Book Review: Red Queen by Victoria Aveyard.

Red Queen By Victoria Aveyard

Published:  February 10th 2015 by Orion

Hardcover, 383 pages

Genres: Ya Dystopian

Buy on Amazon, Goodreads.

The poverty stricken Reds are commoners, living under the rule of the Silvers, elite warriors with god-like powers.

To Mare Barrow, a 17-year-old Red girl from The Stilts, it looks like nothing will ever change.

Mare finds herself working in the Silver Palace, at the centre of those she hates the most. She quickly discovers that, despite her red blood, she possesses a deadly power of her own. One that threatens to destroy Silver control.

But power is a dangerous game. And in this world divided by blood, who will win?

Ahh, can we all agree this was one of the most hyped books of 2015? Unfortunately for me, this book did not meet my expectations.

  We began this novel in this dystopian world, where the reds are hard working civilians under the control of the powerful silvers, who hold great power from within themselves.Our protagonist, Mare is a pickpocket-er who has yet found a job which leaves her to be sent to war at the age of 18, much like her older brothers.Through some sticky events, Mare is left with the discovery of her own powers , as she bleeds crimson blood.The book follows the unstable class division and how Mare's powers can change it all.

This book had so much going for it.The synopsis makes this book so intriguing and original , yet less than 100 pages in, I feel hunger games vibes, I did not want to , but I did.Many characters in book felt like recycled from other established novels. Cal is much like Kai from Cinder and Kirlon is  Gale from the Hunger Games.The silvers in general were knockoffs of the Capital.

I did enjoy Mare, she was a strong protagonist, sassy at times and held her own ground.But when she was speaking about cal and their strong and mysterious connection , I couldn't help  but roll my eyes.Queen Elara is one of the few characters I was intrigued by and wanted to know more about her backstory.

The writing was okay but nothing spectacular.The Plot is what made me yank my hair. Multiply plot twists were mediocre, I could see it coming a mile away.The author wants reader to feel shocked but instead I just gave myself a pat on the back for catching it earlier, it didn't brother me that I spoiled the plot twist because I had little care for twists.Only one truly caught me off guard but did not make the book anything epic at all!
The whole love triangle(or square) is getting really old by now, the girl denying her love for one guy so she throws herself at another, no stop it authors please!!The world was confusing, I wished it was more flushed out explaining the world.But I did enjoy Mavens character up until the end, like come on he was a awesome character but he of course much like the rest of the book became a one big cliche.

One of the few things I did enjoy in this book was the betrayal, it was everywhere. This theme of betrayal gives me some hopes for the next book , becoming more than a YA cliche book, a kick ass trilogy. The whole one girl leading a revolution is unoriginal and not being well written in this book.I mean I love revolutions, but a good revolution, one that makes you want to be a part of it

I hated the start and the end , but the middle was pretty good, I wish the author pushed the plot more making it different and exciting because honestly for pages I was on the edge of my seat, but became disinterested by the lack of originality in characters and the plot devices.The foundation of the plot was good, but the characters are not so great.My mind was wishing for different things that could have made this book epic , ugh I really wish it was more unique.

I give it 3/5 Meows because the plot had something going for it , but due to lack of originality and guts , it was mediocre for me.An easy and captivating read , but was annoyed by the overused plot tropes, and was hoping for something more.At this point, I am   unsure if  I plan to continue the series.                           
       

Road Trip TBR.

Hello fellow readers, today I  will be talking about some books I hope to read during a road trip down to California. I have been meaning to read this books for quite some time , and see this time on the road as a great opportunity to catch up on some reading.

1. Red Queen by Victoria Aveyard

Edition: Hardcover 383 pages

Published February 10th 2015 by Orion 

Buy on : Amazon, Goodreads.

 The poverty stricken Reds are commoners, living under the rule of the Silvers, elite warriors with god-like powers.

To Mare Barrow, a 17-year-old Red girl from The Stilts, it looks like nothing will ever change.

Mare finds herself working in the Silver Palace, at the center of  those she hates the most. She quickly discovers that, despite her red blood, she possesses a deadly power of her own. One that threatens to destroy Silver control.

But power is a dangerous game. And in this world divided by blood, who will win?            

  

 2. The  Enchanted by Rene Denfeld

  Edition : Hardcover, 237 pages

Published March 4th 2014 by Harper 

 Buy on : Amazon, Goodreads.                                                                                                

The enchanted place is an ancient stone prison, viewed through the eyes of a death row inmate who finds escape in his books and in re-imagining life around him, weaving a fantastical story of the people he observes and the world he inhabits. Fearful and reclusive, he senses what others cannot. Though bars confine him every minute of every day, he marries magical visions of golden horses running beneath the prison, heat flowing like molten metal from their backs, with the devastating violence of prison life.

Two outsiders venture here: a fallen priest, and the Lady, an investigator who searches for buried information from prisoners' pasts that can save those soon-to-be-executed. Digging into the background of a killer named York, she uncovers wrenching truths that challenge familiar notions of victim and criminal, innocence and guilt, honor and corruption-ultimately revealing shocking secrets of her own.

Beautiful and transcendent, The Enchanted reminds us of how our humanity connects us all, and how beauty and love exist even amidst the most nightmarish reality. 

3. More than this by Patrick Ness

Edition : Paperback, 472 pages

Published September 10th 2013 by Candlewick Press

A boy named Seth drowns, desperate and alone in his final moments, losing his life as the pounding sea claims him. But then he wakes. He is naked, thirsty, starving. But alive. How is that possible? He remembers dying, his bones breaking, his skull dashed upon the rocks. So how is he here? And where is this place? The street seems familiar, but everything is abandoned, overgrown, covered in dust. 

What's going on? Is it real? Or has he woken up in his own personal hell? Seth begins to search for answers, hoping desperately that there must be more to this life, or perhaps this afterlife...

Hopefully, I can finish those three large books during my trip , expect full reviews on these novels very soon.

Book Review: We'll Always Have Summer (Summer, #3) by Jenny Han.*SPOILER REVIEW*

We'll Always Have Summer (Summer #3) by Jenny Han 

Published: April 26th 2011 by Simon & Schuster Children's Publishing, 
Genres: Contemporary.

Buy on Amazon , Goodreads.

It's been two years since Conrad told Belly to go with Jeremiah. She and Jeremiah have been inseparable ever since, even attending the same college-- only, their relationship hasn't exactly been the happily ever after Belly had hoped it would be. And when Jeremiah makes the worst mistake a boy can make, Belly is forced to question what she thought was true love. Does she really have a future with Jeremiah? Has she ever gotten over Conrad? It's time for Belly to decide, once and for all, who has her heart forever.

  Wow, what a  series, despite being one of the most predictable book I have ever read my whole life , I love it.The third and last book to this summer series, portrays a older belly ,even though she still had her childish moments. The kids are in collage , and for Belly and Jeremiah love is a young and beautiful thing. So much so that they decide to make some rash decision making.I mean , Jeremiah asks for belly to marry him, after she finds out that he cheated on her. Doesn't make sense right??

This plot was more like a excuse to bring the whole family together, and show Belly that Conrad is better that Jeremiah. Which , is very apparent through out the book. Everything Conrad would do Belly would just compare him to Jere.

So  of course most of the family is hesitant about this rush marriage among the Belly and Jere, especially her mother. But of course Belly was negligent against this issues surrounding their relationship. The wedding is decided to be that summer , which is quite outrageous to me. One thing that bothered me was Jeremiah, he was so different in this book than the last two. He wasn't sweet and caring but a rude , obnoxious collage boy. I have no idea why, but through out the book , Jeremiah was portrayed as a horrible person compared to the angel Conrad. Which is sad , Jenny Han did that because Jeremiah was such a strong character in the beginning of the series. 

This book held a duo pov which you get to see from Conrad point of view , and it was great.A few lines in the book were cringe worthy , like when he heard about the engagement , he was all mad and saying how Jeremiah couldn't steal his girl. Excuse me , YOUR GIRL.

Anyways the book was centered around this wedding and Belly once again is met with her desires of being with Conrad, and noticing Jeremiah many flaws.In my head as I flipped through the pages , i was wondering when belly was going to call it off. I mean she wouldn't wait til the wedding day right?

Nope,she waits till the last second.I may say one of the few moments I did feel for Jeremiah is when he received a letter from his late mother, upon reading it he realized, he received the wrong one , the letter for Conrad, stating that she always knew he would end up with belly.

OUCH.....

On his wedding day , about to marry belly , he reads a letter saying that his mother always knew belly and Conrad were soulmates.That must hurt,real bad.

The end of the book was cute , I mean one thing I do wish is that we saw Conrad and Belly relationship flourish with the book.

 Honestly this series was quite a ride.In the first book I quickly grew fond of belly and the cousins house. The whole group of characters were unique and memorable.The setting of the summer house held magic aurora,filled with joyous summer days I craved to have.This last enstallment reminded me of what I loved about the summer house and the importentence it held to the story and unifying the characters during strife.Even though I was angry at the decision characters would make , it was because I cared for them, something really hard to achieve , which I give Jenny Han a thumbs up. 
Besides the setting and the characters ,I must admit the plot was a trope and knew the ending since the start.This can be seen a typical ya love story however I found it to be more than that.The characters truly led the book and made the reader invested in their lives . The predictable ending and the writing not being the best is why I took a star off.

But in the end my heart does gush at this series and will be one of my favorite summer reads.

P.S, I am the only when who felt like Steven is still a kid and not 21. I felt no character growth between books 1 and 3. 

P.S.S If you received the edition with the bonus pages , those letters Conrad sent to Belly were one of the best parts of the book.If you have no read them, you can find them here:

I rate it:  3 adorable cats / 5

      Reasoning: The characters were the book , and made the book an amazing experience.I will miss these guy and their lives.However the plot was lacking in these books, and the portrayal of Jeremiah was horrible, the long list of excuse of why Belly and Conrad are not together.Just a load of teen angst that was not needed in this novel!

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