Red - Review

Яed (True Reign, # 2)

By: Jennifer Anne Davis

Published: February 14th 2014 by Clean Teen Publishing

366 pages

Genre: Young Adult, Fantasy, Historical Fiction

Source: Borrowed from Holly

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This review contains spoilers for The Key (book 1). If you have not read The Key, that book WILL be spoiled in the first couple of sentences. I even suggest skipping the Goodreads description below.

Goodreads description--Red (The True Reign Series, Book 2)

Sentenced to be executed.

Betrayed. Alone.

Hung on the gallows.

Rema thought her life was over, but she was wrong. Saved by a rebel force she'd only ever heard rumors about, Rema finds herself in a forbidden place. She is finally safe-free from the king and Prince Lennek. But not everything is as it seems at the rebel fortress. Secrets are whispered, and loyalties are tested. Once Rema uncovers the truth of her heritage, will she flee? Or will she ascend to the throne, taking on the responsibility of an entire kingdom?

Now that Darmik knows Rema's true identity, he's on a quest to save her. But when an Emperion assassin arrives on Greenwood Island, Darmik knows he doesn't have very long to find her. In a deadly game with high stakes, will Darmik remain loyal to his family? Or will he break away and join the rebels?

Kingdoms rise and fall. Heroes are born and made. But one thing remains the same-love conquers all.

So Red picks up exactly where The Key left off. Rema has been narrowly saved from execution by the rebels. Darmik realizes how he truly feels about Rema just before she hangs. Yet he can’t be sure how she feels about him. He doesn’t even know if she knows her true identity. And until he knows that, he can’t really proceed. During the execution attempt and rescue, Rema is injured and must spend a portion of the book recovering. Mako, the commander of her father’s army, saved Rema seventeen years ago, and he’s back to make sure she stays alive.

One of my biggest frustrations with Red was how long Rema is kept in the dark about who she is and what’s truly going on at the rebel fortress. However, I did like the manner in which she was finally told. She was provided with honest explanations by the two people she needed to hear it from most in a way that showed they were both open, honest, and loyal to her. But I was starting to get just as annoyed as she was with how frequently people dodged her questions.

Even though the romance is kicked up a bit in Red from The Key, Darmik and Rema were apart for a good portion of the book. Where typically that annoys me, in Red I actually enjoyed it because both people had much to do. A love triangle does begin to form in that another character begins to take interest in one of our main two, and I really wasn’t happy about this. This particular character I worry about the potential for making some really stupid and rash decisions in the future.

Honestly, I think I was enjoying Red even more than I enjoyed The Key. I read them both in just over 24 hours total—not too shabby. I definitely blew through these books because they’re just that good, and I was hooked very quickly. I will say that Red has a cliffhanger ending, but unfortunately, it wasn’t an ending that forced me to pick up War immediately. Of course, I still want to know what’s going to happen next, but the ending was one of those that left me with the impression that things are getting worse before they get better so I ought to be prepared for the long haul. Either way, Red ends up getting 4.5 Stars from me. Have you read Red? What did you think? Let me know!