King's Cage (Red Queen #3)

Mare Barrow is the face of the Scarlet Guard and Red Rebellion – the Lightning girl who can rally the oppressed Reds, disenfranchised Silvers and uncertain Newbloods of Norta to stand against their Silver King, an evil boy called Maven. She is their hope and their future...

But what will happen when she loses her spark?

Glass Sword left fans of the Red Queen series in shock when Mare was captured by Maven – uncertain of her fate or that of the Scarlet Guard. Sacrificing herself to free her comrades, she allows herself to be taken by the King where she is imprisoned and tortured in a cell of silent stone, an element that diminishes her power to wield lightening and slowly drains the strength and life away from her, and tortured by the court Whisper, who uses his ability to make her relive the most devastating moments in her life repeatedly.

With no way of escape from within Maven's impenetrable fortress and her power stripped from her, Mare finds herself caught in the midst of a political battle with only her mental fortitude to help her through. Navigating Maven's court is a dangerous place, full of betrayal, intrigue, heart rendering revelation and unlikely alliances. Will she be able to free herself from the boy she once loved? Or will she burn from within Maven's cage?

Victoria Aveyard's dazzling third installment to the Red Queen series is far and away the best yet. With new points of view from a newblood who is unsure of her ability and who to trust, and an old rival and enemy who's motivations are finally laid bare, this novel is a non-stop, emotional rollercoaster.

And here's what I have to say about it:

Victoria Aveyard – how could you?!

King’s Cage landed on my doorstep, I opened the packaging and cracked the spine.

I then proceeded to read the whole book.

Now, I am an emotional wreck.

Thanks for that.

The completely shattering third installment of the Red Queen series could not have been more perfect or more evil. Victoria Aveyard successfully reeled me in with her carefully crafted characters and perilous plotlines only to sink her knife through my pounding heart and twist it on the way out.

Maybe I am being a little dramatic, but I don’t care.

This novel was so much better than Glass Sword – which is a relief because I was concerned that King’s Cage would continue down the rabbit hole that Glass Sword dug for us without any clear way out. I was afraid of more of the same - short sighted Mare, indecisive Cal, cunning Maven. A rebellion with no real leader continuing to run circles to what end? I am so happy to say that King's Cage offered character development in leaps and bounds and a defined plot that still had twists and turns.

Victoria Aveyard must have been tired of everyone whining about Mare – so she finally gave her the strength and common sense that we have been dying to see from her in the past two books. The majority of this book is told from Mare’s perspective and much of it is while she’s held prisoner by Maven. While these chapters are slower at moments, they’re necessary to Mare’s growth as a character.

We also get insight from more than one character! I'm not going to say who, because spoilers, but I really enjoyed getting in the head of someone other than Mare. It made the book so much more interesting and set up a solid foundation for what I believe is going to be an intense finale. This was something that I really hoped we would get in this book and while the new POV wasn't from characters that I was expecting - I was pleasantly surprised.

And that ending!!