Red Queen by Victoria Aveyard

Red Queen (Red Queen, #1)

by Victoria Aveyard

Graceling meets The Selection in debut novelist Victoria Aveyard's sweeping tale of seventeen-year-old Mare, a common girl whose once-latent magical power draws her into the dangerous intrigue of the king's palace. Will her power save her or condemn her?

Mare Barrow's world is divided by blood--those with common, Red blood serve the Silver- blooded elite, who are gifted with superhuman abilities. Mare is a Red, scraping by as a thief in a poor, rural village, until a twist of fate throws her in front of the Silver court. Before the king, princes, and all the nobles, she discovers she has an ability of her own.

To cover up this impossibility, the king forces her to play 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 everything and uses her new position to help the Scarlet Guard--a growing Red rebellion--even as her heart tugs her in an impossible direction. One wrong move can lead to her death, but in the dangerous game she plays, the only certainty is betrayal.

Reviewed by reveriesociety_ on

4 of 5 stars

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In a world divided by the color of your blood with a clear system, Mare's power being a Res is certainly no well received by the ones who benefit from the system. This is when it's agreed that she'll pretend to be the long lost daugter of a Silver, so life can go on as normal.

Only, Mare's nerves are as far from normal as it gets.

What I really liked about Red Queen is that there's a lot at stake for Mare. She's just in this situation 'because'. Her life is at risk and those of who she loves!

Another thing, is that she's FAR from perfect. From the beginning, she's scraping for what she can grab and making mistakes and being moderately miserable.

She's a relatable character because she's beautifully flawed.

Only... I was bothered by how much she panicked when having to lie and to pretend to be a silver. I got that she was nervous. I mean, I'd also freak out if suddenly I had to leave my family and move with people I despise to be one of them for the rest of my life. But, also, on top of that, she's kinda dumb too.

Let me explain, there's a war going on. People aren't happy, so she has a plan. But it's a child's one. I admire her bravery, yes, but I thought she'd be smart enough to realize that she was messing with stuff she didn't know shit about. Something she later painfully realizes.
Anyone can betray anyone

My favorite Quote in this book!

Hold your breath! I promised myself no spoilers!

The romance is... Decent. Not an insta one. In fact, there's hardly romance at all. What we have are snippets of what could be, and that works here because hey, there are bigger things on the line.

Aside from the main plot twist there also a lot of things I'd expected would happen a certain way and they didn't, steering clear from annoying me, which I appreciated.

I really recommend this book. I admit it's been overly hyped about, but it's not a bad one.




Find this review also at A Writer's Tales

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Reading updates

  • Started reading
  • 4 April, 2015: Finished reading
  • 4 April, 2015: Reviewed