I love the Blue Bloods series when I was younger and was very excited to read the continuation. I always wished this series was more NA and I hope the series continues to grow a bit more. While I did enjoy the book, I feel like the plot of the new series does negate the original series. I would still be willing to read the next book.

I think this may have been my least favorite of all the Blue Bloods books, and that's saying something. During my reread of the whole series recently, I found I was not as much of an adult fan of these books as teenage me was. That's not to say some people won't enjoy it, but it was not my cup of tea. Regardless, thank you for the ARC and apologies for the delay of this review.

Thank you Netgalley and the publisher for the ARC. Below is my honest opinion:

Admittedly, I had heard of Blue Bloods through my students who had read this series, but I didn't know anything else about it except vampires. I was excited to pick this up, but quickly became lost as I don't think I quite realized this was part of a duology within a larger series. After reading that one first, I came back to Blue Bloods: After Death and I quickly realized that the alternative universe was what was tripping me up. I like Schuyler and I like how de la Cruz has done vampires here, but I wasn't in love with this story.

To understand what is happening, it’s best to be familiar with Blue Bloods: After Life where this is an alternate universe. That being said, firstly, let us understand that this is a story that is in a pandemic era in New York City. The characters are the same and yet they are not. I’m trying not to give anything away other than, if you are familiar with this series, think of it as they all went through another dimension. Jack is no longer dead and he, Skyler, Kingsley, Max (formerly known to us in the previous series as Mimi), and Oliver are back. They are still hell-bent (pun intended) on killing Lucifer and the pandemic is something Lucifer unleashed on us humans.

I also enjoyed the earlier books in the series more than this one but the last few books, White Nights (The New Blue Bloods Coven books #1 and #2) and Blue Bloods: After Life, have been lackluster. It’s basically the same old thing but just told in a different way. I think the author is trying to stretch the story too thin and it is starting to show. Personally, I think the author could have done a better job of developing this storyline. Overall, I think this book was a disappointment.

I want to thank NetGalley and Disney Publishing Worldwide for this e-copy in exchange for my honest thoughts.

After Death, by author Melissa de la Cruz, is the Ninth installment in the authors Blue Bloods series, not to be mixed up with the TV series on CBS called Blue Bloods. This follow-up to After Life (2022) completes the Blue Bloods series offshoot duology. This story keys in on 3 main characters: Schuyler Cervantes-Chase, formerly Van Allen, Jack Force, and Max Force, formerly Mimi Force. Timeline wise it has been two months since Jack and Schuyler stopped Lucifer from killing all the Red Bloods in Manhattan under the disguise of a pandemic.

But it came with a huge cost. Jack has disappeared into the clutches of something that shouldn't exist in this world and refuses to let Jack go, while Max has become a prisoner of the silver bloods aka corrupted vampires who owe allegiance to Aldrich Duncan formerly known as Lucifer after losing his bondmate Kingsley Martin in the previous installment. After defeating Lucifer and saving the world at the end of book #7, Schuyler woke up in an entirely different reality, in a different body where her parents in this world are alive (Stephen & Aurora) and learned she had to do it all over again.

Find the villain, take him down, save the world. But after losing her only allies, Jack Force--who ran off to protect her--and Kingsley Martin--who was captured and killed by the enemy, Schuyler has to face facts. She's going to have to do this alone or is she? When a mysterious new girl named Aoife Hayward shows up at Duchesne Academy, Schuyler at first thinks she must be yet another enemy, but she soon finds out that Aoife could be the answer Schuyler's been looking for.

Aoife is a member of an ages old secret society of heroes called the Palladins, and she has lots of friends that are willing to help Schuyler stop Lucifer, and the monsters that he has unleashed on this world before he uses Max's blood to destroy all the worlds. United with another unlikely ally in Max Force, who wants to find a way to save Kingsley from Purgatory, the group might just have a fighting chance--if they can find and rescue Jack, get Max's Blue Blood powers back, solve the theory of chaos magic and take down a friend turned foe.


Thoughts: I understand that I might get hate mail over these part, but so be it. I do not think this series needs another book. I think the author has worn out what she can do with Schuyler, and unless she wants to write about Aoife, who I really liked, and her Paladin, especially Megan, she should put this series to bed. Also, I am clearly stating that I do not like when an author intentionally writes off a past character, or changes said character into a entirely different person.

#NetgalleyARC This was a fun, nostalgic read. I remember starting the original series YEARS ago and if this is where it all ends, I'm here for it. This would be a great way for this long-running series to end. Job well done.

Title: Blue Bloods: After Death
Author: Melissa de la Cruz
Publisher: Disney Publishing Worldwide
Publishing Date: July 4, 2023
Pages: 368
Genre: YA
Rating: ☆☆☆☆

This is the second book in a duology set in the Blue Bloods universe by Melissa de la Cruz, and the ninth book in the Blue Bloods universe. Firstly, this book was great and I thoroughly enjoyed it. That being said, I have never read any other books from the Blue Blood series, and it really hindered the backstory and lore of the universe. I highly recommend reading at LEAST the first book of the duology. It was still very enjoyable- I actually almost rated it a 3 because I didn’t grasp some of it due to not reading the others, but changed to a 4 because that’s what the story actually deserves had I have been up to date.
Schuyler is an awesome FMC and her “teaming” up with Eoife was great! I love the female energy!
I LOVE that Schuyler was in an alt universe all on her own with no allies. It made for a great story and lots of character development.
I love a villain and the Silver Bloods were great. I loved it!
Will definitely be reading more from this universe.

Thank you to NetGalley and Disney Publishing Worldwide for sending this book for review consideration! All opinions are my own.

Schuyler wakes up in an alternate world and must save that world, again, but without the allies she had before. She is totally alone since her best friend is not what he seems and those around her have different faces and personalities. A newcomer turns out to be the ally she needs and together with the Paladins work to save the world again.

Blue Bloods: After Death is a great addition to the series and Melissa de la Cruz never ceases to amaze me with her stories.

#BlueBloodsAfterDeath #NetGalley
Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for an E-Arc copy of this novel.

Blue Bloods: After Death is the ninth book in the incredible Blue Bloods series by Melissa de la Cruz, and let me tell you, it's a vampire young adult fiction series that stands out from the rest! If you're tired of the Twilight clichés, this is the series for you. In this book, the author introduces the story and characters without assuming you've read the previous books. It's a thrilling adventure that kept me hooked from start to finish. The pacing is fast, and I couldn't wait to learn what happens next. After Death takes us into an alternate dimension where our main character, Schuyler, wakes up facing the threat of Lucifer trying to take over the world. The dynamics between the characters and the addition of Paladins add excitement and intrigue. Even though I hadn't read the earlier books, I didn't feel lost. This installment felt like a complete story, and I was satisfied with the ending. However, I'm curious to see if more books will be in the series. Melissa de la Cruz has created a fascinating world, and I'm eager to explore it further if the journey continues.

I liked the original Blue Bloods series. It was fun, and I really liked the spin on history it had.

With After Life and After Death, readers got the opportunity to get an alternate ending to a series that had a super sad ending.

Enter the Blue Bloods multiverse. We'll get to kill Lucifer all over again, and hopefully this time Jack won't die. Also, we're getting a new set of characters with all kinds of mythos to back up their credibility.

It seemed more like the world building and magic system completely broke down. There was very hard transitioning from plot point to plot point. Everything felt very chaotic. I can't even imagine how underdeveloped these characters must feel to someone who jumped into this series without reading the first. A lot of relatability is assumed for someone who is already familiar with these characters.

As someone who is familiar, I honestly don't care either. I stopped caring about reading this somewhere in the middle of After Life, and because I'm not a quitter continued into this book. I didn't hate it, it just didn't hold me.

Thank you to Disney Hyperion and Netgalley for the opportunity to review this advanced copy.

Blue Bloods: After Death is the ninth installment in the captivating Blue Bloods series and the second book in an intriguing alternate timeline. De la Cruz skillfully incorporates references to important events from previous books, ensuring you are able to easily recall the intricate details of the story before diving into this thrilling new adventure. The pace of the narrative is incredibly fast, leaving me on the edge of my seat, eagerly anticipating what will happen next. While the storyline does reach a satisfying conclusion, there is undoubtedly potential for the saga to continue.

I will not give a review of this book, given that it wasn't stated that this was a series, and as such, some of the background felt sparse.

Great continuation of the series! Be prepared you need to read All the other ones to really get the full story! I love a good vampire fantasy novel!!

Schuyler has already defeated Lucifer, in a different timeline, and now she finds herself faced with the same challenge, but without her closest friends. When a new girl enrolls in her school, Schuyler thinks she has a new enemy, but it doesn’t take long for Eoife to inform Schuyler that she is a Palladin and monster hunter. Now that Schuyler has new allies, she must make a plan to not only take down Lucifer but rescue Jack and get Max’s powers back. Can she do it all? Can she do any of it?

After Death is the ninth book in the Blue Bloods series and the second book in this alternate timeline. De la Cruz does take the time to mention key events from the previous books to jog readers’ memories and then quickly jumps into the newest adventure. This was a very fast-paced read and I kept wondering if it would wrap up or require another book. I will admit that the primary story does come to an end, but there is room to continue this saga. After Death is a fun read for fans of the series … but don’t start with this book.

This story reminds me of the Vampire Academy series, but with a modern twist. Anything by Melissa de la Cruz is a smash hit that will leave you bloodthirsty for more!
Some say the vampire genre is oversaturated, but I say give me more!

#BlueBloodsAfterDeath #NetGalley
Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for an E-Arc copy of this novel.

I received this book as an ARC from NetGalley.com

Full disclosure: The Blue Bloods series by Melissa de la Cruz is my favorite vampire youth adult fiction. Unpopular opinion? Perhaps, but it's better than Twilight. It's more thought provoking since de la Cruz references historical figures with her infinitely reborn Blue Bloods. However, that storyline ended with the first arc of the series, which consists of books 1-7. After Death and it's prequel After Life take a page from the Avengers and deal with a multi-verse situation where main character Schuyler awakes in a different dimension with the same problem of Lucifer attempting to take over the world. While I still enjoyed the slight differences in character dynamics and the new addition of Paladins, I was missing the rest of the Blue Bloods. I also wonder if these two last books were simply an attempt at appeasing Blue Blood fans who wanted more. The book felt like a solid ending to the series, so I'll be curious to see if de la Cruz continues it.

FYI: This is technically book 9 in a series. You will feel VERY lost if you haven't read the previous books.