evamargaret's review against another edition
5.0
I really enjoyed this fascinating blend of the hunger games, divergent and the selection. 100% recommend. :)
darbter's review against another edition
4.0
4.5 of 5. Looking forward to see if the rest of the series wows me.
readwritedrinktea's review against another edition
1.0
Red Queen has an interesting idea that has the making of a good book.
Unfortunately, the execution of plot, prose, and having interesting characters is woefully mismanaged. The bones of the story is good. The world is interesting, and the story line could have been too.
It was hard to connect with any of the characters, especially Mare, the main character. She's supposed to be a thief who is good at getting out of sticky situations, but we never see her actually get herself out of trouble. She's constantly saying how strong, smart, and savvy she is but we are continuously shown the opposite.
For example:
* We don't see her win a fight until the end of the book (if you want to call that winning).
* Literally EVERYONE tells her not to trust Silvers (even Silvers) but she decides to completely trust the prince that she was unwillingly hitched to with every tidbit of important info
* She signs up with the rebellion without knowing ANYTHING about it besides that its anti-Silver.
The bad guy was foreshadowed WAY too much. The only surprise with that reveal was how drastically his personality changed. The fight scenes seemed like they wanted to have weight but they were half-heartedly written and Mare's narration was unhelpful with immersion.
Honestly, I skimmed the last few chapters before starting the next book, which
I had to DNF because it was worse. With Glass Crown, for me, the breaking point was her calling herself "lightning girl" every other page, and talking about how powerful she was but how no one knew it.
Unfortunately, the execution of plot, prose, and having interesting characters is woefully mismanaged. The bones of the story is good. The world is interesting, and the story line could have been too.
It was hard to connect with any of the characters, especially Mare, the main character. She's supposed to be a thief who is good at getting out of sticky situations, but we never see her actually get herself out of trouble. She's constantly saying how strong, smart, and savvy she is but we are continuously shown the opposite.
For example:
* We don't see her win a fight until the end of the book (if you want to call that winning).
* Literally EVERYONE tells her not to trust Silvers (even Silvers) but she decides to completely trust the prince that she was unwillingly hitched to with every tidbit of important info
* She signs up with the rebellion without knowing ANYTHING about it besides that its anti-Silver.
The bad guy was foreshadowed WAY too much. The only surprise with that reveal was how drastically his personality changed. The fight scenes seemed like they wanted to have weight but they were half-heartedly written and Mare's narration was unhelpful with immersion.
Honestly, I skimmed the last few chapters before starting the next book, which
I had to DNF because it was worse. With Glass Crown, for me, the breaking point was her calling herself "lightning girl" every other page, and talking about how powerful she was but how no one knew it.
alistofsydneys's review against another edition
5.0
The Main Book Nerd's Review: Wow! Speechless, and that's not a thing for me. The betrayal in the book is mind-blowing. And I couldn't see those plot twist coming! Anyone can betrayal anyone! This was an amazing book and I offer congrats to Victoria Aveyard for blowing my mind an making me speechless. I want the second book now! Check out the summary on goodreads. Because if I try and explain I'm afraid I'll spoil the book. I must say I love amazing written villains and this book had some amazing villains! Rating:
libbica's review against another edition
adventurous
challenging
dark
sad
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
tofuwu's review against another edition
adventurous
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
3.75
marialeo07's review against another edition
5.0
There are no words for me to describe this book, it is filled with tension, fantasy and a dystopian fight that I haven’t loved as much since the hunger games series. I can’t wait to read the next book. *SPOILER*
I really want to get something satisfactory out of maven after everything and also I don’t know if it’s just my hormones or something but I cried when Mare found out that Maven used her and when she found out Shade was alive like just omg. Plus I kinda always thought Maven was a bit suspicious and I liked cal and mare more.
I really want to get something satisfactory out of maven after everything and also I don’t know if it’s just my hormones or something but I cried when Mare found out that Maven used her and when she found out Shade was alive like just omg. Plus I kinda always thought Maven was a bit suspicious and I liked cal and mare more.
mansingh's review against another edition
2.0
This book starts out boring and I hated the total use of first person. It was difficult to get through at first. Mare's self-pity was honestly so irritating, the plot easy to follow but hard to get through. It did end up picking up about a fourth of the way through but this book was way over hyped and I didn't get super excited about the plot until like the second to last chapter where most of the action happened.
I expected the story to be new and fresh but it wasn't. There was an info dump on houses and their power but not a backstory on how this system came to be. The villains were cookie-cutter and Mare's love triangle square thing was confusing and badly done.
However, I am going to continue the series because it's a better version of The Selection and by the end I was actually enjoying most of it. I liked the rebels and Maven (although I'm disappointed with how he ended up, I'm not surprised). The redsilver power is interesting and I want to see more of the rebels which I'm sure will happen in the next book.
I expected the story to be new and fresh but it wasn't. There was an info dump on houses and their power but not a backstory on how this system came to be. The villains were cookie-cutter and Mare's love triangle square thing was confusing and badly done.
However, I am going to continue the series because it's a better version of The Selection and by the end I was actually enjoying most of it. I liked the rebels and Maven (although I'm disappointed with how he ended up, I'm not surprised). The redsilver power is interesting and I want to see more of the rebels which I'm sure will happen in the next book.
onegirlreads's review against another edition
5.0
The thought of having to wait a year to get the sequel to this is killing me!
What an intense storyline, I was hooked from the first chapter!
I was intrigued, shocked, in love, appalled, angry and wanting more!
I will probably spoil some of this cause I just have to talk about it so I'm going to mark the rest as a spoiler, just in case.
Mare is not totally unique, I really got a Hunger Games vibe from this book a lot, with the idea of the capital and her being thrown into being a voice for a cause... blah, blah... I really liked her power though, lighting is not one of those powers that you really think of being amazing, but I think she used it to her advantage.
Oh my gosh, Maven... I loved him! So disappointed that I loved him so much and he turned into freaking Joffrey Baratheon, and his mother... ugh... still going to hold out hope that he really is a nice guy and she has some kind of hold on his mind.
I was so angry about Lucas! I immediately liked him and I'm a little pissed off about how that ended...
I loved the idea of the silvers vs. reds, I personally haven't read anything close to that kind of idea, and I really liked that they had powers. I felt it was really unique.
The whole plot line was so good, some corny parts, but all in all I was pretty hooked with finding out what was next, especially once the twist hit! I probably should have seen it coming but I didn't.
I need to know what happens, I need to know if Cal is ok... if Maven will stop being an ass... if Shade is as awesome and I think he should be... if Mare keeps being as awesome as she was in that last fight and I need them all kick the crap out of Elara... ok, I'm finished :)
What an intense storyline, I was hooked from the first chapter!
I was intrigued, shocked, in love, appalled, angry and wanting more!
I will probably spoil some of this cause I just have to talk about it so I'm going to mark the rest as a spoiler, just in case.
Spoiler
I felt like the story started off really jumpy, everything kind of happened really fast, a lot was introduced without a lot of back story... I didn't really like how Cal was just all of a sudden there, and then she was in the palace... It was a little obvious that he was going to be the prince...Mare is not totally unique, I really got a Hunger Games vibe from this book a lot, with the idea of the capital and her being thrown into being a voice for a cause... blah, blah... I really liked her power though, lighting is not one of those powers that you really think of being amazing, but I think she used it to her advantage.
Oh my gosh, Maven... I loved him! So disappointed that I loved him so much and he turned into freaking Joffrey Baratheon, and his mother... ugh... still going to hold out hope that he really is a nice guy and she has some kind of hold on his mind.
I was so angry about Lucas! I immediately liked him and I'm a little pissed off about how that ended...
I loved the idea of the silvers vs. reds, I personally haven't read anything close to that kind of idea, and I really liked that they had powers. I felt it was really unique.
The whole plot line was so good, some corny parts, but all in all I was pretty hooked with finding out what was next, especially once the twist hit! I probably should have seen it coming but I didn't.
I need to know what happens, I need to know if Cal is ok... if Maven will stop being an ass... if Shade is as awesome and I think he should be... if Mare keeps being as awesome as she was in that last fight and I need them all kick the crap out of Elara... ok, I'm finished :)