Red by Alison Cherry

Red by Alison Cherry

Release Date: October 8, 2013

Publisher: Delacorte Press
Age Group: Young Adult
Pages: 320

Summary: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?

My Thoughts: Oh how I enjoyed this one. When I started it, I wasn't sure I would! We are introduced to Felicity who has red hair, or at least everyone thinks so. See, Felicity is from a town called Scarletville where everyone adores redheads. They get royalty treatment. There are so many redheads that they are in control. HEHE. Since everyone thinks Felicity is a redhead too she’s popular and everyone likes her.

Felicity’s mom has been grooming her whole life for the Miss Scarlet pageant. Not only is there prize money, but there is also popularity. To win this thing could be big for mother and daughter. And since Felicity’s mom was also a redhead and in pageants, nothing less can be settled for Felicity. Her mother has been taking Felicity to get her hair dyed since she was two years old at an underground hair salon. Nothing is worst than being a fake redhead! A strawbie!  And if you have brown hair, nobody gives you a second glance.

Felicity’s life is perfect. She has friends, everyone likes her, and she has a smoking boyfriend named Brent who's also a redhead. He’s a football player and everyone thinks he’s cool. He’s not very deep though and Felicity accepts this. She figures he’s a good enough guy for her.

Until of course, she sees how much bigger the world can be, and what other guys are out there.

Felicity is excited about competing but she also enjoys art and its her real passion, but her mom doesn’t see it as an acceptable career choice for her. She thinks its a waste of time and money.

Felicity in content with things for now.. Until she starts getting blackmailed. Someone finds out she’s a strawbie. Things go downhill fast. She knows she must protect her reputation but really how important is this, she wonders.

Brent was ok. He wasn’t very deep and he was kind of superficial so when a new boy is introduced. YES PLEASE. His name was Jonathan, and he likes art. He’s a sweet guy who knows what he wants. I loved him! I loved getting to know him. I also liked Felicity’s friends. They were fun to read about.

Most of all, I loved all the Iowa references in this one. I know quite a bit about Iowa, so this was an interesting thing to read. To read about places I have been, or the way things are. Loved the mention of different places, cities, etc.

I liked the characters, the plot, and everything in between!

Overall: I thought this one was really cute but also very deep. It had a lot of hidden messages throughout the novel and would make a perfect read! I liked the romance, I liked the different things Felicity had to go through, even if she didn’t like them. I thought this was a really fantastic debut!

Cover: Its cute! Love how she is holding her finger, sshhh! Also like her friends in the background. Cute! 

What I'd Give It: