Monday, October 19, 2015

Red Queen by Victoria Aveyard [Book Review]

Title: Red Queen
Author: Victoria Aveyard
Series: Red Queen #1
Release Date: February 15, 2015
ISBN1409151174
Buy it on Amazon here

This is a world divided by blood - red or silver.

The Reds are commoners, ruled by a Silver elite in possession of god-like superpowers. And to Mare Barrow, a seventeen-year-old Red girl from the poverty-stricken Stilts, it seems like nothing will ever change.

That is, until she finds herself working in the Silver Palace. Here, surrounded by the people she hates the most, Mare discovers that, despite her red blood, she possesses a deadly power of her own. One that threatens to destroy the balance of power.

Fearful of Mare's potential, the Silvers hide her in plain view, declaring her a long-lost Silver princess, now engaged to a Silver prince. Despite knowing that one misstep would mean her death, Mare works silently to help the Red Guard, a militant resistance group, and bring down the Silver regime.

But this is a world of betrayal and lies, and Mare has entered a dangerous dance - Reds against Silvers, prince against prince, and Mare against her own heart... 

I finally read this one, ya'll! I was expecting it to be good, and I was very pleased to discover that i was not wrong in my assumption. This one got a lot of hype back in the spring, and I do think it was well deserved.

Ultimately, this book had all of the classic elements that lead to a best seller. There is royalty, uprising, romance, twists, and a cliff hanger ending. What more can you want? the plot was easy to follow and you are rooting for Mare, our heroine the whole way.

Mare is introduced to us as a "peasant" girl. One of the lower class Reds who lives her life under the thumb of the Silver upper class. Mare has faced hardships and heartache - so when she runs into a stranger she feels overcome and tells him of her troubles. Only to have her life change as a consequence.

This book was so good, but there is a quite a bit of suspension of disbelief that occurs for some of the main plot points. Mare's identity is easily questionable, and her very "status" in society can be found by what color she bleeds. This is something that is very easily discoverable and I found myself questioning the likelihood of her story playing out as it is depicted. When your whole life can be destroyed by getting a paper cut, there are questions that need to be asked.

I loved Cal, but who wouldn't love Cal? I wish there had been more development with their friendship. I wanted more scenes with them together! I felt that Maven was a more difficult character to feel for, so I was always rooting for Cal to be in her life as Maven scenes just felt a little bit awkward.

I wanted more royal backstory as well, just what exactly really happened with Cal's mom? What's the Queen's backstory? We get glimpses of these things but I really would like to know more and have them more fleshed out.

Overall: Red Queen is great. The hype is mostly worth it and I thoroughly enjoyed the story. I will be eagerly awaiting Glass Sword!

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