Title: Silver Shadows (Bloodlines #5)
Author: Richelle Mead
Release Date: July 29, 2014
Publisher: Razorbill
Pages: 416
Source: Bought

Overall: 5 Stars

Summary:

Sydney Sage is an Alchemist, one of a group of humans who dabble in magic and serve to bridge the worlds of humans and vampires. They protect vampire secrets—and human lives.
 
In The Fiery Heart, Sydney risked everything to follow her gut, walking a dangerous line to keep her feelings hidden from the Alchemists.
 
Now in the aftermath of an event that ripped their world apart, Sydney and Adrian struggle to pick up the pieces and find their way back to each other. But first, they have to survive.
 
For Sydney, trapped and surrounded by adversaries, life becomes a daily struggle to hold on to her identity and the memories of those she loves. Meanwhile, Adrian clings to hope in the face of those who tell him Sydney is a lost cause, but the battle proves daunting as old demons and new temptations begin to seize hold of him. . . .
 
Their worst fears now a chilling reality, Sydney and Adrian face their darkest hour in this heart-pounding fifth installment in the New York Times bestselling Bloodlines series, where all bets are off. 

My Thoughts:  
After The Fiery Heart played havoc on my heart by ending with a cliffhanger, I was impatient to get my hands on a copy of Silver Shadows. I had no doubt Richelle Mead would deliver another amazing installment in the Bloodlines series, but I just had to know how Adrian and Sydney would find a way to be together again. Silver Shadows was everything I hoped it would be and more, and I absolutely loved that the novel was narrated in dual perspectives!

After the Alchemists discovered Sydney and Adrian's forbidden relationship, they have taken her away to one of their re-education facilities against her will. To the Alchemists, she has committed a horrible crime: falling in love with a vampire. However, Sydney can no longer blindly follow the doctrines of the Alchemists anymore... and the only way she'll ever possibly taste freedom again is if she can survive her re-education.

I absolutely admired Sydney's strength and resilience in Silver Shadows. She never gave up hope that she would be reunited with Adrian, even when she had every right to crumble under the duress she faced. I don't think I could ever endure what the Alchemists did to her and keep my sanity. Sydney's only hope for rescue lies in finding a way to contact Adrian in her dreams, but she's also smart and resourceful enough to try and discover any weaknesses from the Alchemists too. Sydney is definitely a fighter, even if it's not in the physical sense.

Without Sydney to anchor him, Adrian feels completely lost and his life is spiraling out of control. Sydney's support and faith in him has always inspired him to be a better person, but now that she's gone and the Moroi won't help him find her, he's fallen back to old vices to deal with the pain. Adrian has never been as put together as Sydney, so I was worried at times about how he was handling her crushing absence. While Sydney was essentially being tortured, Adrian was wrapped up in his own melancholy and I wanted him to take action sooner rather than later. Adrian has always tried to mask his low opinions about himself, but when he puts his mind to it, he's much more capable than he realizes.

Prepare yourself for all the feels! Silver Shadows is the most intense and suspenseful novel yet, but the danger is far from over for Sydney, Adrian, and their friends. The Ruby Circle, the sixth and final novel in the series, is sure to be an epic conclusion!