An Up-All-Night Fantasy Thriller
I had a friend in college whose favorite Christmas tradition was to stay up reading all night on Christmas Eve. He had accidentally created this experience for himself in middle school when he received Jurassic Park as an early gift, and he had been so absorbed that he read until dawn. He spent each year after that trying to replicate the experience, searching for the most gripping, intense book to read while waiting for Santa.
I don’t think one needs an excuse or holiday to stay up too late reading, but I appreciated his sense of ceremony. He was a fan of fantasy and if we were still in touch, I’d recommend the thrilling YA novel that I just finished, Red Queen, by Victoria Aveyard.
The Plot
Mare Barrow has hated the Silvers her entire life. As a Red, she is bound for a life of servitude, poverty, and eventual conscription into the Army to fight a war waged by the Silvers. The Silvers have all of the power and money, and hold onto it using their rare special abilities—powers that allow them to manipulate the elements in addition to the Reds.
When Mare’s best friend, Kilorn, is conscripted earlier than expected, Mare is determined to find a solution to his problem. But her attempts to solve one problem lead to an even greater one—Mare, though her blood flows Red, is discovered in a very public forum to have an ability of her own. Suddenly, she is swept into the world of the Silvers, betrothed to marry the youngest Prince, and forced to live out her days among those she hates the most. So Mare chooses the only path that she feels she can reconcile herself to—join the Red rebellion group, the Scarlet Guard, and wage a revolution from within the palace.
Why It’ll Keep You Up Past Your Bedtime
Red Queen sucked me in right from the beginning. This is a plot-driven, action-packed novel with all of the substance needed to elevate it to “must-read” status. I have a weakness for stories where the balance of power is precarious and on the brink of upheaval. The intensity of such a situation is immediately gripping, which makes Mare’s world the perfect setting for a sleepless night. Not to mention the tension among her new “family” of Silvers and “friends” in the Scarlet Guard, which constantly keeps readers guessing about where alliances really lie.
If that’s not enough, the wavering romantic interest from prince to prince will keep your heart beating with speculation. Oh, and have I mentioned that the ending is epic? Epic! You may not be able to sleep even after you finish because you’re still reeling from the shock of how all of the moving pieces come together at the conclusion.
But don’t take this recommendation on my word alone—Red Queen was the Goodreads winner in the category of Best Book from a Debut Author, garnering 46,698 votes! And if you find yourself whipping through it in the course of an evening, fear not. The sequel, Glass Sword, is expected for release on February 9. Schedule yourself another sleepless night for Valentine’s Day or mid-winter break!
Book Details:
Reading Levels: AR 5.2, Lexile HL740L
ISBN: 9780062310637
Format: Hardcover
Publisher: Harper Teen
Publication Date: February 10, 2015
Bethany Bratney (@nhslibrarylady) is a National Board Certified School Librarian at Novi High School and is the recent recipient of the 2015 School Librarian of the Year Award. She reviews YA materials for School Library Connection magazine and for the LIBRES review group. She is an active member of the Oakland Schools Library Media Leadership Consortium as well as the Michigan Association of Media in Education. She received her BA in English from Michigan State University and her Masters of Library & Information Science from Wayne State University.
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