I give this book 4 souls!

Review courtesy of Dark Faerie TalesQuick & Dirty: It is the beginning of the end, and Cremer has written an unpredictable and shocking finale. Opening Sentence: I could hear each heavy beat of my heart. The sound seemed to ebb from my veins out of my body, traveling across the empty space between the shimmering portal and the dark house. The Review: Bloodrose, the last book in the Nightshade trilogy, brings the reader to the edge of suspense and back. Bloodrose picks up almost exactly where Wolfsbane ended, and continues on this adventure. Tensions arise as alliances have been formed and lines drawn between enemies. The Searchers and the Keepers are aware of the looming battle, and unfortunately the Guardians have a clear division between the Nightshade and the Bane pack. But on the side of the Searchers, they have the Scion, Shay, to end the evil and dark creatures that Bosque Mar has summoned. Calla has suffered the consequences for her choices and actions, some more grave than others. But she still holds on to her belief that she is on the right side, along Shay and the Searchers. With Shay and the pack members that have joined her, they work with the Searchers to find the missing pieces to the Cross. They travel from place to place, battling unknown foes and uncovering pieces, not only for the sword but for the truth. There is still so much unknown, and they all depend on the success of each and every scouting mission. For Calla, there is more than one battle that she fights. Not only does she fight the battle of good and evil, but she battles the fight of love. She is torn between what she has known for most of her life and for the love that she feels for the future. Internal struggles bring her into this tug-of-war between Ren and Shay, both alphas in their own right, and both deserving of her love. Calla has grown in the three books, and I think she is the strongest in Bloodrose. Aside from whom she truly loves, she knows her strength as a wolf and as a person. She oozes with confidence and finds her wisdom in the darkest of hours. Shay is the Scion. If that isn’t worldly pressure, then I don’t know what is. Shay isn’t just focused on Calla anymore; he has a whole world and race to think about. The Searchers are his people, Earth and nature are what he needs to protect, and the Keepers and the Bane pack are what needs to be defeated. He has grown assertive and dominant, and I’m not sure if it’s a good thing. I felt love and hate for him, and often simultaneously. But like they say, with great power comes great responsibility, and apparently it goes for other things also. Ren is the third in the Nightshade trilogy love triangle. I’ve hated him, then loved him, and back again. I learned more about Ren in this book. I saw the more human and caring side of him. His story, yet beautiful, is what allowed me to accept him and also respect him. The details that Cremer wrote about him allowed my imagination to make him real. Ren definitely showed a different personality and one that brings him into your heart. There are many changes in the Cremer’s world. From Nightshade, to Wolfsbane, and now to Bloodrose, there is more history and lore involved. There are different environments and details that go into the storyline. It isn’t just where Calla grew up, but instead Cremer brings so many different elements that add to the suspense and intrigue of it all. I am unsure of what I feel in regards to the plot. I felt that there was a steady progression with the story that was leading to an epic battle. I felt that I was on the edge of my seat many, many times. The characters were involved, the scenes engaging, and the writing on point. But I wanted more, as I mostly do with many good stories. I felt that there were things left unsaid or things left undone. Notable Scene: “I know you don’t need me, Cal,” he said, moving his lips along my throat. “That’s why I love you. But I want you to know I belong beside you, with you. I may not have been the one chosen for you, but I want to be your mate. Your alpha.” His words jolted through me, an electric current of desire. He understood so much about who I was. What I wanted. How I lived and loved. Heat swirled through my limbs. I slid my hands beneath his shirt, running my fingers over the muscles of his back. He pulled his shirt over his head. My heart stuttered at the sight of his carved torso giving way to the cut of his hips, the rest of his body only covered by drawstring pajama pants. In the next moment I was pushing those down too. As the rest of my clothes peeled away, I buried lingering doubts. One night of bending my self-imposed rules to reassure Shay couldn’t hurt. Could it? Whatever the consequences, as Shay’s hands and lips moved over my body, I knew how foolish my question was. I hadn’t slipped into Shay’s room late at night to rid him of doubts about my feelings. I was here for myself. I twined my fingers in his hair, bringing his face close to mine. “I love you, Shay,” I said. “Always.”FTC Advisory: Philomel/Penguin provided me with a copy of Bloodrose. No goody bags, sponsorships, “material connections,” or bribes were exchanged for my review.

I have been anxiously awaiting Bloodrose since I finished Wolfsbane because Wolfsbane ends on a romantic cliffhanger. My absolute favorite part of this series is the love triangle between Shay, Calla, and Ren. It is so well written and intense. Many YA readers have strong opinions on who Calla should be with—including myself. While I didn’t get the romantic satisfaction I was looking for in Bloodrose, it was still packed with action and adventure and wrapped the series up nicely.Like Wolfsbane, Bloodrose takes place over a few short days. However, there is a lot that happens and it had me constantly turning the pages. Once the action starts, it doesn’t really stop until the book ends—it’s simply one quest after another. We don’t really unravel any additional mysteries because those were all revealed in Wolfsbane. The only additional things we find out are character motivations.Even though Bloodrose was hard to put down and really fast-paced, I can’t help but be a little disappointed. What I loved most about this series was the love triangle—and it more or less disappears in this novel. Calla basically makes up her mind at the beginning of the novel, and even though there are certain lapses from her initial decision, she sticks to it. It got rid of almost all of the romantic tension in the novel because we knew she had made her choice. As if that wasn’t bad enough—holy love triangle cop out at the end! I don’t want to say what happened because that would flat out ruin the book, but arghhh….I was not pleased. I wasn’t sad. I was just sitting there staring at the book saying “you’re kidding me right?” Way to take the extra easy way out after Calla already made a decision anyway.Even though I was disappointed with the love triangle in Bloodrose, I still highly recommend this series. Both Nightshade and Wolfsbane were incredibly well-written. The series takes place in a unique world shrouded with mystery and the love triangle is just unbelievably well done. If you’re a fan of paranormal romance, fantasy, or mystery this is one series you don’t want to miss.

I was really disappointed with this book. I did not like the ending, I think this is the worst book of the series. I loved Nightshade so much that I though that the next books were going to be really good, but the books went from best to worst. I thought that this was going to be a great series. I'm just really disappointed.

Fabulous Finale* Book will be released January 3, 2012* ARC read via Around The World ARC Tours5 out of 5 gnomesWow.....!!!!!!!!!!!!!! (this pretty much sums up my feelings when I finished the book.) My opinion has slowly become more coherent the more I've though about it though. This book actually left me speechless at the end, this ending will definitely have people talking.The quest to stop the Keepers in this book really feels epic in scope and all of the emotions raging around help skyrocket the tension. I love that there is more blending of the Guardians and the Searchers. I really liked the secondary characters more in this book then I did in Wolfsbane. Adne, Connor, and Ethan really grew on me as the danger increases for everyone.Calla has to be even more of a leader because she has so many people to watch out for. Her heart is still being pulled in multiple directions and she's still plenty worried about Ansel for obvious reasons. She deals with this as well as can be expected and still helps in the quest to complete a weapon that is their only hope.The love triangle is dealt with very well in the beginning of the book with Calla making some important decisions. Things tended to even out more in this book and I even found my Shay loving heart seeing that she really does have valid reasons for choosing either Shay or Ren. The conclusion of the triangle is shall we say intense and I do have to wonder if Calla is truly happy in the end.The world building, the crazy twists/turns, and the characters all equal a truly unique take on wolf mythology and these books all together make for a superb trilogy that I would recommend to anyone.Let me just reiterate again how awesome yet heartbreaking the ending is, it's the kind of ending where you may find yourself sobbing in a corner. I found myself hating it one second and then I felt like it couldn't have ended any other way. It even seems now that I look back that there are clues that it could end like this. This is one ending that truly has to be read to be believed.

I like stories that makes sense even if we consider it fantasy. Some authors try to wrap up the inconsistencies behind sexy scenes and hot men and honestly I find that a tad insulting to readers. Fans take notes and memorize dialogue and details that some might consider trivial. So when a smart book comes my way, I really feel appreciated as a reader and give a big round of applause for the author. I loved Nightshade and Wolfsbane but I never thought that I'd feel more than that for this book.There were no conflicts left unresolved and there certainly were a lot of Kleenex moments that my inner cheek felt raw from fighting back tears. All the anxiety of waiting was all worth it.

With my tbr pile getting so big, I decided to put book reviews aside for a bit and pick up book from my own tbr pile. The Nightshade series is one of my faves. Once I started the series I was done for. In ending the last and final book, I was nervous yet excited to read how it was all going to end.Let me start off by telling you there are some major changes to the story. The plot line is intense and never steers the reader off course. Instead, the reader is thrown into the world, set to fight a big battle. I love with each new chapter, secrets are exposed as well as loose ends tied up.The love interest. Now, I won't go too much into detail with this cause I do not want to spoil it. Am I happy with the love interest? Yes. Am I happy with the way it all went down. No. In fact, I was in shock with a particular scene. I had to put the book down and chill for a sec. I just...my mind could not grasp what had happen. It all happened so suddenly.And now the ending, while I am glad the book ended on a happy note, I am a bit disappointed with the way that it ended. I was hoping for a different ending. This one completely caught me off guard. I had not suspected it would end like this! Bloodrose is a dark and engaging story that leads the reader right to the battle. Once in the story, you are compelled to read till the end. With a a strong, resiliant, heroine, Bloodrose leads you to a ending that you will never forget.

I really enjoyed the final book in Andrea Cremer's Nightshade series. It is always nice to have a strong "alpha" type heroine to root for when reading a novel. So many times while reading other books I find myself exasperated with the same cliched heroines portrayed as weak and helpless only to find her strength in a "hero"Calla is a breath of fresh air to young women everywhere. She is strong, in charge and doesn't apologize for it! Even while heart heart is seemingly torn between 2 love interests she keeps her strength and backbone about her. I also appreciated 2 very dynamic alpha males in the story. So many times a love triangle has a bit of a weaker side, but Ren & Shay are very believable contenders in the bid for Calla's heart.The action is fast paced, the characters are memorable, & the ending has a unique and wonderful twist!

I was actually very disappointed in this book. How long can you drag out a love triangle? Apparently, the whole series. The first book was pretty good, and I enjoyed Calla, Ren, and Shay's interactions and the roles they played in the novel. I understood the point of the second book, which was to find the swords that make up the Scion's weapons...but there was so much emotional drama between Calla, Ren, and Shay that you couldn't really enjoy the adventure because every time one of the men kissed Calla or held her hand or whatever they did with her, she would feel terrible about it and we'd be dragged into her whole emotional cyclone again. It's a never ending circle of Calla, Ren, Shay....Calla, Ren, Shay.... In the third book, the secondary characters seemed to receive more of a personality boost while the main characters suffered from a personality flatline. There was nothing new that was brought to the book and no more character development for the main characters. It was more love triangle drama. I expected a sweet ending but knew that was possibly unlikely. And here goes with what happened...***SPOILER ALERT*** Throughout the whole series, we were made to understand that at the end, Calla would have to choose who she wants as her mate though we kind of already knew she chose Shay but that decision wasn't absolute. I kept thinking, "Cremer must be planning on killing off either Shay or Ren..." So I had already been planing for this possibility. Then BAM! Ren is dead....literally, it was that fast. There was no lead up, no epic battle...it was just a senseless loss of a main character but I guess it takes care of Calla having to make her own decisions, even though that was a big part of Calla, the fact that she always wanted to make the decision and not have someone else make it for her. *Sigh* Moving on, you know that Shay is the only one left for her, but then there is the possibility that he may not be with her because Shay has to seal the Rift and by doing so, it turns all the Guardians into their animals and makes it so they can't turn back into humans but Shay doesn't know which form he'll take, human or wolf because he was originally human but was turned by Calla. At the end, you find out that he turned into a wolf and left the mansion with Calla and the other wolves and they're living in the Haldis cave, eating a deer they just killed but it's sad that, though it wasn't stated or implied, they've been reduced to mere wolves after living a life with human intelligence. Although maybe they still have human intelligence? Guess you'll have to make up your own mind about the last paragraph.***END SPOILER***If you've already started the series, I'd encourage you to finish. However, if you haven't started the series, I'd say move on and look for another novel to read. The constant love triangle nonsense and Calla's inability to choose between Ren and Shay made this series an unenjoyable read for me.

This is the final book in the Nightshade trilogy by Cremer. She will be writing a prequel series of which the first book is called Rift, right now this is scheduled for release in August 2012. I thought this book was an excellent conclusion to this series; I loved the ending and thought it was such an appropriate and creative way to end the series.The search for the Scion's weapons is on. Calla, Shay, and Ren...along with the other Searchers and Guardians are on a quest to find the two swords that Shay needs to confront the Keepers. Then following that will be the epic battle to save the world from the Keepers' evil magic. Oh, and of course, there is a lot of boy drama between Calla, Shay, and Ren. I absolutely love Cremer's writing style, I can't quite pinpoint what it is that draws me into these books...but they are just so readable and engaging to me. I think part of it is the absolutely natural sounding and witty banter between the characters; it is so fun to read and so well done.I have a hard time saying that I really admire any characters in this book; they all do some really stupid things. For the first part of the book Calla was kind of...well...skanky. She made out with Ren, made out with Shay, made out with Ren some more...I had some trouble with this and had to roll my eyes at all of her drama. The way she strung those boys along was criminal...all supposedly for the good of the fight. But, Calla has never been a favorite of mine and I admit she had some truly tough decisions to make. So, despite her indecisiveness and skankiness I can turn a blind eye. At times the teen drama got to be a bit much for me, but it never went too overboard.What really blew me away was the plot and the complex world. I loved that this book had a heavy fantasy-type questing element to it. The group had to adventure through caves and traps to obtain the Scion's swords and it was incredibly well written and amazing to read about. The complexity of how the battle came together was also very interesting to read about and incredibly well done; it never got confusing or hard to follow despite the multitude of characters involved. It takes a great writer to make something that complex easy to follow.The other thing I absolutely loved was the ending. I won't say much about it, but I thought it fit beautifully with the tone of the story and was so happy that it was something different (and not something typical of a lot of the YA paranormal books out there). This was just such a well thought out and well put together series.Overall I really enjoyed this conclusion to the Nightshade series. It was surprising, complex, and very well put together. I enjoyed the complex world, the quest-like adventuring the characters went through, and the wonderful action scenes. I could have done without Calla's indecisiveness but I accept that that is a necessary evil of most of these YA paranormal books. I am curious as to what Cremer will come up with next in her prequel series.

A beautiful, stunning conclusion to the Nightshade trilogy. Once again, Andrea Cremer picks up Calla's story where the last one left one, this time with Calla back home in search of Ren to bring him back with her to the Searchers. With his charismatic qualities, Ren fits right in with the Searchers. However, all is not well as Ren and Shay start fighting over the male alpha position and over Calla herself, forcing her to take over as the sole alpha of the pack.Bloodrose is an action-packed novel whether the group is off in search of the pieces of the Elemental Cross or back in the Searchers' lair where Calla is keeping Ren and Shay away from each other's throats. To be honest, this was not my favorite novel in the series. I knew that there would be deaths and that I wouldn't always like the deaths, but I was wrong. Things went a little to well for the group. People are hurt badly, but the pack's blood will heal most injuries, excluding instant death, and the final battle finished pretty quickly. In hindsight, the longest journey was escaping from the Keepers, making book two my favorite of the three.My favorite part of the books is the characters. Andrea Cremer has brought to life one of the most fascinating casts of characters that I have ever read about. One of the guys, especially Connor and Mason, always has something witty to say. Calla is the strong, kickass alpha female with a vulnerable side to her. She has her broken little brother and his devoted girlfriend, who's also Calla's second. There is Ren: charismatic, hot, sexy Ren who is at a loss for how to win Calla. I love how he gets along with his newfound sister Adne. They are two delightful characters. I'm team Ren all the way. I tried, but I still can't connect with Shay. I know a lot of girls out there like him, but he's just not my guy.The ending left me with the feelings of sorrow and loss. I am so disappointed with how the love triangle ends. It feels unresolved. And yet, it is but a reflection of how the book ends: unresolved. We'll never know what exactly happens to the pack or what the Searchers will do now that the final battle is over, despite hints at what the future holds. Andrea Cremer is a talented writer. It takes skill to build a world like the one in the Nightshade trilogy and wrap up a story the way she does. While Bloodrose is not my favorite novel, I still love the trilogy overall, and I will definitely be on the lookout for more works by her in the future.

Calla knows saving Ren will make Shay very unhappy. But she loves him too and strongly believes he is needed if they are to defeat The Keepers. Now with Ren, the Scion and the Elemental Cross they march into the final battle - with hope that they'll make it out alive and in victory.Loved this book! Bloodrose was at the top of my list for most anticipated books of 2012 and it has definitely lived up to the waiting and anticipation. One of my favorite things about the story is that we get to see more of Ren and the triangle that he, Calla and Shay create. The story will give you an adrenaline rush, especially in the last 100 pages or so. The action was awesome. There were a few things that I didn't like so well - but they are big spoilers. I will say that I'm sad to see this part of the story coming to an end. Bloodrose is a great end to this trilogy.

MY THOUGHTSABSOLUTELY LOVED ITNo way around it: SPOILER ALERTARGHHHH -- NO MORE NIGHTSHADE. Ok, now that it is out of my system, I can try and write this review, but how to keep it spoiler free?The conclusion of the Nightshade trilogy left me wanting more, but satisfied with the ending since I got what I wanted. I know I don't hold the popular position with a lot of readers since I didn't care for Ren. Calla drove me up the wall at times since she couldn't make up her darn mind about which one she wanted. For one that is supposed to be a leader, she didn't seem able to decide one way or the other until the very end, when I guess when it was most important. She did show some leader like skills when she force Ren and Shay to pretty much fight for her affections and keep them both from becoming liabilities.The story starts out by setting the stage for an epic battle to be fought between the Keepers with the Guardians at their side and Calla right behind Anika. Shay has come into his own powers both as a wolf and a mage as the Scion. There are several trials the trio must go through in order to capture key components necessary for the group to succeed and the struggles and demons they each face will only make them stronger as a group. There are some serious page turning moments and once you start, you won't be able to put this book down.You could probably hear me yelling at Ren begging him to not be so annoying and for Shay to grab that golden ring that is Calla. Yes, there, I have said it: Team Shay. I fell in love with Shay's humor and personality while thinking Ren was just a giant alpha wolf and nothing more. There were some really interesting twists in the plot that were truly amazing. I am still thinking about the worlds Cremer has created and can't wait to see what she comes up with next.

Bloodrose, you've broken my heart. But I can't say why because I don't want to give anything away. While I'm happy with the way this series has ended overall, I'm not entirely happy about some of the paths this book took to get to that ending.Now, even keeping that heartbreak in mind I'd have to say of the three books in this series, Bloodrose is my favorite. I don't remember Nightshade very well, except a feeling of dislike towards Shay. Wolfsbane was very good, but this was the most fun book in the series. Cremer sends you on a quest with these characters, in which they're retrieving the last three pieces of Shay's Cross weapon. And boy let me tell you, Cremer is not afraid to do what needs to be done with her characters. So prepare yourself for some hard spots for these guys. The writing was done so well that I even felt like I was in those locations with everyone.In terms of the love triangle, there is of course a decision made, and was clear early on what that decision would be before Calla even did anything to really confirm it. This I will also not say because I don't want to spoil that for anyone. It was nice seeing even more of the new characters from Wolfsbane. This book only cemented my love of Conner, Ethan, and Adne. I did miss Monroe, because even though he was only around for a little while, he did leave an impression.I have to say, honestly, the last battle was not quite what I thought it'd be. It just seemed a little less than what all the build-up throughout the book was pointing towards. Stuff happens, and believe me, depending on which team you're on, you'll probably be crying at one point. I know I did. I was shocked by that twist, though I guess it had to happen. Then once the final battle is won, there's another twist. I wasn't sure I liked how it ended at first, but after more thought I decided it was perfect. Though a little sad, since Shay recovers something, only to lose it minutes later.Seriously, Bloodrose is an explosive end to series that I've come to love. I felt truly sad when I realized that this was it. I've gotten to know these characters, so I'm sure I'll reread these books many times to revisit them. I recommend this of course for fans of the series, but also just for fans of werewolves in general, whether you read YA or not. Andrea Cremer is an excellent writer, and I will read anything she writes in the future.