The Blood Red Road starts out in a semipost-apocalyptical setting in the desert. Saba and her family are very close, however, her youngest sister, Emmi, is hated. When their mother was giving birth to Emmi, she died. Ever since then the two siblings have hated her because of it. Saba’s brother, Lugh, is taken and now she needs to get him back. She goes on a quest to retrieve him but ends up having to face many obstacles that are in her way. From battling in The Cage to fighting the King, she will do whatever it takes to get him back!

The book was an easy read. It contained simple words that combined together to form sentences that flow quite easily. However, the writing is written as if they had a southern accent, so the spelling is off which makes it a little tricky to “translate.” The writing and dialogue is similar to that of The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn by Mark Twain. The novel also contains vivid imagery that paints a clear image in the reader’s head when necessary. Even though the language is fairly simple the content is recommended for an upperclassman in high school. After the first fifty pages or so, that is when fighting and blood begin to show up. The book is violent but draws the reader in keeping them wanted to know more and more. Someone reading this will have a very hard time putting it down longer than a couple minutes.

This book was read and recommended by James Dashner who wrote The Maze Runner. The Maze Runner was similar in many aspects to The Blood Red Road and would be a great read if you have read it. Both novels take place in a dystopian setting and have a strong female leadership role.

I would recommend this book to either male or female for numerous reasons. For men I would recommend it because there is a lot of violence and fighting. Also it is a quest type book trying to rescue a close family member. For women I would recommend it because there is a strong female protagonist in the plot. Saba is a strong-willed, determined individual who will not let anyone get in the way of her getting back her brother.