The Red Queen Series
Author: Victoria Aveyard
Themes: Individual vs Society
Genre: Science Fiction
Recommended Age for Reading: The AR reading level is 5.2, but in my opinion, the content level should be 9th grade an up. Inappropriate language is not used too often, but the language used is fairly strong. For instance, the b word is used a few times by some of the characters. The book also has a few violent scenes.
Plot: The setting of this book takes place years into the future. There are two types of humans at this time...those with mutated silver blood, and those with ordinary red blood. The "silvers" rule the society, while the "reds" serve the silvers. The "silvers" all have special abilities which gives them the power to rule over the "reds." Mare is a red girl who lives in a very impoverished part of the kingdom. She is about to turn 18 years old, which means she will be forced to serve in the military. Mare prides herself in her thievery ability. She can steal anyone blind, and she does so often to support her family. In a desperate attempt to save her best friend from conscription, she steels from a mysterious man she finds in a tavern. The man catches her, shows her mercy, and then actually gives her the coin she was trying to steal. That same man gives her a job with the royal family. After Mare begins to serve the royal family, she discovers that she has a powerful ability even though her blood is red.
Review: This book had an interesting plot, but it wasn't necessarily a page turner for me. It took me a few weeks to read, and if I'm really into a book, I can finish it in a couple of days. I liked how the setting in the book was in a kingdom, but also it was years in the future. It gives the reader a sense of fantasy even though the book is mainly science fiction. I teach 6th grade, but with some of the strong language, I won't be keeping this book out in the open in my classroom. I will probably only loan it out to my students if a student asks and only if I have their parent's permission.
Rating: 4/5
The Glass Sword
Author: Victoria Aveyard
Themes: Individual vs Society; Quest for Power
Genre: Science Fiction
Recommended Age for Reading: The recommended age for reading is 13 and up, by my recommendation is definitely high school and up. Strong language is used occasionally, there are more violent scenes than there were in the first book, and the female protagonist shares a bed with a male character. There are no intimate scenes, but intimacy is implied.
Plot: I don't want to give away any spoilers for the first book, so I will just say that Mare is on a quest with the Scarlet Guard to find more "new bloods" who have supernatural abilities like her. She feels her only hope of defeating the evil silver king is to have as many "new bloods" as she can on her side.
Review: In this sequel, Mare has more of a leadership role in the fight against the silver bloods' tyranny. The power seems to go to her head, and she makes terrible choices, which leads to dire consequences. I really wasn't impressed with her character in this book. Maybe she will redeem herself with the third book. I will be reading for sure to find out. With the implied romantic intimacy, I won't be purchasing a copy of this book for my 6th grade classroom.
Rating: 3/5
Themes: Individual vs Society
Genre: Science Fiction
Recommended Age for Reading: The AR reading level is 5.2, but in my opinion, the content level should be 9th grade an up. Inappropriate language is not used too often, but the language used is fairly strong. For instance, the b word is used a few times by some of the characters. The book also has a few violent scenes.
Plot: The setting of this book takes place years into the future. There are two types of humans at this time...those with mutated silver blood, and those with ordinary red blood. The "silvers" rule the society, while the "reds" serve the silvers. The "silvers" all have special abilities which gives them the power to rule over the "reds." Mare is a red girl who lives in a very impoverished part of the kingdom. She is about to turn 18 years old, which means she will be forced to serve in the military. Mare prides herself in her thievery ability. She can steal anyone blind, and she does so often to support her family. In a desperate attempt to save her best friend from conscription, she steels from a mysterious man she finds in a tavern. The man catches her, shows her mercy, and then actually gives her the coin she was trying to steal. That same man gives her a job with the royal family. After Mare begins to serve the royal family, she discovers that she has a powerful ability even though her blood is red.
Review: This book had an interesting plot, but it wasn't necessarily a page turner for me. It took me a few weeks to read, and if I'm really into a book, I can finish it in a couple of days. I liked how the setting in the book was in a kingdom, but also it was years in the future. It gives the reader a sense of fantasy even though the book is mainly science fiction. I teach 6th grade, but with some of the strong language, I won't be keeping this book out in the open in my classroom. I will probably only loan it out to my students if a student asks and only if I have their parent's permission.
Rating: 4/5
The Glass Sword
Author: Victoria Aveyard
Themes: Individual vs Society; Quest for Power
Genre: Science Fiction
Recommended Age for Reading: The recommended age for reading is 13 and up, by my recommendation is definitely high school and up. Strong language is used occasionally, there are more violent scenes than there were in the first book, and the female protagonist shares a bed with a male character. There are no intimate scenes, but intimacy is implied.
Plot: I don't want to give away any spoilers for the first book, so I will just say that Mare is on a quest with the Scarlet Guard to find more "new bloods" who have supernatural abilities like her. She feels her only hope of defeating the evil silver king is to have as many "new bloods" as she can on her side.
Review: In this sequel, Mare has more of a leadership role in the fight against the silver bloods' tyranny. The power seems to go to her head, and she makes terrible choices, which leads to dire consequences. I really wasn't impressed with her character in this book. Maybe she will redeem herself with the third book. I will be reading for sure to find out. With the implied romantic intimacy, I won't be purchasing a copy of this book for my 6th grade classroom.
Rating: 3/5
Comments
Post a Comment