Sometimes there's so much hype around a book that however hard you try and avoid it, it eventually becomes impossible and you have to cave. Red Queen was this book for me. Now don't get me wrong, its not that I didn't want to read it by any means, its just I didn't want to read it and be disappointed. But I'll let you in on a little secret: no disappointment was felt and I am officially in love with a book.
Red Queen is set in a world where society is divided not by wealth or looks, but the colour of peoples blood; with Silver bloods being the rich and royal class who all have special powers ranging from fire-making to extreme strength and all the in betweens; whilst the Red bloods are the lower, poorer class, considered commoners and only good for being soldiers by the silvers.
Whilst being introduced to this fantastical world, we meet Mare Barrow a Red blood from the area known as The Stilts. Mare has never expected anything out of her life, and where the only options are to get an apprenticeship, learn a trade or become a soldier, she decides she'll spend her days pick-pocketing until she eventually ends up being conscripted to the war effort. Theiveing is something Mare is extremely good at but one desperate day, something goes very wrong and Mare ends up becoming a servant to the royal family.
After some extraordinary events, Mare discovers powers she never knew she had, powers that a Red shouldn't have. The palace, eager to keep their Red, Silver division, try to cover up Mare's abilities by creating a story that she is the daughter of an esteemed Silver general and is betrothed to the King's youngest son. Mare is thrown into a world where nothing is as it seems, she struggles everyday, creating a lie she must live for the rest of her life. Varying feelings for the kings two sons and a growing Red rebellion are just a few things on Mare's list of worries. Throughout Red Queen, Mare must decide what is right when protecting not only herself and her family, but all those around her, especially in a world where "anyone can betray anyone."
I thoroughly enjoyed this story and was captivated by the world and the characters from the get go. The steady pace throughout and the twists and turns in the story, kept me on my feet and had me whizzing through the pages. The tension built up through the novel, along with little tidbits of information we must link up at the end compelled me to read on and by the end I was fully invested in the story and the characters.
There were some elements of the story which reminded me of other books I've read, but I feel like this is extremely hard to avoid so I wasn't put off at all. Overall, I feel that Victoria Aveyard's writing style and creativity make this one of the best books released in a long time and I can't wait to continue on with this series to see where the characters go.
Rating: 4 out of 5 stars
Rating: 4 out of 5 stars