Red Queen by Victoria Aveyard

Red Queen reads a little like a YA lucky dip. You get the feeling that Victoria Aveyard just chucked a list of YA clichés into a bag and picked them out blindfolded. Katniss, sorry, Mare Barrow is a “Red”, which makes her a lower class of citizen compared to the “Silvers” who govern the world. But... isn’t that exactly the concept behind the “Reds” in Red Rising? And wasn’t the protagonist of that YA mega-franchise called Darrow? Sort-of-almost-exactly-the-same-as Barrow? Hmm, there is something fishy going on here...

So Mare Barrow is seventeen and about to be sent off to war, because that’s what usually happens in these dystopias. The Silvers are needlessly wasting thousands of Red lives — though why they’re fighting a war is... Read More

Glass Sword by Victoria Aveyard

Warning: Will contain spoilers for the previous book, Red Queen.

After escaping from Maven and Queen Elara’s clutches, Mare soon finds herself on a new mission for the rebel cause. While she quietly processes Maven’s betrayal, Mare must race against the clock to rescue other “newbloods” like herself and recruit them to the rebels’ side. All the while, Maven and his army are pursuing her, and they are willing to take down anyone who gets in their way.

I hate to say it, but I'm disappointed by Glass Sword. I loved Red Queen because it was fast-paced and engaging. Unfortunately, the majority of Victoria Aveyard Read More