Low Red Moon

Review Time! I received a copy of Low Red moon for review before Christmas but with all that's been going on ( moving house, birthday, holidays plans) I haven't been able to read it until last week! Thank-you Allen & Unwin!

( Goodreads) The only thing Avery Hood can remember about the night her parents died is that she saw silver—deadly silver, moving inhumanly fast. As much as she wants to remember who killed them, she can't, and there's nothing left to do but try to piece her life back together. Then Avery meets the new boy in school—Ben, mysterious and beautiful, with whom she feels a connection like nothing she's ever experienced. When Ben reveals he's a werewolf, Avery still trusts him—at first. Then she sees that sometimes his eyes flash inhuman silver. And she learns that she's not the only one who can't remember the night her parents died.Part murder mystery, part grief narrative, and part heart-stopping, headlong romance, Low Red Moon is a must-read for teen paranormal fans. As breathless as Twilight and as spooky as Shiver, this is a book to be devoured in one sitting—by an acclaimed YA author making her paranormal debut under the pseudonym Ivy Devlin

The Short Story ? - I'm 'pretty' sure that this is a re-imagining of Little Red Riding Hood. Twisted, mashed-up and without the whole 'what big teeth you have' shebang but the similarities are there nevertheless. I can't quite put my finger on whether I liked this book or not.

The Long Story ? - I wish I can say that I was immediately pulled into the story, but I wasn't. Overall, I would have to say that I did enjoy this book but I had to work for that enjoyment. It just didn't come easily for me, the best explanation I can give is that - it's like working really hard on a project, you enjoy some parts but hate other parts and then when you finish you think 'hey, that wasn't so bad'.

Some of you might know that I 'strongly dislike' books where grief, death or depression is a main theme. I don't click with those books and when I read ten words into the book and realised that grief was a HUGE part of this novel, the warning bells went off in my head.

In my opinion, the author has tried to weave themes into this book that just don't work well together. I can't but feel that I would have enjoyed Low Red Moon alot more if she had left out the paranormal twist. Ben, the love interest is a werewolf but that's about as significant saying his great grandfather is Irish. The whole book would have been better without the complication of Ben being a werewolf, I love paranormals but in this case the plot was already difficult to follow and adding werewolves to the mix just pushed it a little too far.

The plot was hard to follow in some places but the romance was really sweet and meaningful. I loved the immediate attraction between Ben and Avery, the connection they felt between each other and the devoted love Ben showed that made me tingle. I give credit for the fact that Low Red Moon is love-triangle free.Low Red Moon gives 'Love at First Sight' a whole new meaning ;)

The writing was very beautiful. Lyrical, soft and comforting I just wish it wasn't so focused on grief...I also give credit for originality. Sure, it sures similarities to Little Red Riding Hood but it was unpredictable. I wouldn't have seen the ending coming. The cover art is beautiful and effort the printing press put into making the header and footer read to match the cover is praise-worthy.

Overall, Low Red Moon is one of those books that sits smack-bang in the middle of the scales for me. There are parts that I wished I hadn't read at all but the parts that I thoroughly enjoyed made up for it. The good and bad balanced each other out. I would keep an eye out for this one, keep it on your TBR pile but don't hold your breath, I have heard mixed reviews about ;) Rating - 3/5 ( enjoyable, hard work but you just might fall in love with it)

Available - The Book Depository

Badass Bookie xx