The Girl in Red by Christina Henry

Titan Books | June 2019 | 368 pgs

Source: Library 

"Who's the wolf in the woods now?" Pg 343

Christina Henry's latest book -- a retelling tale of the Red Riding Hood is more than a dangerous encounter with the cunning wolf in the woods; for the wolves in Christina's imaginary world is far more darker and grimmer as it's set in an apocalyptic world where danger is lurking everywhere. 

Red (her real name is Cordelia) is travelling alone towards her grandmother's house after the Crisis came and took away many lives. Known as The Cough, this highly contagious disease has killed countless of people and for those who survived, they are being sent to quarantine camps but Red knew better. She doesn't want to go to a breeding ground where the disease may be quietly spreading. She's lost her parents already; she doesn't want to feel helpless and being controlled by the government military. The outside world may be brimmed with people with evil thoughts or who have lost their humanity due to the Crisis, but she has an axe and she has nothing to lose. 

I love fairy tales retellings and Christina Henry has took this classic onto another level with this thought-provoking story. I liked Red a lot; she's a strong-willed woman who will never think of her prosthetic leg as her weaknesses. She may be stubborn, but she has valid reasons and I loved how protective she was towards her older brother (despite their squabbles) and the two children she's met along the journey. 

The author has created a terrifying world with The Cough and the Crisis and although it's all fictional, I couldn't help but to think all these scenarios seem probable and it'd be disastrous if it happens. Seriousness aside, I think this book was a great read and despite the sad events and situations in this story, there is still a glimpse of hope and humanity left and this is what I'm hoping for for books like this.

© 2019 Melody's Reading Corner (https://mel-reading-corner.blogspot.sg/), All Rights Reserved. If you are reading this post from other site(s), please take note that this post has been stolen and is used without permission.