Rising, The Hunger Games, even Divergent), I feel quite strongly that Aveyard has made Red Queen strong on it's own. There are many reviews claiming hatred and insinuating minor plagiarism, but can you honestly tell me that you can't see any equal similarities in The Hunger Games, Divergent, and even Red Rising?
Those who have nothing but disparaging remarks for this book are entitled to their own opinions. I won't tell them they're wrong for not liking exactly what I like. But we, as consumers of the written word, need to get over this "special snowflake" issue. Yes, Mare is special. So was Katniss. And Katsa. And Darrow. And Percy Jackson. So was Jane Eyre, for that matter. Books, series especially, would suffer greatly were the main character to not be "special."
The writing is strong here: the characters aren't quite what you expect, the plot is propelled by an excellent main character, the pacing and action are on point, and the ending is set up nicely for the next installment. Victoria Aveyard has given us a strong beginning to this trilogy. I am looking forward to the next piece of it.
Red Queen by Victoria Aveyard: Love it or hate it, it's up to you. But I encourage you to read it because I thought it was great. Available now from libraries and booksellers.
