Red Queen

Title: Red Queen

Author: Victoria Aveyard

First Published: February 10th, 2015

Series: Red Queen #1

Genre: YA, Fantasy, Dystopia, Sci-Fi

Available As: Hardcover, paperback, ebook

Pages: 383

My Copy: Ebook

My Rating: 8.5/10

Goodreads Summary:

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 thought I had read enough Dystopia for a lifetime. I was wrong. This book rekindled my love for the genre. Dystopia is a difficult genre to write without screwing up the plot or characters. Aveyard did it pretty well.

Mare is a strong female lead. She hates the Silvers and wants equality for the Reds, thus joining the Scarlet Guard. In this book, I saw three potential love interests for Mare: Kilorn, Maven and Cal. I quickly dismissed Kilorn because I thought they were more like siblings than anything. So that leaves Maven and Cal. I wasn't really sure who I shipped her with more. During the book, I preferred her with Maven. But then, after the ending? I don't know who to trust anymore. I feel that Mare is stronger alone, without having to worry about a boyfriend.

Red vs. Silver. Good vs. Bad. That's what Mare thought it was like. But it isn't that simple, is it? Obviously, the majority of the Silvers in the book are evil and cruel, but there were some Silvers that I thought were good enough, like Julian and Lucas. At first, I wasn't so sure if Farley was to be trusted, but from the ending, I know.

*Spoiler warning*

There's someone more powerful than Silvers? The mix between both? They will probably play a major role in the coming books, especially in the rebellion. With these kind of powers, they have a great advantage. Though it probably won't be that easy. Silvers can only use their powers when the element they need is there. These new ones? They can just create out of thin air, just like Mare did back in the arena. I hope we see more of them and what they can do! Will their powers be completely different from Silvers? What else could there be?

"Anyone can betray anyone." We are reminded of this quote a couple of times throughout the book. In the end, Cal betrays Mare but Mare also betrays Cal. We thought that was the end of it. Then came the epic betrayal: Maven. He's as manipulative and despicable as his mother, no? I hated the king throughout the book, but during his last moments, you could really see that he loved Cal and not Maven. Too bad. I don't think I can feel any pity for Maven, although I can see where he's coming from. Being in his brother's shadow for his whole life must be very frustrating for somebody who wants this much power. But I genuinely thought he was one of the good Silvers. I guess I was wrong.

*Spoiler over*

Let the rebellion continue! I hope the Scarlet Guard will find a way to put an end to the monarchy. I also hope that Mare and the others won't just become the face of the rebellion, like Katniss was in Mockingjay. If Mare doesn't end up participating as much as possible in this rebellion, then I will be very disappointed!

My Chosen Quotes:

“Anyone can betray anyone.”

“Words can lie. See beyond them.”