Review: Red Queen

Red Queen by Juan Gómez-Jurado
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

I had just a couple of issues reading this book, but I really enjoyed it, found myself immersed in the story, and can't wait to read book 2!
This is about Jon, a disgraced police officer who is charged with helping the almost super-humanly intelligent Antonia Scott solve a gruesome murder as well as the kidnapping of a mind-bogglingly wealthy woman. Are these crimes tied together, and does someone have it out for Jon, Antonia, or both?
The first things that drew me in to this story were the characters. They were wonderfully formed and I felt I really knew them by the time the action began, even though it was obvious there were major secrets being kept. Jon was completely relatable, and Antonia, who has a definite Lisbeth Salander/Jason Bourne vibe, was a very flawed character who had massive rooting value. The action was also very well-done. A major scene in the book was described in gory yet matter-of-fact detail that perfectly related to the reader the momentous destruction that was occurring. The plot kept me guessing until the very end and ratcheted up the suspense in a way that kept me impatient to find out how everything would be resolved, and yet reluctant to leave the world of Jon and Antonia.
My two big issues with the book were the narration/points-of-view and the pacing. There were several places in the story where it seemed like the narration moved points-of-view from one character to another immediately, and I found it a bit jarring. I would get a bit confused and it would take me out of the story. We'd go from Jon's internal monologue to Antonia's feelings instantaneously and it didn't flow well--or maybe it flowed too well! It is possible that this is just an issue with reading a book that has been translated, and so while it did interrupt my enjoyment of how the action was unfolding in certain spots, I realize it could be just my fault. The pacing at the beginning of the book felt a bit stilted because there were several abrupt flashbacks. These kind of set up the reasoning behind how Jon's and especially Antonia's characters behaved and how they formed their motivations, but again it interrupted the flow of the plot and made it feel a bit jumpy. Once the action really picked up, these interludes were kind of left behind and I really had a hard time putting the book down.
I would recommend this book to anyone who enjoys crime thrillers, suspenseful mystery, international intrigue, action, and great characters. I am impatient to read book 2!

View all my reviews