REVIEW: Red Queen by Victoria Aveyard

Synopsis (by HarperTeen):

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. 

Review: 

3/5 Stars

Even though this book did seem like a mash-up of YA books that I've already read, it had the potential to be better than it was. The last 100 pages were definitely the most interesting. Unfortunately, Red Queen overall fell a little short for me which was disappointing considering all the hype surrounding this book.

The story read like it was a first draft. The world building felt basic and needed more unique details to distinguish it from the worlds contained in other books. Even the basic plot of the story reminds me of other dystopian novels. For example, in the world of Red Rising by Pierce Brown social classes are organized based on color and the main character who comes from the lowest class manages to fool others into thinking he's in the highest social class. If you liked the premise of Red Queen save yourself some money and pick up Red Rising instead.

I didn't feel attached to any of the characters which made it hard to care about the romance in the book. It felt like Mare knew her love interests as well as she knew a can of paint. Parts of the story dragged especially in the middle when Mare was dealing with her new life as a royal. The main problem is that despite having just finished the book, I'm having problems trying to remember what happened because the story is so forgettable. Nothing really stands out. 

The story was still entertaining enough that there's a chance that I might pick up the sequel. Maybe.