Full Book Review of Red Queen Book 2 Glass Sword
Glass Sword is the second book in the Red Queen series, and Victoria Aveyard has given use another book with a gripping ending. As they help the growing rebel army find the new bloods, Mare and her team are in a race against Maven. My full review of the book with and without spoilers is below.
Here’s a short synopsis of the book:
“Mare Barrow’s blood is red—the color of common folk—but her Silver ability, the power to control lightning, has turned her into a weapon that the royal court tries to control. The crown calls her an impossibility, a fake, but as she makes her escape from Maven, the prince—the friend—who betrayed her, Mare uncovers something startling: she is not the only one of her kind.
Pursued by Maven, now a vindictive king, Mare sets out to find and recruit other Red-and-Silver fighters to join in the struggle against her oppressors. But Mare finds herself on a deadly path, at risk of becoming exactly the kind of monster she is trying to defeat. Will she shatter under the weight of the lives that are the cost of rebellion? Or have treachery and betrayal hardened her forever?“
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Full Book Review Without Spoilers
The sequel is good as far as sequels go, but not as good as the first book. This one definitely starts slower with slower pacing through the whole first half. But just like the first book, ends on such a cliffhanger you immediately want to pick up the next book.
This book is definitely worth it if you liked the first book, and an enjoyable book in the series. The plot of this book is unique from the first book that you don’t feel like you’re reading the same thing twice either. Even the love triangle continues, but in a very different way than you’d expect.
Characters
Honestly, the main character, Mare, wasn’t the best in this book as it was a constant going back and forth on her purpose/place in the world that seemed drawn out. It doesn’t seem like Mare makes much progress in her character development during the book.
But, we got to learn a lot more about the other main characters and other abilities that really contributed to the world building. One of my favorite characters we get to see a lot more of is Shade, who shows up at the end of Red Queen.
I’m a little sad we didn’t get to see more of King Maven that left us shocked in the first book. On the plus side, I really liked that we got to meet a lot of new characters with all kinds of abilities.
Plot
The plot of this book is interesting in that we get to learn a lot more about the new bloods, their special powers, and the larger world as a whole. The underlying politics and subplots of the minor characters really start to come out in this book, which was one of my complaints about what the first book lacked.
I don’t think there was enough action sequences in the first half of the book to keep you really engaged, but it does pick up eventually. I have to give this author credit that she delivers some really good plot twists by the end of the book, though.
Writing
Victoria Aveyard’s writing style is easy to read, but the pacing was a little off in the book. The second half does redeem the first half, though. The best part of the book is Aveyard’s ability to shock you at the end and leave you needing that next book.
Full Book Review With Spoilers
You’ve been warned that from here on out there will be spoilers.
Glass Sword is an intriguing follow up to the first book and is definitely worth reading. Not only do we see more Silver abilities, we get to see even more powerful new blood abilities like completely changing one’s appearance and draining the life from another living thing. This second installment in the series also gives us lots of new characters like Cameron, Nanny, Nix, and Shade.
In the book, I enjoyed meeting the new bloods as well as the tension between Mare racing to find them before Maven gets to them. The notes that Maven leaves for Mare with the bodies also make for an interesting subplot that makes you want to keep reading the series for that Maven aspect.
I found the end of the book satisfying in answering the questions from the first and solving the immediate problems faced by the group, but leaves you with a new cliffhanger that keeps you reading the series. And the very thing you were hoping for after the first book-Queen Elara dying- finally happens!!
Pros of the Book
One of the main pros of this book, just like the first book, is the ending. It’s worth reading through all the not as good parts to get to the emotional roller coaster that is the ending. And the ending makes you want to keep going with the series.
Another pro of the book is you do get answers to questions left from the first book like how Mare’s brother is there, what the Scarlet Guard really has going on, more of the why behind Maven’s betrayal, and how the other new bloods would respond. It also gives us more of a picture of what’s coming on in the larger world.
A pro for me, because I like the romance aspect of these books, was that we got to learn a lot more about Cal. While there’s still questions about his loyalties and such, we hear a lot more about his opinions and inner thoughts in this book compared to the first book.
Cons of the Book
The biggest con of the book is that the first half is slow. I had a hard time keeping up with more normal pace of reading, especially since the previous book moved pretty fast with a lot of action throughout the whole book.
The other large con for me in the book was Mare’s constant back and forth. She goes back and forth with Cal, with Kilorn, and with herself. Some of it was very valid for what was happening to her in the book, but some of it seemed excessive.
A smaller con for me was that there wasn’t as many action scenes as the first book. We do get to see a lot of new powers and interesting minor characters, but not a lot of action until the end of the book.
Conclusion
If you liked the first book, this is a really good continuation of the series to answer most of your questions and keep you moving in the overall story. After this book, I’m only more invested in the characters and the ending of the series. Just keep reading through the slow beginning to get to the second half of the book.
We get a lot more development and answers about our favorite characters from the first book, but also get a new plot and characters that keep you engaged in this book.
You can find the book here.
I have a full summary of the book here if you need a refresher on any of the main points.
Rating- 3.75 out of 5
I went in with lower expectations than the first book, simply because sequels or the middle books of series aren’t usually as good. But this second book pleasantly surprised me with it’s uniqueness and plot twists. I thought about the ending a lot, and immediately got the third book from the library because I wanted to keep reading.
Here’s how I rate all my books: My Rating System
Who Would Enjoy Reading?
My answer to this is the same as the first book:
“If you enjoyed any of the other dystopian, fantasy novels like Hunger Games or Divergent, you’ll like this one, too. I’m a sucker for these fantasy tropes, so I really enjoyed the book. You would also like it if you like fantasy with political subplots or fantasy with a strong-willed female main character.
It is geared toward young adult/ older teenagers rather than full on adult fantasy. And while there is a romance going on in Red Queen, it’s not like the romantasy books on social media (there’s no spice and only a few romantic scenes) if that’s what you’re looking for.”
You can read the full review of that book here and the summary if you need a refresher here.
What to Read After
Whether you keep going with the series or are looking for a new fantasy book, there’s tons of great options out there. Try some of my favorites below!
King’s Cage by Victoria Aveyard
The next book, and the most obvious, to read is the next book in the series- King’s Cage. It’s the third book of four, and one I’m currently reading. Continue on with Mare’s story!
Powerless by Lauren Roberts
This is another one of the series I’m currently reading because the third book isn’t out as of yet. But it’s got a lot of the same positive similarities as the Red Queen series.
One Dark Window by Rachel Gillig
Another more recent book, but finished series, is One Dark Window which is part of a duology. This one is also about a unexpected girl who holds the key to societies problems. But be warned that this book does contain some more mature themes.
