This is Book One of the Red Magic Series published in 2014. In 2015, Book Two, Gods of Chaos, was published, and Triumph of Chaos, Book Three, was published in 2016. Let me start this review by saying that I will not be reading books two and three. Not that this book was particularly bad, but because it wasn’t good enough to for me to want to go back for more. Part of the problem is me, of course. I don’t really like young adult fiction. Most of it is too simplistic for my tastes.
Another part of the problem is one fundamental to series fiction. Book one always needs to set up the main character and the world in which the series takes place. Typically, book one lacks an essential element: the tension of a central conflict and MC’s struggle to resolve it. There are several threads of tension in this book, but none of them are strong enough to carry the story.
The story is about Darlena, a teenage witch, forced to choose her witch path. She has the options of Black, White, or Green. Forced to decide, she rebelliously blurts out “Red, I choose Red.” When she said it, she didn’t even know that red witchcraft was a thing. Now, she’s becoming a red witch whose power is chaos.
Be aware, spoilers to follow.
There’s the conflict between Darlena and her parents. Her parents want her to be a white or green witch and are, naturally, disappointed when she chooses red. They are not involved in her later adventures, being neither helpful nor obstructive. Although they do say that if she’s going to be a red witch they can’t help her, even though her mom is a white witch.
There’s the conflict between Darlena and her boyfriend, who is also a white witch. This relationship plays out very awkwardly. It doesn’t read like a true portrayal of teenage romance to me. Instead, it reads like an adult trying to write about teenage romance. Appalled by her choice, her boyfriend begins to hold her at arm’s length. Her continuing love, and aching for him, seems contrived.
There’s the conflict between Darlena and her best girlfriend. When the girlfriend turns against Darlena, the reader is surprised because there is no sign that this could be happening, there’s no set-up to make it realistic. The friend’s betrayal seems to be there because the author needed to find an antagonist.
Then there’s the blending of Greek and Roman myths with the story of witchcraft. For me, this mix simply does not work.
The story wanders. Darlena’s main goal doesn’t seem clear. Then she takes off to another country without any good explanation of why. Next, she journeys to the underworld. Now, I suppose, the author has the right to create the underworld and red magic that pleases her. Unfortunately, neither one worked for me. Sorry, Ms. McConnell.
On the rating scale of one to five (five being best), I give this book a two.