Blood Red Road by Moira Young

A friend recommended this novel to me, and if this wasn’tthe case, I doubt I would have brought it. Luckily, I trusted my friend’sopinion.
After reading the first page of the Kindle sample, I thoughtthe unique writing style and language would be too distracting for me to lastthrough the whole novel. The words are broken, being written more like how theysound than the true English spelling. This fits with the theme of the book – aworld where books are antiques and written words are long forgotten.
Thinking of my friend’s love for the book, I continuedreading and found that the different writing was refreshing instead ofannoying. I wanted to know what happened next!
So what is this book about? It is set in a ruined future,where the majority of the world is desert and has severely deteriorated. Thestory is told from Saba’s point of view, a very stubborn 18 year old, who haslived isolated with her family her whole life. She is close to her twinbrother, and blames her sister for her mother’s death. So when five men kidnapher twin, she promises to find him. The rest of the story is fast paced andfull of adventure; this gives you no time to get bored, or put the book downduring an uneventful part.
You see the main character, Saba, grow with independence andher willpower is inspiring. However, she isn’t the most likeable person duringthe majority of the book. You will find yourself willing her to reactdifferently, listen to the people around her, or just stop and think a while.She doesn’t see what is right in front of her. I found this very frustrating attimes, but I am a romantic. I put myself in her shoes though: growing up onlyknowing family members, no sexual or romantic contact, with no experience oflife outside her area. You would behavior similarly for some actions.
I was surprised to hear there was a sequel yet to bereleased. Although I loved this novel, I’m unsure whether I would like to readthe second one. The novel ends in such a way that I found myself continuing itin my mind, playing what will happen. A sequel may be a mistake… I will have toread it and find out!
Saba’s strength and how she develops throughout the novelmakes up for these flaws. This novel will send you on an adventure that youhave never experienced. The imagery created is strong, and I could picture itlike a film in my head. I am very pleased I brought this novel; it is uniqueand, after reading as many novels as I have, this is a brilliant quality to a story.
4 out of 5 stars!