Red Queen by Victoria AveyardSeries: Red Queen #1
Published by: HarperTeen on February 10, 2015
Genre: Fantasy, Romance, Science Fiction
Pages: 400
Source: Edelweiss
Book Details
Rating: ★★★★
Mare Barrow's world is divided by blood—those with red and those with silver. Mare and her family are lowly Reds, destined to serve the Silver elite whose supernatural abilities make them nearly gods. Mare steals what she can to help her family survive, but when her best friend is conscripted into the army she gambles everything to win his freedom. A twist of fate leads her to the royal palace itself, where, in front of the king and all his nobles, she discovers a power of her own—an ability she didn't know she had. Except . . . her blood is Red.
To hide this impossibility, the king forces her into the role of a lost Silver princess and betroths her to one of his own sons. As Mare is drawn further into the Silver world, she risks her new position to aid the Scarlet Guard—the leaders of a Red rebellion. Her actions put into motion a deadly and violent dance, pitting prince against prince—and Mare against her own heart.
From debut author Victoria Aveyard comes a lush, vivid fantasy series where loyalty and desire can tear you apart and the only certainty is betrayal.
I need to say right off the bat that THE ENDING KICKS ASS!! It was so exciting, intense, and full of death! OMG!
Aaaanyway!
There was a bit of a romance/love triangle in Red Queen but it was subtle. I was glad for that because I don’t think the romance was a strong point. The focus was really on the politics, caste system, oppression, and ‘abilities’.
My favourite thing about the book (besides that KILLER ending) was how much I loved to hate some of the characters. There’s nothing better than a good villain (or two… or three…). I love having someone I can truly despise!
My one complaint about Red Queen was that the betrayal didn’t come as much of a surprise. The book was set up to make me distrust EVERYONE. Even if someone seemed nice and genuine, a character would make a comment or something would happen to make me suspicious. The author constantly reminded us that “Anyone can betray anyone.” Therefore, I was on high alert for SOMEONE to betray Mare at any minute. As a result, the big ‘twist’ at the end wasn’t really a surprise. I think I would have preferred it if the author didn’t make me so suspicious and lulled me into a false sense of security instead.
Overall, Red Queen is a fabulous start of a new series. The ending was so action-packed and really got me pumped for book two! Come on, Red Queen! Kick some Silver ass!
The Verdict
Red Queen sounds like a great story, Ashley, even if you weren’t surprised by the betrayal. I love kick-ass endings, and Mare sounds like a heroine I’d enjoy, too.
Great review π I hope you’re having a fantastic Sunday. Happy reading.
Thanks Lexxie! π If you get around to this book I hope you enjoy it!
I need to get to this one. Love a good betrayal book. Excited about the ending too.
Yeah, I almost feel bad saying this, but betrayal stories are awesome. π They’re just so intense and dramatic.. I love that!
Glad to hear that you like this one as I need to get to it soon. I keep putting it off but I don’t know why..lol.
I totally get that way sometimes too!
I can’t wait to read Red Queen! So glad you liked it π I like that the romance is more subtle, taking a back seat to everything else. Mare sounds like a really good character, but now I’m really curious about all the villains you mentioned! Great review, Ashley, have a great week π
A subtle romance is a great change once in a while. π
Everything I hear about this book is great. I can’t wait until I get my hands on it L(οΎβοΎL)
I’ve read the first few chapters and I was already hooked.
That’s awesome, Alexa! I hope you love the rest of it too. π
You had me at the first sentence! They were pushing this book HARD at a conference I went to in the fall, so I’ve been preparing myself to be disappointed (because, you know, hype). But death and distrust and a killer ending? Hmm…maybe it’s time to pick it up and read it already!
I really hope you love it Tara! I know a few people who didn’t.. so it seems to be a love it or hate it kind of book. Hopefully you fall on the “love it” side!
So I’m torn with this one. I loved the plot or the idea of the plot. But the romance was UGH, BLECH! It wasn’t just a triangle, it was a QUADRANGLE! WTH? I actually think it could have been left out completely and it would have mad for a better story. I will definitely read the next one b/c, yes, the ending! But I was not as impressed as so many others were. Oh and I found it kind of predictable. I was not surprised by either of the twists at the end. I knew both would happen. That killed it a bit for me, as well.
I’m sorry you didn’t enjoy it more Brooke. π I totally see where you’re coming from!
First off, I love this review Ashley! Short and sweet!
And there are multiple villains??? I don’t know if I can’t handle this!
Less than a month before this bad boy gets a home on my shelf!
Squeeee! The book is sooo intense and exciting!!
I just finished this one yesterday and absolutely loved it!! I didn’t care that it was a bit predictable because it just had me so engaged. I can’t wait to see what else she has in store for these characters!
I completely agree Michelle! Normally predictability can be a big downfall, but I didn’t mind it here because I was SO excited to see everything unravel, even if I was pretty sure I knew what would happen.
I also totally LOVED this book. It rocked <333
I know a lot of people didn't like it for their own reasons, but I'm glad you doooooo
Yeah it definitely seems like a love it or hate it book. I’m happy you loved it too! Go us!
I just started this book, and I was actually looking for your review! So far I am loving it, and I’m so glad to hear it was good!
Yay!! I’m so glad you’re loving it Lenore! I know a few people who really didn’t like it and that makes me sad because I loved it soooo much!
I completely forgot about Red Queen. That’s so awesome, Ashley. I’m glad you enjoyed it!
Thanks Priscilla! π I can’t wait to read the rest of the series.
I LOVED this one so much! The writing, world building, characters, and plot were all amazing. I can’t wait for the next book!
I completely agree Liza! Everything just blew me away. π
I really enjoyed this book; the first half wasn’t great in my opinion but the second half was fantastic, I didn’t see some of those twists coming.
I know a lot of people have said that it’s not the most original book out there, and I can agree with that, but it didn’t really bother me because I was so hooked during the second half. Does it matter if a book is unoriginal if you’re hooked on it? I don’t think so.
I totally agree Rosie. I honestly don’t care if a book is unoriginal if it hooks me in and gets me completely addicted. There are plenty of unoriginal books that bore me to tears, but this was not one of them.
Agh! I NEED this book! So excited to read it. I’ve seen nothing but good reviews for it. The politics. The betrayal. Yes, please!
SO agree with you about the ending to this book!! It was fantabulous!!
Aw, I’m glad you enjoyed this one – I wasn’t a huge fan, but I did love the ending and that cover is beautiful π I look forward to the next installment in the series.
I am here reading your review, because today the cover of the last book has released, and it just looks like the end is near…
BTW your site looks so pretty and clear..