Red Queen by Victoria Aveyard is a Teen Fantasy novel that has 5 books in its series. It follows the protagonist Mare Barrow as she navigates her very segregated world, a world divided by the color of blood.

First, there are the Red bloods, the servants and laborers of this region. They live in the poorest parts of the area, barely surviving on what little they’re given. They’re usually used as soldiers and pawns in the wars that are waged across regions. Above the Reds are the Silver bloods, the elite people in the world that are gifted with superhuman abilities, which easily give them power over the Reds. They’re usually kings, princes, or part of the noble/elite families that are present throughout the book.

Mare Barrow is a Red, a poor girl living in the slums, attempting to make the best out of her situation with her family. But she isn’t exactly what she seems (as I’m sure most of you can assume considering the very obvious trope this book works with). She finds out that she has powers of her own, yet she bleeds Red.

Now, if you’re like me, you really enjoy headstrong protagonists, and Barrow definitely fits the bill. She’s a stubborn character, very used to taking the lead in the things that involve her. She is often described as “bitter” in the books, but that makes sense considering she grew up in the slums for the majority of her life. Mare also has a killer sense of humor, which adds to the appeal of this series.

Without giving too much more away, there’s also a romantic aspect to this series. It’s not the main focus of the books, but it definitely helps with insight in our protagonist’s head. We get to see her struggle with her emotions, with manipulation, with everything else that goes on around her, and that also allows us to see how it affects her relationships with the other characters she’s with. And the romance isn’t pretty. It’s a struggle for Mare, going back and forth between her head and her heart. I think it adds more to the books than most would think (but that could just be me. I’m very much a hopeless romantic).

Overall, I genuinely enjoyed these books. The writing style really lets you dive deep into the characters, and I like how it really shines a light onto the mental and physical struggles of each character. It doesn’t sugarcoat things and really dives deep into the many struggles of each character. I mean, I read the whole entire series over quarantine the end of my sophomore year, and when you read a book every single day of quarantine, not a lot of them stick with you. Red Queen definitely did though.

If you’re a fan of the themes and tropes of books such as The Hunger Games, Throne of Glass, or anything similar to that, you’ll be a big fan of this series.