Special Report: 'Red'

Red

JB Wise

The Hooded Girl

Red has done well, given the cards she’s been dealt. She has been dead for hundreds of years, stuck in the Halfway as a Mountain Vila-a creature that can turn into a wolf on a whim. She’s kept herself a secret from the outside world, staying safe and abiding by the curse’s rules. She has done everything she was asked to do. But destiny has decided it isn’t enough. 

The Vicious Wolf 

Felan is tired of his duties and of the games the Vila’s play. Being second in command of the Guard, he has earned a vacation. Still, he is required to take his leave deep in the hills of Washington, where his only heir resides. The coincidences come together just as everything else falls apart. Now Felan must remember who he is, if he plans to protect the ones he loves.

The Hunter

Jac is ready. He’s been ready since before he died and nothing is going to stand in his way. War is unavoidable and Red will be his. 

Red is a debut novel in the paranormal fiction genre. It is approx. 60k words and follows the short story, The Beginning

This book wasn't bad. I didn't really like how it started. I can see a good friend of mine liking it. I'm typically a bird girl, though. Ravens and crows. The carrion birds. I'm not a big wolf girl. 

Reid's feisty spirit is amazing. I love how she doesn't back down. She takes problems at face value. She doesn't let things get to her until she breaks. (I can relate. I'm not bad with taking punches, figuratively, but I can break.) She is an admirable character. She loves her family. And wants their protection. She wants the best for them. And she wants the best for her friends too like Rarity. (What's up with Rawr? Is that some pet name?) She is true to her colors. Red. A fiery color. Spirited. She definitely fills that name. I'm not sure she fills the Little Red Hiding Hood character. She doesn't seem too innocent to be the girl in the red hood. 

I like Felan's backstory. Not the guy himself, though. He is an old guy. Really. It seems like he's from the Medieval Ages. I like the knights and princesses of that time period. Not a big historical fan but I do house a corner of my heart for the medieval times. It's an interesting time period. War and feuds. Servants and coconuts to mimic horses. (Monty Python!) But on to Felan. He had a terrible past. Losing his love and dying for her. Showing not only his caring but his bravery. I felt like that made me feel for him more. I didn't like him a lot when I met him. He was annoying and plain out rude to Red. (Seriously. Why? I don't get that. Even after it was explained.) Felan seems more human after revealing his backstory. It was weird, though. It wasn't when he revealed it to Red. It was earlier in the story. 

I didn't really like the world. It was a bit confusing at times. It felt like it was hard to understand who was who. The Vila are girls. The Guards and Trackers are guys. What do the guys do? Other than haunt poor girls who just want to be normal and alive. I feel like the way they factored in Heaven and Hell is too complex. The Pit? I feel like that's Tartarus not Hell. (Or what I am assuming is Hell. Not that I'm religious. I don't know these things.) I needed more. I wanted to know more about the world. About the curse. I wanted to see it happen to Red to prove its worth. That was only a dog killed. That could have been a coincidence. I wanted proof. I don't know why. Call me a bit sadistic if you want. I just feel like there wasn't enough proof. Maybe Angelina was the proof. Perhaps. 

I also felt like the fairy tale wasn't necessarily worked in. It seemed like the only similar elements were the wolves, Grandmere, and her hair. I felt like that wasn't enough. Where is the cape? And Grandmere was barely mentioned. I only know of her because of the prologue I read. There wasn't enough elements to convince me that it was a Red Riding Hood retelling. I know it is. And the similar components are enough to hint at it. But I wanted more. And I feel like retellings are becoming too common. It has to take a lot more to impress me now. (I blame 'The Lunar Chronicles'.) 

And I didn't like how the story was formatted. The speech was another line. It was odd. And it was hard to read. I felt like it was a bit bumbling too. It was odd since the story didn't always say who said what. I had to assume. It was confusing. I prefer the typically style of formatting. This was harder to read. Not entirely a turn off. More of an annoyance. 

Weather:

Sunny with a 25% chance of rain and light fog

3/5