Review: Red by Alison Cherry

Title:  Red

Author: Alison Cherry 
Publisher: Delacorte Books for the Young
Publishing Date: October 8th 2013

Pages: 320
Genre:  YA Chic Lit

Series: Stand Alone
Source:  ARC 

  

Felicity St. John has it all—loyal best friends, a hot guy, and artistic talent. And she’s right on track to win the Miss Scarlet pageant. Her perfect life is possible because of just one thing: her long, wavy, coppery red hair.

Having red hair is all that matters in Scarletville. Redheads hold all the power—and everybody knows it. That’s why Felicity is scared down to her roots when she receives an anonymous note:

I know your secret.

Because Felicity is a big fake. Her hair color comes straight out of a bottle. And if anyone discovered the truth, she’d be a social outcast faster than she could say "strawberry blond." Her mother would disown her, her friends would shun her, and her boyfriend would dump her. And forget about winning that pageant crown and the prize money that comes with it—money that would allow her to fulfill her dream of going to art school.

Felicity isn’t about to let someone blackmail her life away. But just how far is she willing to go to protect her red cred?

I am not really sure what it was that caught my attention with the book. I may have thought it would be more of a mystery with maybe a comical and fluffy edge. I was hoping for more enjoyment out of this book then I actually received. I thought it was cute at times and funny a few times, but most of it, I was just kind of bored. 

Felicity lives in the town Scarletville, a town full of redheads. They actually dominate the town and the redheads get pretty much what they want while blondes and brunettes are kind of the ugly ducklings and always get the short end of the stick. Felicity is actually a strawberry blonde who dyes her hair on the DL. Right before the Miss Scarlet competition, someone starts to blackmail her, threatening to let the cat out of the bag about her true hair color. Scarlet has to first find out who knows and then why they are blackmailing her and of course get them to stop. 

I didn't know what to expect from this book but I thought it sounded entertaining, even if a bit strange. There were some things I liked about the book. It was a pretty quick read, the main characters were likeable. There was a small point to the story. The romance was sweet. Even though I liked all of these things, something just lacked for me. I didn't have an issue finishing the book, but I sure wasn't in a hurry to finish and I didn't think much about it when I wasn't reading it. It just seemed to be missing some umph. 

Felicity wasn't a bad character. She was a bit messed up in the head and always did what she was expected to do. It wasn't until the blackmailing started that she actually started to be true to herself. She didn't trust her friends with the truth and she didn't stand up for herself but I liked her. It too her a bit to get a backbone but when she did it was pretty cool. She cared quite deeply for her friends even though she didn't trust them. I think in the end she grew as a character and that made me like her a bit more. She wasn't the best character but she wasn't bad either. 

I enjoyed the slow and sweet romance in the story the best. Felicity had a boyfriend, but he was just a comfort to her, she didn't love him. When she meets someone who actually makes her feel a spark, things start to heat up. She discovers there is so much more in life. The boy is a real sweetheart and so awesome. 

The story lacked substance I think. There were definitely some solid parts but they were few and between. Most of the book felt like filler. I think if there had more to the story, it would have been a lot more enjoyable for me. I think I was expecting a big mystery and there wasn't one. The blackmailer is discovered pretty early on and then the story just kind off went downhill for me. 

Not quite my thing.