Review of Blood Red Road (Dustlands #1) by Moira Young

My thoughts

I have been trying to get my hands on a copy of this for a while, so I finally just decided to buy order this sucker on Amazon during a 4 for 3 promotion. And boy am I glad I did. 

When I first opened this book and started reading it, my initial reaction was: What the shark!? This woman has the freakiest writing style. She writes from Saba's point of view and in a past tense. This I can handle. But she does not write like any author I have encountered. She does not use quotation marks. She just tells you that so and so says this. and you have to take her word for it. lol. It was really confusing at first, what with the lack of quotation marks. I mean, I couldn't at first pinpoint when someone was saying something and had to re- read some dialogues, but I got the hang of it pretty quick. I mean, there isn't too much conversation to begin with. For some reason, though, i really hope she doesn't take all the criticism of her dialogue to heart in her second book because I am used to her writing style now and it would royally mess me up if she changed it. I know. weird. moving on. (need....2nd....book.)

Now that I have pinpointed the thing I was less than impressed with, we can move on to other things. :D Like the fact that I LOVE THE GRAMMAR USED BY THE CHARACTERS. I love how the Author had a certain way to spell all of the words that were pronounced different in the book. as i previously mentioned in one of my reviews, (Assassin's Curse <3) if they are raised in conditions and have no schoolin' then they should not have the best grammar. (haha. I bet that really ate at the poor sucker who had to edit this book. muahaha. Mrs. Young, that is not how this word in spelled. or this one.. and where are the quotation marks,woman!?! Moira: Oh, I meant to do that. :D Editor: O.o) yeah, that was sporadic. lol. Anyways, love the grammar.

From your initial introduction to Saba when she is following her brother around like a lost puppy, you would never have expected that this meek girl who never has an original thought would become the Angel of Death (I won't spoil it for those who have not read. all you need to know is that woman is bad- ass.) I love the development of her character throughout the book. At first she couldn't give a rat's butt about her sister. All she wanted was to find her twin bother with whom she shares a special connection. But she promised her brother that she would keep Emmi safe. So she does what she can. I love the progression of their relationship. At the beginning of the story, she doesnt want her sister hurt, but she doesn't want her in the way either. Saba is 18 and Emmi is 9, so she really can't be bothered with her. But by the end of the book, Saba was willing to do anything for Emmi, because she is her baby sister, gosh-darnit. 
I will skip over an entire part of the story..  so as not to ruin if for Kevin, who will be reading this.but Saba is put into a tough situation that really drags on her soul. She does what she has to to survive, even if it means that others will not. But she has her little sister to get back to and a brother to find and she cannot give up on them. There is so much  more strength in her character by the end of the first book that you cannot help but admire her. She only ever had to depend on Lugh (brother) so she is very stubborn and has a hard time accepting help and definitely does not know what to do with friendship. But the amazing groups of people she encounters are just as stubborn as she is and wont let her push them away so easily. She learns the she can make it on her own without Lugh, when at first she felt like she would die if he wasn't with her. She can think for herself and she can take care of herself. 

The freehawks are bad-as too.i absolutely loved them and the idea of them. just saying. 

Le romance: She meets Jack in the touch situation I mentioned earlier. And according to        Saba, he is just so freakin' infuriating! He is always making fun of her and making her look like a fool. He is constantly joking around and making her feel off- balance. And because of this- and despite her attraction - she is constantly pushing him away. She doesn't know his back story and she doesn't know whether she can trust him, but she has to if she is ever going to find her brother. She could probably tolerate him better if he would stop charming everyone- even her freakin crow. the traitor.

I loved the Crow, Nero. I just freaking loved him. He is Saba's little companion and he is just so cute and loyal. Yes,people, I did just say I loved the freakin crow. get over it. ;)

There is this one character that I just have a feeling we will see more of in the next book, because of his ominous parting words to Saba. Something along the lines of Until next time. forgive me if I cannot remember the exact Line. This guy is a freaking enigma. I am not even gonna tell you what this fool did to make me so confused. But hell, if I'm not intrigued after what he did. Still do not know if he is a bad guy or a really bad guy.. lol. Heck, I doubt he is a good guy. But still, he intrigues me. *eyebrow wiggle* 

While Saba's one and only goal is to get her brother back safe- and is even willing to step on a few people to get there, there is much more at play than a simple kidnapping,and much more at risk than just one man. Get ready for an adventure. ;)