[Book Review] Red Queen

Title: Red Queen (Goodreads)

Author: Victoria Aveyard (Go to her Blog)

Date Published: February 2015

Genre: YA, Dystopian, Fantasy 

Personal Review:

The Plot

Okay. The plot is pretty straightforward. There are two classes in this world: those with silver blood (Silvers) and those with red blood (Reds). Now the special thing about the Silvers is that they have all kinds of superpowers. You have Strongarms, who as the name suggests have super strength, Nymphs who control water, Whispers who can read your thoughts and control you, Magnetrons who control metal, and so on. 

Our main protagonist, Mare Borrow is a Red. Coming up on her 18th birthday and with no job she's going to get conscripted into the army, where she'll be sent to the front lines of a war between other kingdoms. She's a thief and she absolutely hates the Silvers who lord over them with an iron fist. One night, she tries to pickpocket the wrong person. She knows immediately this guys doesn't belong but for some reason he lets her go. The next day she gets summoned to the Silver's palace (which is their summer house), and is given a job as a servant, to her complete confusion. 

On her first day she'll witness what is known as the Queenstrial. The oldest daughters of the High Houses (basically royalty), will show their powers so the Prince can choose his future Queen. Mare is caught in the middle when the impossible happens.

Now, the King and Queen will have to hide her amongst them, pretending she is a lost Silver Princess and engaged to one of their sons. Hiding the fact she is a Red and trying not to get killed by the angry Princesses, she'll try to help the rising rebellion group known as the Scarlet Army. 

The only problem is, in a world with superpowers and uncertainty, anyone could betray her. 

No pressure girl. 

There is romance (of course there is romance), betrayal, mind games, violence and plain old heartbreak. 

Thing I Liked

It's funny how many different comparisons are being made to explain this book. On several websites, like Amazon, they say it's Graceling meets The Selection. I've read in some other places that it's more of a Hunger Games meets the X-men, although I don't really see any Hunger Games characteristics. Unless you count a people being oppressed by an elite (which most dystopians are so lets not automatically compare it with just one popular trilogy).

I still haven't gotten my hands on Graceling and The Selection is on my TBR list for next month, so I can't really comment on the first comparison. But I do know that in an interview with Aveyard she comments that the X-Men had a big influence on her. 

"I’ve always been a huge fan of the movies. I unfortunately never got into the comic books. I was such a Harry Potter freak so those I was just mainlining those at all times, but I was definitely inspired by the X-Men and it was a kick-starter. I thought, okay, 100 years into a war with people and superheroes, there’s no way they’re going to be running from the government. They’re going to be the government. If you have a mind controller, they’re not going to sit at home and twiddle their thumbs."  

(Complete Interview as Publisher Weekly) 

I think that's one of the things that really drew me in. I love superpowers and it's not usually a theme you see in books. 

Something that surprised me were the characters. I'm always very picky with them. I may love the plot, the complexities behind a world an author created and the writing styles, but if the characters disappoint me, all that goes out the window.

Especially when it comes to the main characters. There's been many YA series that I thought were incredible but were slightly ruined because I couldn't stand the main character. In this case though, I was very happy with Mare Barrow. She's a strong character, smart, resilient, quick witted and best of all, not prone to breaking down when things are tough. I liked most of her choices, her logic and her reactions toward certain events and people. 

The writing style was simple but elegant and very detailed, all traits I love. 

Things I Didn't Like

It's a small thing I suppose, but I thought there was very little detail as to what the deal is with this war young Reds get sent to. They mention battling against other Silvers, but for what? Why? Or maybe they do mention it but in my haste to see what happened next my mind just said 'screw it keep reading'.

The High Houses weren't explained in full. We know the names, their colors and their powers to a degree. But what else? Basically I just want a background check on everyone and a history lesson. 

Do I Recommend this Book?

Hell yes. I thought it was an ambitious book. There's a lot of fantasy in it and many people might not like it. Since I love fantasy, having powers, rebellions and mind games this books was my cup of tea. I finished it in two days!

Have you read the book? What's your take on Mare?