A Review for Ruby Blue (Ruby Blue #1) by Julie Cassar

Posted by Guest Reviewer Melanie 
Release Date: February 2nd, 2012

Finished Date: November 26th, 2012

Publishers: Self Published 

Source: For Review 

Format: Kindle 

Pages: 233 
Buy : Amazon UK / Amazon US /  The Book Depo

Meet Ruby. She’s your average (somewhat dorky) ice-cream eating, garden-loving teenager, who is constantly being annoyed by her little brother, is best friends with possibly the only Goth kid in town and, oh yeah…she sees fairies.

After Nick Martino (possibly the hottest guy she’s ever known) finally asks her out, she can barely manage a two-word sentence when a bizarre incident strikes their lakeside town.Stumbling bare-foot through some interesting dates, will she ever find love? And what does Ruby do when more strange events continue to occur? Will she keep her gift of Fairy Sight a secret? As an ancient myth unfolds and new mystic fairy tales come to life, Ruby and her menagerie of friends tackle some extraordinary circumstances with her very ordinary abilities in this modern day fairy tale. See what legends come to life in “Ruby Blue,” a young adult fantasy fiction novel and the first installment of the Ruby Blue series.

The Review: I really enjoyed this story, it was definitely a lot of fun and an easy read. The characters were great, fun and with wicked sense of humours. They were so easy to read and laugh along with, they all gelled together amazingly well and it was lovely to read of a set of characters that didn’t bear anyone else any harm or bad thought, they all liked each other and that’s just how it was. I loved the use of nick names, especially Ruby’s and Leo’s for each other plus Brennan’s for Ruby considering she was named after her mother’s ‘Wizard of Oz’ obsession…. And he used that to the full extent. I liked the little bit of romance Ruby got during this although I was actually leaning towards Brennan as a love interest (maybe it’s just me) he just seemed more fitting but maybe down the line something could blossom?

I liked the whole set up with Ruby being the only person to actually see fairies in their natural form. The storyline did take on a fairy tale like feel although very modern and I found I really liked that, I liked how the magical world of the Fae was brought into our world and the explanation given for that and what happens when things escape. I feel like the idea of Ruby, her gift and that she is on the edge of both our world and the Fae world opens up great potential for other books – I would definitely like to see her go to the Fae world and see her interact with them. I also feel that there’s something else about her character and hopefully she will have some hidden ancestry or something that actually ties her to that world. My only grumble was that Ruby felt a bit juvenile, like a 14yr old rather than a 17yr old, not a huge thing but bothered me a bit. For this first book though, it was a great introduction to Ruby and the gang and the world in which they live. It is a very light hearted and fun read that you can read in one sitting and will definitely enjoy. 3.5 stars!