"Rise, as red as the dawn" --The Scarlet Guard THIS IS LITERALLY THE BEST BOOK I HAVE EVER READ. Well, The Young Elites is tied with this book. Well anyways, this book is amazing and everyone NEEDS to read this book. Mare Barrows is a poor girl living in a poor community. She lives with her torn-apart family. She has 3 brothers that are on the war front, a dad missing a lung and a leg, a normal but tired mother, and a younger sister who is very talented at sewing. Mare has no special abilities that could make money for her family, so she resorts to stealing. Her younger sister Gemma, who is apprenticed to a shopkeeper in the rich district, asks Mare to accompany her on a trip there. While they are there, they are caught up in an revolt. During the revolt, Gemma's sewing hand is crushed, thus ending her apprenticeship and the money. Mare became really ashamed. Soon, her best friend Kilorn, who was apprenticed to a fisher, gives her more bad news. His master had died, leaving him with no choice to go to the war front unless they got a lot of money in one evening. Mare goes to a trader, who then introduces her to the leader of the Red Guard, a secret society who is determined to overthrow the Silver crown. Silver people have special magic that Red people don't, which is how they control them. A twist of fate leads Mare right to the palace when she meets the king's son under the disguise of a commoner. At the castle, she lets out an ability out that she never knew she had. In order to hide that impossibility, the king betroths her to one of his own sons, Maven. At first, they weren't friends, but after a while, they start becoming friends and maybe even start liking each other. Mare, along with Maven, decide to join the Scarlet Guard and become spies. I don't want to say the biggest plot twist ever, it will change your whole point of view on the character, but I still love that character. My summary isn't the best, but it basically explains what led Mare to show royalty her hidden power to control lightning. What I love about this book is the love triangle. This isn't a normal love triangle either. She is betrothed to Maven, but she likes both Maven and Cal (Maven's older half-brother the crown prince). Cal is engaged to another person, who just so happens to control metal, which is very very dangerous and powerful. At the end of the book, Mare is betrayed by one of the brothers and ends up hating him. This book is fantasy, but if it was in the real world, I think this would take place in old Rome. In the beginning of the book, Mare and Kilorn are at an arena watching people fight, just like people in Rome did. This book is amazing. It keeps you in suspense, it adds dashes of mystery, and sprinkles of romance. Victoria Aveyard sure knows how to write a good book. I reccommend this book to anyone who is old enough to take bloodshed. EVERYONE READ IT! :) Thank you

Cassiopeia is a beautiful queen (but very narcissistic) who was set up in the heavens by Poseidon (cough cough Percy Jackson's dad) to become a constellation after boasting too much. Even though Cassie is named after Cassiopeia, Cassie isn't quite vain... in fact, she is quite intellectual, and you'll learn to love her. I think that girl heroes are awesome... Like the Divergent series... well Tris can really kick butt... and that's the same thing with Cassie... Girls can fight like guys... or maybe even better (now I'm not insulting the guys... I'm just simply stating the truth... okay.. just kidding XD... guys and girls are all awesome)... Anyways... As a teenager (Cassie) thinks about what teenagers normally think about... "OMG, did you see that cute guy!!!" or maybe "I hope I do well on that pop quiz that Mr. Daniels gave me" (now all of these scenarios are stereotypes, so don't take them personally)... but it shows that teenagers don't think about their own death... or even when the world is going to be abducted by aliens... So once the plane came crashing down during school... you can see how everything played out... a hot mess... the first wave came, then the second wave, the third wave, and the fourth wave.. while all the survivors are anxiously waiting for the fifth wave... After these four waves... Cassie becomes tired of running away... her mom passed away from an illness while her father is murdered right in front of Cassie's eyes! After the soldiers, who they say they are, take all the children... including Nugget (Sam, Cassie's adorable younger brother)... Cassie and Evan decides to take their plan in their own hands... There comes a time with many sacrifices.. and this is the time... Cassie must battle through this horrendous generation and help rescue her brother by passing through all these complex technology... but can she trust Evan... Who is Evan??? Will Cassie ever find Sam??? Or will he be lost like the other children??? Well to answer these questions... you must read this amazing book to find out... So i really liked this book... it had me hooked to the beginning and end.... there is no part in the book that'll make you feel bored... because the author makes this book so realistic (I know the end of the world... but the author really pulls you in) that it's like your like Cassie's shadow, taking in part of this journey... And one tiny warning... do not pronounce Cassie like Cass- ee- oh- PEE- a... it drives her crazy... But if you want adventure and suspense leading you on every page... this book is perfect for you!

Are you the author?

Absolutely thrilling. This book had my heart wrenched from the inside out and I don't hesitate to give it five stars. Marie Lu somehow manages to make me root for Adelina to come back- for her to win her inner struggle to stay good. My heart sincerely aches for her. A true masterpiece- how could a book make me feel like this? Whoever is reading this review get this book RIGHT NOW.

I thought the School for Good and Evil would be another one of those cliché fairy-tales-with-a-twist books, but Soman Chainani booted that prejudice out of the ballpark. I give this book five stars overall- I couldn’t stop the pages from turning. Sophie is the perfect “good” girl- beautiful, fashionable, and even does her share of good deeds every day. Then there’s Agatha- the outcast with a dreary atmosphere, makes potions, and even lives in a graveyard. Sophie’s goal is to escape their town to the School for Good and Evil while all Agatha wants is to stay at her graveyard home with Sophie. One day, the School Master kidnaps both Sophie and Agatha and “accidentally” dumps Sophie in the school for evil while Agatha must deal with frilly dresses in the School for Good. It’s obvious that Agatha is good and Sophie is Evil, right? Don’t judge a book by its cover, overcoming prejudices, etc. But I think the real moral of the story is that there is no black and white in the world; nothing can be purely good or purely evil- kind of like the yin and yang symbol. Somehow the author had my head spinning, blurring the lines between good and evil- because despite how horrible Sophie could be, she loved her mother with all her heart. Sophie still managed to make the greatest sacrifice of all for her best friend. So who is good and who is evil?

I thought the School for Good and Evil would be another one of those cliché fairy-tales-with-a-twist books, but Soman Chainani booted that prejudice out of the ballpark. I give this book five stars overall- I couldn’t stop the pages from turning. Sophie is the perfect “good” girl- beautiful, fashionable, and even does her share of good deeds every day. Then there’s Agatha- the outcast with a dreary atmosphere, makes potions, and even lives in a graveyard. Sophie’s goal is to escape their town to the School for Good and Evil while all Agatha wants is to stay at her graveyard home with Sophie. One day, the School Master kidnaps both Sophie and Agatha and “accidentally” dumps Sophie in the school for evil while Agatha must deal with frilly dresses in the School for Good. It’s obvious that Agatha is good and Sophie is Evil, right? Don’t judge a book by its cover, overcoming prejudices, etc. But I think the real moral of the story is that there is no black and white in the world; nothing can be purely good or purely evil- kind of like the yin and yang symbol. Somehow the author had my head spinning, blurring the lines between good and evil- because despite how horrible Sophie could be, she loved her mother with all her heart. Sophie still managed to make the greatest sacrifice of all for her best friend. So who is good and who is evil?

If someone asks me: If you could go to one country, which one would you go to? I wouldn't know China has underwater hotels and treehouse hotels- now Romania has an underground amusement park?