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A review by kari_webster
Hope and Red by Kelley Skovron
3.0
3.5 stars
This is a difficult one for me to review. Overall, I really enjoyed this story. The plot, world-building, magic and characters were all well developed and intriguing. Although I struggled a bit with the first half, once the protagonists came together I finished the last half in one sitting. The characters have complex histories and many different aspects of their personalities shine through. I particularly liked how the tragedies that both Hope and Red had to deal with at 8 years old shaped them in different ways and the results for both of them were equally believable. I also loved Sadie's character. She is so badass.
Unfortunately, I found the writing difficult to get past. It was often clumsy, and some passages would just be short sentences that stated the obvious. It regularly told rather than showed. Which is a shame as it has so much potential! Obviously it wasn't enough to stop me reading, I did have a few weeks off at the 40% mark as the writing jarred me out of the narrative often enough to put me off for a little while. That said, I the second half was better and I do want to read the second instalment. The ending wasn't rushed and it came together really well. I hope the second book concludes just as strongly! Red is too good for this world.
This is a difficult one for me to review. Overall, I really enjoyed this story. The plot, world-building, magic and characters were all well developed and intriguing. Although I struggled a bit with the first half, once the protagonists came together I finished the last half in one sitting. The characters have complex histories and many different aspects of their personalities shine through. I particularly liked how the tragedies that both Hope and Red had to deal with at 8 years old shaped them in different ways and the results for both of them were equally believable. I also loved Sadie's character. She is so badass.
Unfortunately, I found the writing difficult to get past. It was often clumsy, and some passages would just be short sentences that stated the obvious. It regularly told rather than showed. Which is a shame as it has so much potential! Obviously it wasn't enough to stop me reading, I did have a few weeks off at the 40% mark as the writing jarred me out of the narrative often enough to put me off for a little while. That said, I the second half was better and I do want to read the second instalment. The ending wasn't rushed and it came together really well. I hope the second book concludes just as strongly! Red is too good for this world.