Review: Blood Red Road by Moira Young

 If I could travel back in time to 2011 I would visit myself and say PUT DOWN THAT STUPID VAMPIRE BOOK AND READ Blood Red Road by Moira Young. And it would have been excellent advice.

Saba has spent her whole life in Silverlake, a dried-up wasteland ravaged by constant sandstorms. The Wrecker civilization has long been destroyed, leaving only landfills for Saba and her family to scavenge from. That's fine by her, as long as her beloved twin brother Lugh is around. But when a monster sandstorm arrives, along with four cloaked horsemen, Saba's world is shattered. Lugh is captured, and Saba embarks on an epic quest to get him back.
Suddenly thrown into the lawless, ugly reality of the world outside of desolate Silverlake, Saba is lost without Lugh to guide her. So perhaps the most surprising thing of all is what Saba learns about herself: she's a fierce fighter, an unbeatable survivor, and a cunning opponent. And she has the power to take down a corrupt society from the inside. Teamed up with a handsome daredevil named Jack and a gang of girl revolutionaries called the Free Hawks, Saba stages a showdown that will change the course of her own civilization.

I loved this book! I love the Hawks, I am impressed/terrified by Saba, and I  luuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuv Jack.

• Level of Originality: 8. The desert dystopian future is absolutely enthralling. What makes this book so original is the narrative voice. At fist I was distracted by the bad grammar and drawl, but then once I got into it this voice made the book so atmospheric. It also totally submerses the reader in Saba's world and thoughts. Amazing-sauce all the way.
• Level of Absurdity: 6. Sada's cage fighting days are pretttttty intense, and while I am happy she is a good fighter, I am not sure this is the type of characteristic a teenager has that is "surprising'. If your badass, don't you kind of have an idea?
• Level of Paranormal Romance: 9. Smoking! Jack gets to join my awesome-boys fraternity (XXXX). He is even challenging George, the ultimate rogue charmer, for best male love interest in the history of the written word. (No. Big. Deal.)
• Level of Harry Potterness: 7. The GoodReads blurb says: " poetically minimal writing style, violent action, and an epic love story. Moira Young is one of the most promising and startling new voices in teen fiction" Check and check and check.