Red Queen (Red Queen, #1) in The Reader's Lounge

Sep 20, 2014 Jasprit rated it it was amazing · review of another edition

Shelves: out-2015, read-in-2015, fantasy, arc-galley, ya, favourites

Red Queen simply blew me away. It was a book which I had been hearing a lot of praise for a few months back, but with new releases I usually tend to follow them for a while to see people’s opinions, this time however I decided to just dive in without reading much about it and to be honest this made reading Red Queen a much better experience for me.

Mare’s conscription is coming up pretty soon with three older brothers already sent out in the army, Mare doesn’t really have herself set up for big t Red Queen simply blew me away. It was a book which I had been hearing a lot of praise for a few months back, but with new releases I usually tend to follow them for a while to see people’s opinions, this time however I decided to just dive in without reading much about it and to be honest this made reading Red Queen a much better experience for me.

Mare’s conscription is coming up pretty soon with three older brothers already sent out in the army, Mare doesn’t really have herself set up for big things, her sister Gisa is the talented one and Mare gets by, by stealing off unsuspecting people. But one night when she gets caught everything changes over night, she is called to serve in the King’s castle, Mare is a red, so considered lower than the silver. But having to serve silver is much better for her than what Mare would have expected. But quickly again things change for Mare in the blink of an eye, when she goes to show an ability no red was expected to have, she is forced to stand beside the King’s family, its either this or death, a no real brainer.

I was immediately swept away by this world that Aveyard had created I wanted to know about the silver and red groups. Despite getting the story from Mare, as a red I was curious to find out more about silvers, they all couldn’t be as bad as everyone was saying they could be could they? And the silver had all these cool abilities, honestly I felt like I was caught up in another X-Men movie, it was like a dream for me, as I’m the biggest fan ever of X-Men type abilities. And Aveyard actually wrote this aspect in pretty well, the abilities she described and how individuals coped with them was made truly believable, and the detail that she went into describing them gave a great picture of what it would be like standing by watching a magnetron take on a burner (controllers of fire and heat). And even though it was the silver who possessed all these special abilities I enjoyed being thrust into their scary world.

Mare was given a difficult task to deal with, her real existence could be revealed so easily with just a slight cut and everyone would know that Mare wasn’t the silver that she claimed to be. And it wasn’t as if Mare fell into this situation in the best way either, there were plenty of people that wanted Mare out of the way and would do anything possible to do so. But I’m glad that Mare did find some respite in people such as Lucas and Julian, it was clear to say they had her best interests at heart. The rest of the family close to the King though, it was hard to just judge who was telling the truth, and just who could you trust? I did have an inkling about some characters, and when certain things would go a certain way (view spoiler)

Aveyard really went out her way to create wonderfully endearing complex characters. It was natural to want to root for Mare and want her to maintain her lie for as long as possible and hopefully go on and achieve great things for reds. Some say that there’s a sort of love square in Red Queen, but I knew and I think Mare knew who she really cared for, she found herself in a situation that really couldn’t allow her to show any sort of affection for this person, but now as well with the way things have gone down, I know it could take some time to get back what could have been. But to me Aveyard has given subtle glimpses of hope that this could be possible and I really hope that it does.

Red Queen was an exquisite debut from Aveyard, usually it takes a few books for an author to become a favourite, but Aveyard has managed to become a favourite author of mine with just one book. I’m really struggling to describe just how hard I fell in love with the book, world and characters that Aveyard created, I was never left wanting for something to happen, as there was constantly something lurking around the corner waiting to deal a swift blow on your head and heart. I will be eagerly counting down the days that I can finally be with these fantastic set of characters once more.

This review can be found on The Readers Den ...more

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Nov 10, 2014 Stacie (Shy Book Nerd) rated it liked it · review of another edition

Shelves: my-signed-books, owned-hardcovers

My feelings feel the same as the first time I read this.

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I had really high expectations for this book thinkiing I would love this, but I am sad to say that it wasn't all that great for me. Maybe because I had such high expectations I felt let down a little bit. That's not to say I didn't like this book, I did truly! It just wasn't a favorite for me. Reasons I had conflicting issues with it are:

* It dragged on in the middle of the book. For My feelings feel the same as the first time I read this.

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I had really high expectations for this book thinkiing I would love this, but I am sad to say that it wasn't all that great for me. Maybe because I had such high expectations I felt let down a little bit. That's not to say I didn't like this book, I did truly! It just wasn't a favorite for me. Reasons I had conflicting issues with it are:

* It dragged on in the middle of the book. For all the fight scenes and finding out who Mare was, I felt that it slowed down too much and made the book boring for me. I'm not sure if it was too much info dump, or that everything was at a stand still, but I felt it could have been moved along more faster.

* Another thing I felt was that it was a bit predictable. I figured what Mare was right away. I figured who she was going to like more, and who the bad guys were. There were a couple of moments that threw me for a surprise, but it wasn't all that much. Because of the predictability of it, I felt that is why I was also a bit bored with it.

*I also did not really feel the love connections she had between Cal and Maven. Maybe it was because she kept saying, "I can't trust anyone" so many times that that's exactly how I felt. One minute she's saying she can't trust one man, and then the next scene she's kissing him. It just had me scratching my head. I will say, that towards the end I could see a spark between she and one of the men, but it was a bit late for that. I hope to see more connections in the next book.

* For all the negatives about this book, there was a big positive for me. I absolutely loved the fight scenes! The details the author describes in the fight scenes was so good. I could picture myself in the arena fighting with everyone. I liked reading how everyone's different powers worked, who had the advantages of destruction, and how they would try to eliminate one another's opponent. It was like a scene straight out of X-Men or The Avengers! It was truly amazing to read those parts.

Overall, this was a good book, but I didn't love it. The ending kept me intrigued enough to find out what is going to happen in the next book. I want to read how Mare's power came to be and if other Red Bloods have powers as well. I really liked the dynamics between Silver and Red bloods. How is it that Silver's have power and Reds don't? I have many questions that I hope are answered in the next book. ...more

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Dec 21, 2014 Grace Fonseca rated it it was amazing

EPIC. This book was mind blowingly awesome. I totally loved the world that Victoria Aveyard has created. Mare Barrow is a heroine that you really can identify with. Her struggle is one that makes you really enjoy this book even more.

Here are the things that I totally loved about this book:

The Struggle of the Reds and The Inequality:

Mare is a Red. Reds are basically second class citizens. They are the ones who are made servants and workers. Plus they are conscripted aka forced to fight in the arm EPIC. This book was mind blowingly awesome. I totally loved the world that Victoria Aveyard has created. Mare Barrow is a heroine that you really can identify with. Her struggle is one that makes you really enjoy this book even more.

Here are the things that I totally loved about this book:

The Struggle of the Reds and The Inequality:

Mare is a Red. Reds are basically second class citizens. They are the ones who are made servants and workers. Plus they are conscripted aka forced to fight in the army for the Silvers. This makes things really bad for Mare as she has two of her brothers in the army. Not to mention that some of the Reds are starting to get tired of this way of life. They don’t want to be subservient to the Silvers. Some of the members of the Scarlet Guard, the Rebels made of Reds, want to force change now. Change is necessary in order to create an equal society. You find that Mare will be tangled up in this mess. I thought that the way the author wrote about the way that the Reds live is really messed up. As a reader, i felt sympathetic towards the Reds. This totally makes me root for the Reds to rise up against the Silvers.

The Unexpected:

Their was so many unexpected twists in this book. A lot of great moments in this book. One of them was that Mare, a girl who happens to be a Red, is that she can harness lightening and electricity which begins a remarkable lie. The royalty can’t have a Red with abilities, because it might give the Red’s hope. Also this damages the perception of how Silvers rule and that they might not be the only ones with power. Plus there were a lot of other crazy moments that blew my mind. I think the surprises kept this fresh and interesting. Plus the great lie of the book puts Mare in a life that makes her somewhat crazy. I really thought the etiquette and protocol lessons were not fun and Mare really shows how much she hates it at times.

The Love Triangle:

As a reader, I normally can’t stand love triangles. I think the author did a good job of making the triangle believable. You have the two princes, Cal and Maven each having their own viewpoint and strong views of their own and how society should be or what they hope to accomplish when and if they become King. You could actually believe that Mare could love either of them. I always find that a triangle works well when all of three of the characters are strong and dynamic. Cal and Maven each have strong personalities and beliefs in what they believe to be their role.

Betrayals

Betrayals are a big part of this book. I was totally stunned by the crazy twists and so many betrayals by so many of the principals in this book. Everyone wants power and is willing to go to any lengths to achieve it. For the Scarlet Guard, it’s about liberation and freedom. For the Queen, it’s a chance to make sure she ensures the future and shapes it in her image. For Cal a chance to have a kinder regime. For Maven, a new way to rule, but Maven has another agenda that we really don’t get to see until the end. Even Mare is playing the game as well. I totally found the level of betrayal intense and so well written.

I totally enjoyed this book so much that I’m eagerly awaiting the next book in this series.

Rating:
Five Hearts ...more

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Jul 04, 2014 Danielle rated it really liked it

Read more reviews at What Danielle Did Next

Wow! I knew as soon as I saw that beautiful cover for RED QUEEN that it was a book I needed to read and am so glad it did not disappoint. Full of intrigue, trickery, a strong heroine, swoon-worthy boys and a royal court setting - it hooked me from start to finish. Opinions varied wildly amongst my friends for this book so I was nervous starting it but I'm so glad I trusted my initial thoughts and jumped in.

Mare lives in a world divided by blood - the Read more reviews at What Danielle Did Next

Wow! I knew as soon as I saw that beautiful cover for RED QUEEN that it was a book I needed to read and am so glad it did not disappoint. Full of intrigue, trickery, a strong heroine, swoon-worthy boys and a royal court setting - it hooked me from start to finish. Opinions varied wildly amongst my friends for this book so I was nervous starting it but I'm so glad I trusted my initial thoughts and jumped in.

Mare lives in a world divided by blood - the Silvers are the ruling class and possess god-like powers ensuring rule is held with an iron fist. The Reds are bred to serve the Silvers every whim, from back-breaking work in mines, shedding blood on the battleground to serving tea in the most glamorous of settings. At almost 18 and with no specific skill-set, Mare is preparing to be conscripted into the Army to join her brothers and fight the Silvers war. When a chance meeting with a mysterious stranger ends with Mare's prayers being answered with a job in the palace, she can't believe her luck. Her good fortune doesn't last long however when a dangerous incident uncovers a hidden power of her very own and the sharks start circling. Hidden in plain sight, betrothed to a prince so the King can keep rumours under control, Mare finds herself with a unique opportunity - to bring down the oppressors from the inside.

Mare was a great MC; she is very much the flawed heroine which I loved. Growing up, she was never the most talented member of the family, constantly overshadowed by her younger sister and as such felt she had to take risks to be of use to her family, stealing and selling on the black market for instance. While her recklessness at times had harsh consequences, it was clear she was always coming from a place of love and I felt real sympathy for her. Even when her life was on the line when her powers manifested, the safety of her family and friends was paramount and always her first thought. The genuine emotion she felt about her family permeated the pages and at times the pain was raw as she described life for the Reds. Equally I loved how we got an intimate look at both sides as Mare settles into life as a "Silver" and I enjoyed how Aveyard gave us an insight into how life as a Silver was just as cut-throat and dangerous at times as constant power struggles bubbled underneath a surface of strained smiles and artful diplomacy.

I enjoyed the secondary characters immensely as they were mostly Silver which was an opportunity to learn about the powers they possessed. Aveyard does an amazing job of writing such descriptive passages that make it easy for the reader to visualise the stunning fight scenes and the immense power the Silvers possess. Equally she evokes strong imagery of the destitute and harsh living conditions of the Reds and the hopeless atmosphere that weighs heavily upon Mare's people.

The princes Cal and Maven were firm favourites and I loved each of their relationships with Mare. Cal, the strong, silent type who encouraged Mare's inner strength when she was constantly barraged by vicious barbs by rival Silvers and Maven, an ever present support who built up her confidence and provided light relief for her in the darkest of moments. Romance isn't very prevalent in this book which was both a welcome relief especially when I thought there was a chance of a love triangle/square but also a little bit of a disappointment as the plot thickened so I'm hoping for a little more in book two!

The constant threat of a power struggle ensures that everyone has secrets to hide which will keep you guessing and wondering which characters to trust. As the book reaches its apex, it is clear there's a major twist coming. Unfortunately however the hints become a little heavy handed the closer we came to the big reveal which made it easier to guess what was going to happen however it was still very shocking and heart-wrenching to experience and has ensured an epic set-up for book two!

A fantastic debut, with a perfect balance of epic, action filled scenes, cunning characters, mystery and a creative plot, RED QUEEN is a definite favourite and I cannot wait for more from this author!

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