The Backstory of Red Queen: The First Betrayal & the Start of the Scarlet Guard

Overall Rating: 3/5

Queen’s Song: 2/5

This is the story of Coriane Jacos, the mother of Cal from Red Queen. Coriane is nothing special and her house is falling on hard times. Her uncle that governors the House is old and dying; while her father has ambition, he is a terrible leader. When Coriane befriends Tiberias the Sixth, aka the Crown Prince, her father believes he has found the answer to all his problems, while Coriane believes she has found a friend as lonely as her.

The story was cute, but I didn’t really feel any attraction from Coriane to Tibe. It seemed like he was desperately holding on to her and she went with it because she had no other options. She doesn’t like court life and all she wants to do is be a mechanic or builder. She resents the way her world treats Reds and Silvers, but has no way to do anything about it. Even as Queen she does not try. However, her mind is assaulted by Elara, the evil bitch that will birth Maven. The way she tampered felt very subtle and I wasn’t sure if it actually happened, I would have liked it to be a little clearer. I enjoyed it, but it felt too short to be substantial.

*I loved seeing Julian and Sarah together just being happy. Julian is one of my favorite characters.

Steel Scars

Rating: 4/5

The Scarlet Guard began somewhere and Farley had a lot to do with it. After years of working with her Father- the Colonel- it’s time for Farley to strike out on her own as a Captain. We learn more about the Guard and Farley’s involvement, as well as a little bit from the mysterious Command. Farley’s mission is to begin to make contact and allies in Norta so that the Guard can Rise, Red as the Dawn.

I enjoyed this one more, because it was longer and easier to get in to. Farley has spunk and passion, whereas Coriane felt kind of pale and dull in comparison. Also, I really enjoyed the way the guard sent coded messages, it was quite brilliant. Another reason I liked this story is SHADE. I LOVE HIM!!! I NEED MORE OF SHADE & FARLEY. Besides that, this story had more action and the danger was always lingering overhead. I would recommend these since it’s a quick read and gives nice backstory to the Red Queen universe.