Scarletville – the national redhead sanctuary – the only place where Redheads are prized; where they’re treated like royalty. After all, they’re so rare they need to be protected.
Felicity St John is one of these protected redheads, and in Scarletville, she’s practically a goddess. Popular, Beauty Queen, dating the hottest jock, running the art show and on the court for Miss Scarletville – and it’s all because of her red, red hair.
But Felicity is a fraud; a fake. Because in America’s only redhead sanctuary, where her greatest achievement is the colour of her hair, Felicity would find herself shamed if she lost her bottle of dye…
I quite honestly don’t know what I was expecting from a book like Red – the only reason I picked it up is because, well, I’ve thrown myself into so many fantasy worlds in such a short time, I felt like I needed something lighter to cool down. And while I should have been prepared that this book would be, as per all accounts, superficial, I couldn’t help but hoping for a little more.
And more I did not get. Red was your typical/ atypical teenage drama with a twist on one aspect – your popularity depended on the colour of your hair. Which was strange, but then again, I should have realised that that was what the book would be about.
I guess, putting all that aside, the only thing that annoyed me despite liking this light read was that Felicity knew that what she was doing, and the town that she lived in was strange and unique in its own little way, when she did venture out, she was SHOCKED to see that it didn’t matter if one was a redhead or not. As if she wasn’t already thinking it.
Also, her relationship with her redhead jock boyfriend – I found it very hard to stop my gag reflex. There was just something about it, something I can’t put my finger on, that made me feel dirty and disgusted all over. I guess it was the whole relationship, but especially the fact that she slept with him to, in a way, feel ‘safe’ and cement her position. Which is terrible, and completely ruins the idea of love. And all because of the colour of her hair?
All in all, a book I won’t be re-reading, but it’s definitely a good, light, relaxing read! Three stars!
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