Dulstlands trilogy (Rebel Hearts is the second installment, but I couldn't find any more information on it)
YA Dystopian
Rating: 4.5/5
Spoiler Alert: Only a little
I loved this book. But I grew to love it. It's one of those books that I started to read and didn't like, then enjoyed it immensely. It's a story that sits with you well after you've finished reading it, and still calls you back to think about it. I had seen it around everywhere. I passed over taking it as an ARC, even though it piqued a slight interest in me. I finally purchased it at one of Border's closing sales. It was the last copy on the cluttered shelves.
It was meant to be.
Here's the official summary from the official S&S page: "Saba has spent her whole life in Silverlake, a dried-up wasteland ravaged by constant sandstorms. The Wrecker civilization has long been destroyed, leaving only landfills for Saba and her family to scavenge from. That's find by her, as long as her beloved twin brother Lugh is around. But when a monster sandstorm arrives bearing four cloaked horsemen, Saba's world is shattered. Lugh is captured, and Saba embarks on a quest to get him back.
"Suddenly thrown into the lawless, ugly reality of the world outside of desolate Silverlake, Saba is lost without Lugh to guide her. So perhaps the most surprising thing of all is what Saba learns about herself: she's a fierce fighter, an unbeatable survivor, and a cunning opponent. And shehas the power to take down a corrupt society from the inside. Teamed up with a handsome daredevil named Jack and a gang of girl revolutionaries called the Free Hawks, Saba stages a showdown that will change the course of her own civilization.
"Blood Red Road has a searing pace, a poetically minimal writing style, violent action, and an epic love story."
Stumblers What the heck are the first three pages? An intro? A prologue? Looking back, I understand it; and it's perfect. But starting off, it was a bit disjointing.
Accents in the author's spelling *groan*
What?! No quotes for dialogue?! I have to admit, that when I first started and realize these two things, that was a showstopper. I put the book down for about a week and reconsidered even reading it. I mean, I didn't want to invest the brain power trying to figure out what the characters were saying through their accent, who was saying what when, and the lack of punctuation was jolting. But, after a week, I decided to give it another shot. Just one more page, I'd say. Then I got to the end of the book.
Good and addictive, but hard to get into because of the formatting. But a REALLY great book. The storyline was well told--and I agree 100%, had "a searing pace, a poetically minimal writing style, violent action, and an epic love story." Saba loves and idolizes her twin brother, Lugh, and despises her little sister Emmi. I cringed a lot at some of the things Saba said and did to Emmi. Saba goes after her brother and Emmi follows. Emmi never does what she says. It's great.
The thing I truly enjoyed about this book was the fact that every character present (Not Lugh, because he was kidnapped) grew and changed in this story. Saba realized there was more to life and family and relationships than the sun rising and setting on her brother, She came to value and love her sister Emmi, and Emmi grew as a person, too. Matured into a smart, independent little lady. Saba let down her guard and let Jack in, and vice-versa.
I really enjoyed the relationship Young created between Saba and Jack. You knew that they liked each other, but that they were holding back (for various reasons). There were parts where I laughed aloud and cheered and cried and screamed because their path to each other wasn't taking the straight one I wanted. But it was their perfect path to each other (crap, did that sound as cheesy as I thought it did?).
Life happened in this book, the good, the bad, the funny, and the ugly. And I think that's what I appreciated so much about it. There's tragic heartbreak that befalls characters I really cared about. There's selfish decisions that are made that will forever scar someone. But it's okay. Because that's life, and when is life ever perfect, and beautiful, and without tears?
This is definetly a story that I'll read again (and probably soon) and recommend to others. The story is real and true to itself and its characters. I love it when an author and a book do that.
There's no official BRR or Moira Young website out there (just the S&S and the fb page) and that's sad. In a world like today's, you can't not have those things. BUT! I was able to find that the book was optioned by Scott Free Productions to be made into a movie (decision announced May 13th, 2011) which makes me all sorts of happy inside.
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