loreta_lat's review against another edition
adventurous
challenging
funny
hopeful
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
emilyanne3000's review against another edition
4.0
Wow! I was blown away by Blood Red Road. (Also known simply as Dust Lands in my head. Look at the giant font for the series' title in comparison to the actual title!) Not only did I find the novel to indeed be better than The Hunger Games, I also would rank the book as one of the better dystopians and even at the top of the list!
At first, I wasn't sure if I would like the dialect. There are no quotations marks and a lot of pretty bad grammar. There are misspelled words aplenty and you will find a lot of choppy sentences. However, all this makes this book one of the most realistic dystopians out there. Have you ever wondered why a character with supposedly no education can speak with perfect grammar and acquire such a large vocabulary? I certainly have, particularly in dystopians, and I am so glad Dust Lands fixes that problem.
I know a lot of people are still apprehensive of the writing of the novel. Will it be too hard to get into the novel with the bad grammar and lack of punctuation and spelling? For me, the dialect did not prevent me from getting sucked into Saba's world. In fact, the uncommon but smartly planned writing made me love the book so much more, and after a while I barely noticed the "errors". I was just in Saba's head and thinking the way she thought.
Also, I love the fact that Dust Lands is a dystopian without an overload of technonlgy. In all honesty, I was kind of getting bored with all the computer-y electronic-y aspects in some novels. Blood Red Road is simply a survival story in a world with a harsh terrain and plenty of fighting and cruel conditions. I also loved the lack of control the setting has. Everyone is out to keep only their heads on their necks and most are back stabbers that don't care about the fate of others.
The characters are superb. While I found Saba to occasionly be thick headed and mean, she was a unique character and her story of survival is also one about self discovery. The character I felt for most was Saba's sister Emmi. Saba treats her badly as she blames Emmi for the mother's death, and she goes through a lot of pain and trauma for a seven year old. Also, I found the brother, Lugh, to be a very interesting character. Although we don't see much of him, he has a big presence throughout the book and I hope we see more of him in the second book.
Jack, the love interest, was not a "wow" character for me, although I did like him. I was intrigued by him and I was on edge to hear his story. Unfortunately, we don't seem to learn enough about Jack and I was disappointed. Hopefully more will be revealed in the next book. Next, we have the Free Hawks. They were so awesome! Who can't love a "gang of girl warriors and revolutionaries"?
Finally, we have the adventure and plot. Well, it was amazingly paced and I really hated every time I had to set the book down. There is so much action from fights to storms to daring escapes. Along with the action there is also great, to-the-point descriptions that have you imagining the setting. Overall, I really enjoyed the journey Blood Red Road sucked me into. The characters, plot, setting, and dialect were amazing and realictic. Don't let this book scare you. Give Dust Lands a try.
4/5 Stars
At first, I wasn't sure if I would like the dialect. There are no quotations marks and a lot of pretty bad grammar. There are misspelled words aplenty and you will find a lot of choppy sentences. However, all this makes this book one of the most realistic dystopians out there. Have you ever wondered why a character with supposedly no education can speak with perfect grammar and acquire such a large vocabulary? I certainly have, particularly in dystopians, and I am so glad Dust Lands fixes that problem.
I know a lot of people are still apprehensive of the writing of the novel. Will it be too hard to get into the novel with the bad grammar and lack of punctuation and spelling? For me, the dialect did not prevent me from getting sucked into Saba's world. In fact, the uncommon but smartly planned writing made me love the book so much more, and after a while I barely noticed the "errors". I was just in Saba's head and thinking the way she thought.
Also, I love the fact that Dust Lands is a dystopian without an overload of technonlgy. In all honesty, I was kind of getting bored with all the computer-y electronic-y aspects in some novels. Blood Red Road is simply a survival story in a world with a harsh terrain and plenty of fighting and cruel conditions. I also loved the lack of control the setting has. Everyone is out to keep only their heads on their necks and most are back stabbers that don't care about the fate of others.
The characters are superb. While I found Saba to occasionly be thick headed and mean, she was a unique character and her story of survival is also one about self discovery. The character I felt for most was Saba's sister Emmi. Saba treats her badly as she blames Emmi for the mother's death, and she goes through a lot of pain and trauma for a seven year old. Also, I found the brother, Lugh, to be a very interesting character. Although we don't see much of him, he has a big presence throughout the book and I hope we see more of him in the second book.
Jack, the love interest, was not a "wow" character for me, although I did like him. I was intrigued by him and I was on edge to hear his story. Unfortunately, we don't seem to learn enough about Jack and I was disappointed. Hopefully more will be revealed in the next book. Next, we have the Free Hawks. They were so awesome! Who can't love a "gang of girl warriors and revolutionaries"?
Finally, we have the adventure and plot. Well, it was amazingly paced and I really hated every time I had to set the book down. There is so much action from fights to storms to daring escapes. Along with the action there is also great, to-the-point descriptions that have you imagining the setting. Overall, I really enjoyed the journey Blood Red Road sucked me into. The characters, plot, setting, and dialect were amazing and realictic. Don't let this book scare you. Give Dust Lands a try.
4/5 Stars
whatcha_listening_to's review against another edition
5.0
A co-work recommended this series to me, I only knew what she told me going in. I knew to expect the grammar/language so that wasn’t a shock. It was a very interesting story of strength from not only yourself but the unlikeliest of places.
It’s a story of a family in a dystopian world. How they fight to find one another and how to survive the trials and tribulations they face along the way.
I really enjoyed Saba’s character she has no idea how incredible she is, she is so focused on getting her brother back and keeping her little sister live. She really has no clue of her own strength. It was eye-opening and I loved it.
Jack’s character intrigues me, I like that he sees Saba in a different light. But also he helps Saba see things in a way she never would have before.
I really can’t wait to dive into book 2.
The narration was fantastic, I started out reading the book but then I just had to listen and I am so glad I did.
It’s a story of a family in a dystopian world. How they fight to find one another and how to survive the trials and tribulations they face along the way.
I really enjoyed Saba’s character she has no idea how incredible she is, she is so focused on getting her brother back and keeping her little sister live. She really has no clue of her own strength. It was eye-opening and I loved it.
Jack’s character intrigues me, I like that he sees Saba in a different light. But also he helps Saba see things in a way she never would have before.
I really can’t wait to dive into book 2.
The narration was fantastic, I started out reading the book but then I just had to listen and I am so glad I did.
carleymae's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
lighthearted
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
jessiebwriting's review against another edition
3.0
This is a story about Saba, a young woman who has only ever known her home and family in the wasteland that is Silverlake. She has a strong bond with her twin brother that she completely relys on and can't imagine a life without him. However, that all changes when strangers come and kidnap her twin, shattering her world. She sets out on a quest to save him and learns more of the world outside of Silverlake, gaining friends and allies along the way. Most importantly, she learns that she is more than just a twin to her brother - she is a strong, fierce warrior.
When I finished this novel, I was torn. The story it tells is a great tale about self-discovery and survival. It's action packed, never dull, and watching Saba grow and connect with others was enjoyable and well done. Normally, I'd be giving it 4 stars, maybe even 5.
But I could not get pass the author's choice of minimalist writing style. There were many grammatical and spelling issues, often depicting how the characters were pronunciating things. I understand that this was the author's way of indicating how the characters spoke and I've read stories that made similar choices that it didn't bother me as much in. However, along with this choice was the one to not have any quotation marks around dialogue. NONE! And I just kept getting distracted by that. I often had to reread some lines to make sure that it was spoken dialogue, not inner dialogue. And because of that, I have to give it a 3 star rating: enjoyable story, great character development, distracting writing style, wouldn't read again or the rest of the trilogy. If you can look past this choice of writing style, then I would recommend it.
When I finished this novel, I was torn. The story it tells is a great tale about self-discovery and survival. It's action packed, never dull, and watching Saba grow and connect with others was enjoyable and well done. Normally, I'd be giving it 4 stars, maybe even 5.
But I could not get pass the author's choice of minimalist writing style. There were many grammatical and spelling issues, often depicting how the characters were pronunciating things. I understand that this was the author's way of indicating how the characters spoke and I've read stories that made similar choices that it didn't bother me as much in. However, along with this choice was the one to not have any quotation marks around dialogue. NONE! And I just kept getting distracted by that. I often had to reread some lines to make sure that it was spoken dialogue, not inner dialogue. And because of that, I have to give it a 3 star rating: enjoyable story, great character development, distracting writing style, wouldn't read again or the rest of the trilogy. If you can look past this choice of writing style, then I would recommend it.
prinsaintrecarti's review against another edition
5.0
English Opinion ~ 2017
Finishing reading this yesterday at night. | Blood Red Road, the first book from the Dust Lands Trilogy by Moira Young. I loved the western,
setting, and the post apocalyptic atmosphere. This is a truly horror dystopian book. With some horror bloody descriptive scenes that blows me away. I always wanted to read a dystopian horror book. Saba Become My Favorite Female Science Fiction Character Of All Time! She is so unique in her way, she's very wild, but very smart in the same time, even if she don't know to read or to write, she thinks and takes actions so fast. Saba is also similar to Katniss Everdeen from the THG Trilogy, but her literary voice makes her completely different in a way. I also loved Emmi's character (Saba's sister) Saba treated her so bad at the beginning of The book, but Emmi was still loyal to her rebellious sister, and she continued to love and helping Saba no matter what happened. The villain was so so real.
Unfortunately I honestly don't know if I'll continue to read the rest of the trilogy, because the other books didn't have a Spanish translation yet, and the second reason is because I read some few ugly spoilers about the ending of the trilogy. I really don't want to kill my excitement for this first amazing book.
The book didn't had an open ending. And to me yeah this one was a bit better than The Knife Of Never Letting Go. Both are similar, but The Knife Of Never Letting Go is more complex than this, but is also more slow paced compared to Blood Red Road.
Blood Red Road is a really action packed.
Second read: January 2017
Una dintre cele mai bune distopii citite vreodată. Saba, cu siguranță este eroina mea preferată din toate timpurile.
Recenzia completă urmează...
2015
Maybe i will finish this book later ( probably next year) I don't no why but i still want to give to this one another change someday.
I found this book paintful annoying, unoriginal and horrible. I really couldn't finish it!
Dust Lands are one of the most popular dystopian trilogies
I read only 3% of this one.
I really tried to like it, i really wanted to love it, but
The writing was too weird in my opinion, too many gramatical errors. Poor world bulding. Annoying characters. Bad dialect
Here are some exemples from the writing:
"Well, I says, maybe that’s all yer fit fer. You ever think of that?
She folds her arms across her skinny little chest an scowls at me.
So you keep tellin me, I says.
I start up the ladder, a piece of rusty metal in my hand, but I ain’t gone more’n three rungs before she takes hold an starts shakin it. I grab on to stop myself from fallin. Nero squawks an flaps off in a flurry of feathers. I glare down at Em.
Cut that out! I says. What’re you tryin to do, break my neck?
Lugh’s head pops over the side of the roof. All right, Em, he says, that’s enough. Go help Pa.
Right away, she lets" go. Emmi always does what
Yer the meanest sister that ever
That’s enough! says Lugh. Both of yuz!
Why the hype?
In my opinion this is not the most original dyatopian story. The plot and the world bulding, the writing are too similar with [b:The Knife of Never Letting Go|2118745|The Knife of Never Letting Go (Chaos Walking, #1)|Patrick Ness|https://images.gr-assets.com/books/1277071696s/2118745.jpg|2124180]
The writing is so so poor. I think the hype is a lie.
angelicasreads's review against another edition
This darn book is confusing. The dialogue is too weird and the punctuation is all wrong. I get that you want to make it unique or something but it was hard to read. I'll read it again someday. Maybe when I feel like figuring this crap out and the little buzzer in my head doesn't go off at every misspelled word. But for the mean time I'll just pretend I didn't pick it up to begin with.
mrsjkamp's review against another edition
3.0
See full review here!
First thoughts: Not a huge fan of this one. I got tired of the hillbilly speak really fast. And I thought the way Saba talked about her brother was slightly creepy. It wouldn't have been surprising to me if, at the end, they hooked up. I was getting a little grossed out.
This book had me lost for a while. The author doesn't offer up much information about this dystopic world, so I didn't always understand the reasons behind certain events or actions. Things seem to just come out of nowhere. Maybe I missed something.. I don't know. I just know that I didn't understand this world while attempting to see it through Saba's eyes.
I was really sad when Lugh got kidnapped, but what I felt the most emotion about was the relationship between Saba and her sister. I can completely relate with the way Saba treats her. My own sister and I have had a similar relationship in the past when we were younger. The progression and development of their relationship, and the growth both girls go through, are probably the best part of the novel.
The novel felt like a mash-up of Gladiator and Princess Bride without the humor in a way. I just wasn't into this book like everyone else seems to have been. It felt strange with all the different groups of people, and I'd just read Pure by Julianna Baggott, which is slightly similar in my mind. Maybe it was the audio versions that make me feel like they're kind of the same. I don't know. This just isn't my new favorite book.
First thoughts: Not a huge fan of this one. I got tired of the hillbilly speak really fast. And I thought the way Saba talked about her brother was slightly creepy. It wouldn't have been surprising to me if, at the end, they hooked up. I was getting a little grossed out.
This book had me lost for a while. The author doesn't offer up much information about this dystopic world, so I didn't always understand the reasons behind certain events or actions. Things seem to just come out of nowhere. Maybe I missed something.. I don't know. I just know that I didn't understand this world while attempting to see it through Saba's eyes.
I was really sad when Lugh got kidnapped, but what I felt the most emotion about was the relationship between Saba and her sister. I can completely relate with the way Saba treats her. My own sister and I have had a similar relationship in the past when we were younger. The progression and development of their relationship, and the growth both girls go through, are probably the best part of the novel.
The novel felt like a mash-up of Gladiator and Princess Bride without the humor in a way. I just wasn't into this book like everyone else seems to have been. It felt strange with all the different groups of people, and I'd just read Pure by Julianna Baggott, which is slightly similar in my mind. Maybe it was the audio versions that make me feel like they're kind of the same. I don't know. This just isn't my new favorite book.
krish_'s review against another edition
4.0
Would you like to know the silly reason why I didn't want to read this book? Because I thought it'd be a Western. Yes, I did, alright? I read the summary and I thought Western. So I put it off...but something possessed me to buy this book for my e-reader and viola, me being book snob of the year.
Moira Young's Blood Red Road is an adventure. It's bleak, it's fast, it's gripping. Saba lives in an isolated barren land of dried up lakes, shifting sands, and scolding heat with nothing and no one to guide her but her vague father who stares at stars. One day, her twin brother, Lugh, beautiful and main caretaker of the family, is taken away by hooded figures. Pa is killed, and she and little sister Emmi are left to fend for themselves. And here begins a near 500 page adventure. There are cage fights, a maniacal king, a mysterious substance called chaal, flying ships, an army of women warriors, giant flesh-eating worms, a decaying town of people with even more decaying morals...a few more things.
The dialect is one of BRR's most interesting and successful peculiarities. Like the book's landscape, it's bare; abrupt and pointed yet sufficient. It's broken grammar with no punctuations. We are steered merely by the hands of expert storytelling. It might be a deal-breaker for those who like easy navigation because it tests one's ability to read dialogue cues but in all honesty, it isn't that difficult to follow. If anything, it is one of this book's finest distinctions. Saba and her companions wouldn't have been as compelling without it. A culture is defined by its language, why not in books too?
The world. Saba's world is ambiguous with Young lending us no specific geographical hints. We go through mountains, valleys, deserts, woods, waterfalls, disintegrated highways, hollowed-out buildings... That part isn't really all that important. The gist of this reality is that it is corrupt and backwards, where there are once more real life gladiators (which comes full with a cage master, a rabid crowd, and a colosseum) and where a pair of binoculars is called a long-looker. There is a king, his guards, and his subjects. This world is back to primitive territorialism, where people are hanged for simply wandering in on the wrong stretch of earth. Back to one ruler governing all. Back to losing rights and freedom. Back to slavery. Back to being in the mercy of the merciless. The concept is superb, except we're not given much to go on. And so, questions. An abundance of questions. With not much answer. This world seems ancient - the gladiators and the colesseum really dragged me through Ancient Rome, sometimes native with Pa, Jack, and the king's preoccupation with stars, fate, and the philosophy of sacrifice, and sometimes science fiction with its flying ships and carnivorous giant worms. Is this the rule of dystopia and post-apocalyptic fiction? Meaning, does anything go? Or is this world kind of a big confusionis? Okay, I can't stay here forever. Moving on.
The plot. It started off sending goosebumps all over my arms. I tingled with excitement at the epic potential of this bizarre but intriguing world. Twins born under a midsummer moon and a father who seemed delusional in his obsession with the stars...until Lugh is taken and Pa doesn't seem so crazy anymore. But it stops there. Saba's journey starts and leaves all that cosmic intuition behind. It gets down and dirty. Saba becomes involved in human trafficking, cage fighting and teams up with a group of female bandits. So the first half is Saba acquiring both information to save her brother, as well as back up for her rescue mission. It is also a severe wake up call on how the world outside her Silverlake is operating. The second half is Saba making her way to Freedom Fields towards Lugh. It's mere action from here on out and though I did still enjoy it, it was admittedly fickle. Jack (the dishy love interest) takes control of the mission, which is fine enough, but his ambush strategies were frighteningly questionable. The plot was thin, surrounded by promising subtexts...Young just chose not to explore them, like at all. Which is why it was frustrating. There were many things shown to us without explanation. They were all backdrop to Saba's single objection: finding Lugh...which is a little narrow. Entertaining, but narrow.
Characters are appealing. Mercy, Emmi, and the Free Hawks are my personal favourites. Emmi, wild and young, resolute but still so sweet. She affected me. No lie. The Free Hawks are great. Bad ass women assassins. Not preachy, not hatey. Young isn't making a point that they're women and they're fierce - simply that they are survivors. Girl Power wasn't their motto, but Justice. I liked it. It was clean of gender politics. It was there and you couldn't criticize it. Jack is attractive. Despite being arrogant, secretive, and sometimes prick-ish. I kept waiting for him to disappoint me. Kept waiting for him to turn around and surprise surprise, he's a bad guy. Because isn't that what always happens? But it didn't. He's an asshole who wants to make a difference in the world. Can't argue with that. This book is filled with characters who won't surrender to oppression. Mercy, not wanting to become another chaal-ed zombie. The Free Hawks, Saba and Emmi, Jack and Ike. Now, the twins. I found Saba and Lugh's relationship perturbing. But maybe it's a twin thing. Possibly. Or maybe Young has something in plan. A separate discussion can be made about their relationship but unfortunately, this review has no room for it. I could do with a bit more room between them though.
Now, to the nitty gritty. The psychology of Saba. I agree with other reviewers who point out that Saba's handling of her sudden emergence into society after growing up in seclusion was a touch unconvincing. What with the pressing task of rescuing her brother, and now being the sole guardian of Emmi, she seemed to handle herself quite adaptively. Because Saba should still be quite feral by nature. But there was no shock, no marvel. She was never in fear of the great big world, or ever indignant of how she was treated in Hopetown (by that I mean the bigger picture because of course she was furious about being imprisoned, etc). No question of the social system, no anger towards it, either. She observed the people, was disgusted by it, but had no inclination towards making the world "a better place". But perhaps, she doesn't know what a "better place" is. She grew up detached from society, and so society isn't anything connected to her. It might simply be none of her business. But still. It was only a hindrance because she was being delayed from getting to Lugh. I could argue that the red hot pushed Saba along. That it is precisely because she is so single-minded in her purpose, that everything else is pushed aside. Look, it's fine. I'm still rating this four stars. I just wished we'd had a more "awakening" kind of experience. We could've explored this world along with her. I think it would've been a much more effective angle, both in terms of unraveling depth within the story, as well opportunity to have fun in this landscape. It was like looking around a new store and being engrossed by everything you saw, but then suddenly mom grabs your hand and you're out the door.
This was a great book. My review points out its flaws, with little room for praise. But that's the point. If I can criticize it and still love it, then there must be something undeniable about it. I think there is.
Moira Young's Blood Red Road is an adventure. It's bleak, it's fast, it's gripping. Saba lives in an isolated barren land of dried up lakes, shifting sands, and scolding heat with nothing and no one to guide her but her vague father who stares at stars. One day, her twin brother, Lugh, beautiful and main caretaker of the family, is taken away by hooded figures. Pa is killed, and she and little sister Emmi are left to fend for themselves. And here begins a near 500 page adventure. There are cage fights, a maniacal king, a mysterious substance called chaal, flying ships, an army of women warriors, giant flesh-eating worms, a decaying town of people with even more decaying morals...a few more things.
The dialect is one of BRR's most interesting and successful peculiarities. Like the book's landscape, it's bare; abrupt and pointed yet sufficient. It's broken grammar with no punctuations. We are steered merely by the hands of expert storytelling. It might be a deal-breaker for those who like easy navigation because it tests one's ability to read dialogue cues but in all honesty, it isn't that difficult to follow. If anything, it is one of this book's finest distinctions. Saba and her companions wouldn't have been as compelling without it. A culture is defined by its language, why not in books too?
The world. Saba's world is ambiguous with Young lending us no specific geographical hints. We go through mountains, valleys, deserts, woods, waterfalls, disintegrated highways, hollowed-out buildings... That part isn't really all that important. The gist of this reality is that it is corrupt and backwards, where there are once more real life gladiators (which comes full with a cage master, a rabid crowd, and a colosseum) and where a pair of binoculars is called a long-looker. There is a king, his guards, and his subjects. This world is back to primitive territorialism, where people are hanged for simply wandering in on the wrong stretch of earth. Back to one ruler governing all. Back to losing rights and freedom. Back to slavery. Back to being in the mercy of the merciless. The concept is superb, except we're not given much to go on. And so, questions. An abundance of questions. With not much answer. This world seems ancient - the gladiators and the colesseum really dragged me through Ancient Rome, sometimes native with Pa, Jack, and the king's preoccupation with stars, fate, and the philosophy of sacrifice, and sometimes science fiction with its flying ships and carnivorous giant worms. Is this the rule of dystopia and post-apocalyptic fiction? Meaning, does anything go? Or is this world kind of a big confusionis? Okay, I can't stay here forever. Moving on.
The plot. It started off sending goosebumps all over my arms. I tingled with excitement at the epic potential of this bizarre but intriguing world. Twins born under a midsummer moon and a father who seemed delusional in his obsession with the stars...until Lugh is taken and Pa doesn't seem so crazy anymore. But it stops there. Saba's journey starts and leaves all that cosmic intuition behind. It gets down and dirty. Saba becomes involved in human trafficking, cage fighting and teams up with a group of female bandits. So the first half is Saba acquiring both information to save her brother, as well as back up for her rescue mission. It is also a severe wake up call on how the world outside her Silverlake is operating. The second half is Saba making her way to Freedom Fields towards Lugh. It's mere action from here on out and though I did still enjoy it, it was admittedly fickle. Jack (the dishy love interest) takes control of the mission, which is fine enough, but his ambush strategies were frighteningly questionable.
Spoiler
Let me remind you that his "strategies" consisted of winging it, and winging it.Characters are appealing. Mercy, Emmi, and the Free Hawks are my personal favourites. Emmi, wild and young, resolute but still so sweet. She affected me. No lie. The Free Hawks are great. Bad ass women assassins. Not preachy, not hatey. Young isn't making a point that they're women and they're fierce - simply that they are survivors. Girl Power wasn't their motto, but Justice. I liked it. It was clean of gender politics. It was there and you couldn't criticize it. Jack is attractive. Despite being arrogant, secretive, and sometimes prick-ish. I kept waiting for him to disappoint me. Kept waiting for him to turn around and surprise surprise, he's a bad guy. Because isn't that what always happens? But it didn't. He's an asshole who wants to make a difference in the world. Can't argue with that. This book is filled with characters who won't surrender to oppression. Mercy, not wanting to become another chaal-ed zombie. The Free Hawks, Saba and Emmi, Jack and Ike. Now, the twins. I found Saba and Lugh's relationship perturbing. But maybe it's a twin thing. Possibly. Or maybe Young has something in plan. A separate discussion can be made about their relationship but unfortunately, this review has no room for it. I could do with a bit more room between them though.
Now, to the nitty gritty. The psychology of Saba. I agree with other reviewers who point out that Saba's handling of her sudden emergence into society after growing up in seclusion was a touch unconvincing. What with the pressing task of rescuing her brother, and now being the sole guardian of Emmi, she seemed to handle herself quite adaptively. Because Saba should still be quite feral by nature. But there was no shock, no marvel. She was never in fear of the great big world, or ever indignant of how she was treated in Hopetown (by that I mean the bigger picture because of course she was furious about being imprisoned, etc). No question of the social system, no anger towards it, either. She observed the people, was disgusted by it, but had no inclination towards making the world "a better place". But perhaps, she doesn't know what a "better place" is. She grew up detached from society, and so society isn't anything connected to her. It might simply be none of her business. But still. It was only a hindrance because she was being delayed from getting to Lugh. I could argue that the red hot pushed Saba along. That it is precisely because she is so single-minded in her purpose, that everything else is pushed aside. Look, it's fine. I'm still rating this four stars. I just wished we'd had a more "awakening" kind of experience. We could've explored this world along with her. I think it would've been a much more effective angle, both in terms of unraveling depth within the story, as well opportunity to have fun in this landscape. It was like looking around a new store and being engrossed by everything you saw, but then suddenly mom grabs your hand and you're out the door.
This was a great book. My review points out its flaws, with little room for praise. But that's the point. If I can criticize it and still love it, then there must be something undeniable about it. I think there is.
dragonsoup's review against another edition
4.0
minus a star bc now my inner monologue sounds like the writing style