Review: Warstorm

The thrilling, tremendous and tension filled end to the Red Queen Series can be found in this fourth tantalising instalment of the series, Warstorm. This book sees our fierce flawed female protagonists Mare Barrow (a red blood with lightening powers) General Diana Farley (Red blood authority in the Scarlet Guard and new mother to Mares niece, Clara), and new red bloods Cameron and Anna. They’re joined by Killorn (Mares childhood friend), Cal Calore (the current King and former love interest of Mare) and Cals crown obsessed brother Maven, who’s hellbent on the destruction of his brothers reign.

This book continues to build up and deliver the growing civil war between Nova and the Lakeland’s, and between red bloods and new bloods and the reigning silver bloods. The potential for matters to end in a violent political war was always looming over the main characters, as neither side is prepared to back down. Its themes of love, grief, war, trauma, civility and power are present throughout the book.

Warstorm begins after

The book concludes in a final battle, where plans of action meet the last minute sacrifices and choices that define both Mare and her friends and the future they could achieve one day, if their wartime sacrifices, commitments and personal battles pay off in the end. For everyone, the book ends on a dramatic somber yet tender tone, which will leave you wondering what will happen to them in the future and what the results of the paths they choose will be.

Warstorm leaves propels stories on a wistful open ended note (that’s resolved in short stories in Broken Throne), which gives it a realistic tone, as Mare and her friends have won the civil war, but there are still personal wars for them to ponder and contend with, as they come to terms with what may or could happen now everything is quiet, for the meantime anyway. The character of Mare resonates with readers because she’s not the all perfect heroine, fully equipped with the personality or skills needed to lead and win a war.

She slowly grows into herself and develops as a from a naive, small town girl who will do anything to shrivel to someone who’s more thoughtful, aware and has learnt to work smarter not harder and learn to trust her out of the box thinking. The harsh lessons she learns from betrayal and trust help her relapse the wider world is a terrifying place but there are smaller things that could add up to be enough to transform both the outcome of the war and herself.

If you’re also an eager reader who does not want to ponder endlessly over our favourite protagonists’ fates, the Subsequent novella, Broken Throne provides short form epilogues as to what happens to Mal, Cal and the future of their countries.