Review: Red by Kait Nolan

Red

By: Kait Nolan

Pub. Date: August 14, 2011

Pages: 235

Source: Author

Every fairy tale has a dark side...
Elodie Rose has a secret. Any day, she’ll become a wolf and succumb to the violence that’s cursed her family for centuries. For seventeen years she’s hidden who and what she is. But now someone knows the truth and is determined to exterminate her family line. Living on borrowed time in the midst of this dangerous game of hide and seek, the last thing Elodie needs to do is fall in love. But Sawyer is determined to protect her, and the brooding, angry boy is more than what he seems. Can they outsmart a madman? And if they survive, will they find a way to beat the curse for good?

 Red is the story of Elodie Rose, a descendent of the women who inspired the story Little Red Riding Hood. Through her families journals, she knows that when she becomes 16, her wolf gene will cause her to become crazy and she will eventually have to kill herself to save the people around her. Due to this, she won't allow herself to get close to anyone. She has no friends, and she is a very lonely girl. Now at 17, nothing has happened, and she is beginning to think she might have a chance at a real life. This all changes when she meets Sawyer. Sawyer has secrets of his own, but for the first time, Elodie is allowing herself to get close to someone while at the same time start she is starting to transform into the wolf she has been terrified of becoming.

I really liked the connection between Sawyer and Elodie. She calms the beast within him and it was nice to see him not so angry and allowing himself to heal from his mother's death. I also really loved watching Elodie find her voice. She went from being a quiet girl who allowed people to bully to a pretty awesome person and I loved reading that transformation.  

I thought Red was very original. There are a lot of YA paranormal books out there right now about werewolves, but I enjoyed Kait Nolan's take on it.

I will definitely have to check out Nolan's other books after reading Red!