Book Review - Blood Red Road

Title: Blood Red Road
Author: Moira Young
Series: Dustlands (book 1)
Publisher: Marion Lloyd Books
Release Date: 4 Jan 2012
ISBN-13: 978-1407124261

 Synopsis
"I ain't afeared of nuthin." Saba's twin is golden. She is his living shadow. He is strong and beautiful. She is scrawny and dark. Nothing will separate them... Raised in isolated Silverlake, Saba is ignorant of the harsh and violent world beyond her home. But when her twin is snatched by black-robed riders, red rage fills her soul. How will Saba find him in a wild, scorching and lawless land? Racing across the cruel dustlands to find him, she can spare no one. Not even the boy who saves her life. She must silence her heart to survive. Blood will spill. Every step of Saba's journey sizzles with danger in this futuristic thriller, which beats with a powerful, red-blooded heart.

My Review
 Last month I was searching the web looking for ideas for the next book to give to my Teen Reading group. This came up with a tagline saying "the next great read for Hunger Games fans" and as my group are total Hunger Games fans I thought it would be perfect. I then went to the 'Rise of Sci-Fi' evening in London and met Moira Young, I found out more about her and her book and it sounded really good. I bought a copy and got it signed. It then sat on my book pile for about a month while I caught up on other reads, then I realised the next meeting for the Teen group was upon me and I hadn't yet read it. How can I talk about it with the Teens if I haven't read it myself so I made a start. 
I managed to get 100 pages in before the meeting, but it was enough to discuss. Two of them had finished it and spoke really highly of it so it made me more determine to finish.
I wasn't really sure what to expect from this book, but I did have high hopes, and it mostly lived up to them.
IT took me a bit to get into it as the characters speak in a sort of southern drawl, saying things like 'afeared' instead of 'afraid' and 'git' instead of 'get'. etc. But once I was used to it, it just increased the sense of setting and character. 
The one thing I really didn't like in this book wa the lack of speech marks. There isn't a single one in the whole book. lines would literally be like this:

Nero flutters down an lands on my shoulder.
It's big, I says. Whaddya think?
He croaks an bobs up an down.

Again once I knew her speech/writing patterns it was easier to follow and work out what was conversation, I would sometimes have to read a sentence twice but it did get easier, but when I first started it really confused me. The one I put above wasn't a bad one, quite obvious really but some where more mixed it. I also wish I knew why she decided to leave them out, I couldn't see a reason for it, but I suppose there must have been one.
That really was the only gripe I had about it though. `the book was just as thrilling and exciting as it promises to be. I came to really like Saba, she is kick as* and not afraid to show her feelings, she can be stroppy and protective but also loyal and thoughtful. 
I really liked her sister Emmi who never did what he was told, was portrayed as weak and pathetic at the beginning but showed throughout that she could give as good as she got.
There is a whole host of fab characters and a lot of twists and turns, this book is definitely worth a read. I'm actually looking forward to book 2. So don't be put off too soon, persevere and I think you'll end up really enjoying it.

My Rating