Book Review: Low Red Moon by Ivy Dvelin

Thank you very much to Bloomsbury UK for sending me a finished copy of this book in exchange for an honest review. Low Red Moon will be released in the UK in early February.

Avery Hood is reeling from the loss of her parents–and the fact that she can’t remember what happened to them even though she was there.

She’s struggling to adjust to life without them, and to living with her grandmother, when she meets Ben, who isn’t like any guy she’s ever met before.

It turns out there’s a reason why, and Ben’s secret may hold the key to Avery finding out what happened to her parents…

But what if that secret changes everything she knows about–and feels for–Ben?

My thoughts and review

Avery Hood struggles to come to terms with the recent death of her parents in their home in the forest. She was found at the scene next to her parents but she can’t remember anything that happened that night except some inhuman flashes of silver, as if it has been completely wiped from her memory. Everything she has ever known and loved has been taken away when she is moved to live with her grandmother Renne whom she hardly knows. Raised in the thick Woodlake forest, she misses the deep connection with it and finds it awkward to get on with Renee, who her father never spoke to. At school, nothing is as it used to be but when Avery meets the new boy Ben Dusic, he intrigues her. There is something that attracts her to him in an unusual way but there is something mysterious about his character and the silver that flashes across his eyes makes her doubtful of him. Right from the beginning I was thrust into the action soon after her parent’s murder and the story moves on very fast but at a good pace for the action.

Avery was a likable character and I was able to empathise with her feelings about her parent’s death, problems at school and the possibility of her losing her parent’s house and land.  However, I wish that I knew more about her as she seems not be herself most of the time because of her grief and we don’t find out much about her interests or habits.
Ben was a very mysterious character but his story and background prior to the story and his recent move to Woodlake is explained well and gives a reason for his protective nature towards Avery. Their romance bought a lighter touch to the story although ideally I think that it should have taken more time to develop as that would have been more realistic. I liked how their relationship wasn’t all ‘perfect’ and ‘happy’ and there are still barriers between them such as the secret that Avery knows Ben is hiding from her.

The ending showed the Little Red Riding Hood elements of the story that are less recognisable than in the rest of the book. It wrapped things up nicely and I didn’t expect it but now I realise that considering what it is based on, it is actually quite predictable.
I’m not a huge fan of paranormal romance so I found that there was just enough balance between the world of the supernatural and the realistic world for me.

A small feature that I thought was a cute finishing touch were the little graphics of a forest at the bottom of each page and the word ‘moon’ highlighted in red.

Low Red Moon is a reasonably short and quick paced novel of suspenseful romance mixed in with elements of the supernatural, which kept the setting of the town Woodlake and its background shrouded in secrets and mystery. Although there were shortfalls, I think the story had a lot of potential and I like the originality of the Little Red Riding Hood twist so I would consider reading any sequels that came out although I think it works well as a stand alone novel.

Cover Comments: The cover really stands out on my bookshelves because it is a shiny, metallic red colour. I like the way that the white title is embossed.

I read this book as part of the Out Of Your Comfort Zone Challenge hosted by A Tapestry Of Words. It's out of my comfort zone because I've only ever tried a few paranormal romance books (I read my first one in November) and it definitely isn't my genre of choice. However, it is growing on me though!