A review by book_whispers
Red by Kate SeRine

3.0

Red was a title I put on the back burner of my TBR, in fact I hadn't even bothered to add it! It looked like another random romance title from the cover. (Yes, I haven't learned my lesson yet. So judgmental.) Then I saw a friend reading the third book, and it hit me, “Fairy tale beings brought to our modern day world?” Yep. Sold. Done. And, so done.

A few friends asked me if Red was a rip-off of Once Upon a Time, and I can truthfully say that Red ripped nothing off. There are plenty of titles where make-believe legends come to the modern world. Red hasn't stolen anything, in fact I think it's the best thing to come out with that kind of story concept in a while. Just think about it Red Riding Hood is a kick butt heroine, Snow White owns a brothel, Cinderella is in a loveless and heart breaking marriage, Boy Blue is quite the yummy mobster, Dracula is present in modern day hunky vampire fashion. That's not all readers! Other stories besides fairy tales have been pulled in. Austin characters (hello the Darcy's anyone!), Shakespeare, and more!

This is a debut for not just the series, but the author. There's some shaky ground ahead for the first bit. Right now I'm going to say this to save readers some confusion. No regular humans, or Ordinaries, do not realize that Tales, people from the stories, are among them. At first that's really clear, then all of a sudden Red's grandma has a TV show. And she's interviewing Peter Pan and Wendy? Um . . . muddling the lines there. There are some details that aren't thought out all the way, or explained. That was a little hard for me to stomach. Because I'm a reader who NEEDS the world to be flawless. Despite that, Red was still an addiction.

The twists of what really happened for each fairy tale story is awesome! Reds “true” story was wonderful and I loved how fierce Red was. She's a member of FMA, or Fairytale management Authority. Law enforcement for the Literary and Nursery Rhyme characters. They help them with character protection and placement adjusting to the real world. And dealing with them when they get naughty. Red's latest case leads her into dealing with her exes. The Big Bad Wolf, Dracula, and a surprise character from a Shakespeare play that I'll let readers find out about. What I loved is that Red has had a dating past. She's not ashamed of it, she can have sex and not be a slut! Thank you. (Sorry I read too many books in a row like that.) She might have iffy taste in men—well except for the yummy Boy Blue. This story is gritty and dangerous. No one is safe. The “master minds” behind the evil was clear to me the instant I met the characters.

Sexual Content: Sexual humor, sex, but nothing too there.

3/5- Adored it, just a few minor details held it back.

Originally posted at Book Whispers.