The following content may contain spoilers for Red Queen by Victoria Aveyard, so view with caution!
*Clears throat* After spending thirteen days diving into this world for the very first time I am ready to jump on board and share my thoughts for the first book in Red Queen series by Victoria Aveyard.
If you don't wish to read through this whole long review and are only here for a summary review, scroll right down to the very bottom because that is where it will be!
This very much felt like a first book by Aveyard, and I did keep that in mind while reading the book. I am not a professional, but as a reader I know what I look for in books, what I like, what I don't like, etc, etc. As do most reader people.
I liked the premise of this book. Aveyard created this dystopian/fantasy with elements that tie in nicely with what we as human see every day.
The world is split between people who bleed red and people who bleed silver (which I thought was an interesting way to show the divides in city, wealth, and status. Very creative!) Red citizens are seen as poor, unworthy, and are pretty much there to serve the silver society. Also, Reds don't have powers while the Silvers do. Reds are supposed to be weak. Nothings. Except, our main character is a Red and finds out that she has powers. Not just any power, powers that the silvers themselves fear. One evening, Mare has a run in with a mysterious boy named Cal who lends a hand. But is it for the best? Mare gets thrown into the world of the Silvers, forced to play the part of one even though she is a Red! But a Red with powers, that isn't possible! Along the way, Mare learns of an organization of Reds working to fight for change against the injustices Silvers have brought upon them. But nothing is as it seems in either of these worlds. Even the Silver society has statues of their own. And anyone can betray anyone!
The pacing of this story was a bit slow for me. It took several chapters just to get to the main story, so for me the beginning chapters were the toughest parts to get through, but I stuck it out until the end! In my personal opinion, it shouldn't take ten chapters to introduce the main plot. I understand needing two to even four chapters to introduce your world, the stakes, and how things work, but it was a slow start. Moving forward with the series, I hope the pacing of this series gets better because even from the start I could tell this book has a lot of potential. And considering that this is the first book out of a (3--4 book) series, it makes sense why the first book would start out at a slow pace. Aveyard is clearly setting the stage, which is fine! I have faith that it gets better as I go on to the next books.
Mare being thrown into this silver world. A very cool way to demonstrate the difference between the way society views one another. Even in the silver world, there are different statues and families who appear better than others. I really loved the way Aveyard used this book to paint that. It felt very real. And showing the way the Silvers treat the Reds, and how that continues to worsen throughout the course of this book. In most dystopian stories, authors often throw us into the middle of a war with a good side vs a bad side. Already, this universe appears so complex. And while, yes Aveyard does do the typical throwing you in the middle of a dystopian world war, she shows how things can change and escalate so quickly! Very similar to our own reality. (I mean think of where we were a year ago verse right now today.) The Reds plan an attack against the silvers (with the help of some inside characters) and of course that goes horribly wrong! From there, the King and Queen view the Reds as enemies and have risen restrictions against the red society. This reminded me of The Hunger Games: Catching Fire. This book came out almost ten years ago, so it's crazy how dystopian books like Red Queen and The Hunger Games hit so close to home right now. Holy shit!
Mare is a very strong character. I really felt for her in the beginning of the story how she kept comparing herself to other members of her family. I imagine so many young girls already identifying themselves with her, which is a clever way to create a character connection between your readers and the main character. Mare is a strong character, but the many layers of her being is what makes her relatable. Everything she does, right or wrong, is for a greater good.
Cal & Mare: Now, this maybe the part that has people shaking their heads at me. Sorry in advance. (I will admit I wasn't in the best headspace when I first started reading this book, so that may contribute to my thoughts on Cal and his relationship to Mare.) When Cal was first introduced, I could tell right away that this mystery boy on the street was going to be the prince. So I was thrilled to finally be introduced to his character, but I wasn't sure about him. His character seemed kind of bland to me. He's the future king, loyal, honorable, and all that good stuff. He has fire magic and that is all we really learn about him. He believes in his father, his people, and what his family has done is right for the Kingdom. Basically, he is being painted as the perfect son. I am hoping going forward that act drops in the next books in the series, because it made him unlikeable to me. The pacing of what was going on with Mare and Cal was too fast for me. They didn't really have a lot of moments together, so I was thrown off when they kissed semi-halfway through the book. The chemistry between them just felt off. Forced even. Like, I felt more when Mare was talking to Maven than with Cal. (I know, I know I'll get there! Lol) I know the romance is not at all what Aveyard intended for people to focus on in her story. In fact, that moment towards the end when Mare was said: "I choose neither of you!" I clapped. Like yes, girl! Make it a point right away to show readers that this is not another love triangle series. And don't get me wrong I always enjoy me a little romance subplot in books, but this one for me just did not hit well. Maybe I will feel different going forward in the Red Queen series.
You all might kill me for what I am about to say next, but when I say this, I mean I like the complexity of this character and the way it was done. Like, I am not stupid I saw it coming from miles away! But the way Aveyard wrote this and played it out saved the book for me. No, I am not kidding! Well, played, Victoria Aveyard!
*This is where the spoiler warning is deeply being warned! I mean it!*
The best character (aside from Mare) for me was Maven. Yes, that is right I said it. Let me explain. Maven is first introduced as the quieter younger brother constantly being looked down upon by Cal and by his own father it seems. Right away you know as a smart reader that this is typically the main ingredients writers use when sticking the secret villain into the plot. Like, from the moment I met the character I had my eye on him. I knew he'd be the one to look out for, and yet when the truth came out, I still gasped! Why? Because Aveyard played it so smoothly. Maven was kind, helpful, and was waaay too involved with everything just for him to be your typical side character. Maven appeared, well, to me honestly, he appeared likeable. But even while he was being "nice" you could see the layers showing that he had a temper and was competitive. There were even moments that made me question my own skeptics. There were moments where I thought Maven genuinely cared about Mare. You could already see that he had a shaky relationship with Cal, but perhaps Maven really does care about Mare. And when the truth finally came out, the tone shift was fucking amazing! Like this was the moment that had me sit up, lock in, and keep turning the page. (sidenote) I love how we were supposed to hate Maven for wanting Cal dead, but ironically Cal didn't seem to care too much when Cal, the King, and the Queen were discussing killing Mare and Maven. Like? That is one fucked up Thanksgiving convo. Back to my point!
The tone shift with Maven's character was very well done in my opinion. I could feel the tone shift in Aveyard's writing while reading that moment with everyone in the tower. In just a few lines, Maven goes from the nice, protective, sweet Maven to the evil, cold, and calculated Maven with just a short description and his next line! Do you know how hard it is to write a character tone shift like that! It was literally like a snap of your fingers! It is not often I come across a scene in a book where I can see it in my head. But with this reveal scene, I could just picture Maven shifting from this nice boy character into his cold self. If you've watched that Disney movie Frozen, it felt very much like when Han's was revealed as a villain. That is the tone shift I felt while reading that scene. And then the next scene between Maven, Cal, and Mare in the cells, the layers of who Maven truly is being shown. (Even now why do I feel like his mother is controlling him.) Maven is clearly an unstable character, and he's got a lot of layers to him that make him. Like him or hate him, that is what makes a good character!
Did the slow pace serve its purpose in the end? Somewhat. Throughout the book we saw Mare and Maven scheming together, working with the Red Guard group, and all that. Cameras were set up all around the castle. This is the part that made me feel dumb while reading it and what I should have realized all along. Controlling the narrative is a powerful weapon! I should have known that having the cameras everywhere would play out in the end. Things I didn't expect to be captured within the story were shown and of course it was cut and edited to paint whatever picture the Silver's wanted to show! The Hunger Games used this same technique as well! I actually am amazed how Aveyard illustrated that in this book. Because watch any news channel, blog, or follow any politicians and this is how it is done. What is seen is not always the full truth, what we don't see covers up what is! Even when people do see the truth, they choose to believe what is easier instead of what is true! The main layers of this world that Aveyard created is a direct parallel to our own reality. This is what I love about dystopian books and also what scares me. Yes, this is set in a fantasy world, but the elements are the same. Division. Power. The complex systems within different groups of people and how controlling the narrative is a useful and powerful weapon!
Short summary review of Red Queen:
-Mare is the main character. A girl with lightning powers. Street smart, strong, and driven!
-The book started out at a slow pace.
-Cal was just an okay character, nothing outstanding yet.
-Good world building, but sometimes it felt like info dumping.
-Good plot, nice premise, and promising build up.
-Maven character was the best character, but that doesn't mean I don't think he isn't a little shit. I just appreciate a good well-written character.
-Anyone can betray anyone! And then some!
My personal enjoyment rating: 3.5/5
If you made it this far reading my long review (rant) and you have read this book, feel free to leave your thoughts and opinions on this book below. Please note that I have only now just finished the first book in the series, so please don't say or mention anything that will spoil what happens in the other books. Thank you!
