Bibliographic Information

Aveyard, V. (2015). Red queen. New York, NY: HarperTeen.

ISBN: 978-0062310637

 

Plot Summary

Red Queen by Victoria Aveyard is a young adult fantasy book. Those with red blood serve those with silver blood who have magical abilities. People with red blood who do not have jobs are often sent to fight in a war for silvers when they turn 18. When the protagonist Mare Barrow’s best friend Kilorn loses his job and faces being sent off to war, she decides to steal enough money to smuggle him out of the city. Through a twist of fate she steals from a boy named Cal and instead of turning her in, he offers her a job at the palace. Mare takes the job and on her first day works an event called the Queenstrial. The Queenstrial is an arena battle were young silver girls compete against one another in the hopes of marrying the princes. Who we learn are Cal and his half brother Maven. During the event, Mare falls off a balcony and lands in the middle of the battle. Since she has red blood, she should have died. To her surprise and everyone else she survives and discovers she has the ability to control electricity. The silvers cover the event up by claiming she is a long lost silver blood who is now engaged to the youngest prince, Maven. She soon finds herself becoming a pond in the game war between silvers and reds. She must decide what side she fights for, which also means choosing which prince she loves.

 

Critical Evaluation

Why a large theme of the book is violence and war, I also think that this is a coming of age story. The character Mare in the beginning steals for fun and for the survival of family and loved ones. Her character could have worked to get a job or done something else other than steal. She actually avoids responsibility and often chooses the easier path in life. Her selfishness even gets her sister injured. Mare’s character eventually starts to realize that her actions affect others and that she can’t go on living this way.  When Mare first goes to live in the palace she does what she is told, but over time she realizes that things aren’t right in the world. She starts to understand that she has an opportunity to make a real difference. She makes a lot of mistakes in the process of trusting the wrong people and not believing in herself. I think she grows a lot in the story as she starts to realize whom she can trust and that she is capable of more. She stops being a pawn sitting idly by and takes control of the situation at hand. She grows into a leader for her people by the end of the story. This is the first book in the series, so not everything was concluded. I have a feeling there will be a lot more character growth for Mare as the series continues.

 

Reader’s Annotation

I am threat to those with silver blood.  I have red blood and I should have died in the arena that day, but I didn’t…. I am powerful. More powerful than any silver blood or red blood out there and that scares them. It should scare them.

 

Author Information

The following information was taken from the author’s biography, http://victoriaaveyard.com.

 

“I’m a writer represented by Suzie Townsend at New Leaf Literary & Media, Inc. I split my time between my hometown East Longmeadow, Massachusetts and Los Angeles. After graduating with a BFA in Screenwriting from the University of Southern California, I decided to try my hand at writing a novel.

 

My debut RED QUEEN came out of the terrifying, unemployed year after college. The sequel GLASS SWORD released in February 2016. Currently I’m working on the third book in the RED QUEEN series, along with pursuing other projects in literature and film. My proudest achievements are riding a horse in the mountains of Montana and navigating from London to Edinburgh without GPS.”

 

Genre

Fiction, Fantasy, Romance

 

Curriculum Ties

N/A

 

Booktalking Ideas

• Do you think that it was okay for Mare to steal, because she was doing it for her family? Why or Why not?

• Do you think she is the only red blood with powers out there? Explain?

• Would you have done the same things as Mare? Why or Why not?

 

Reading Level/ Interest Age

Grades 9-12

 

Challenge Issues

N/A

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Challenge Issue Resources (for usage in a challenge situation)

• Active Listening

• Explanation of why it was chosen for the collection (Rational)

• Awards

• Reader Advisory Reviews (Students, Parents, Educators)

• Positive and Negative Reviews

• National Council of Teachers “Right to Read”

• ALA Strategies and Tips for Dealing with Challenges to Library Materials

• ALA Bill of Rights on Intellectual Freedom

• Library Selection Policy & Library District Reconsideration Form 

 

Why I choose it

I choose to read this book because I love fantasy books and saw this on a recommendation display in the teen section of a 2nd and Charles bookstore.