Crimson Bound was neither the book I wanted, nor the book I expected. In some ways it was worse, and in others it was far, far better. But let's back up. 
 As I tripped down the steps to the lower level "Teen" area of the library, I fully intended to pick up a book by Rosamund Hodge. I had heard good things about Cruel Beauty and was was excited to give the whole fairy tale retelling genre a try. Only, Cruel Beauty wasn't there. In its place was Hodge's second novel, Crimson Bound, a book I was sort of, but not as, interested in reading. I shrugged and though "What the hell?" Thus began my relationship with this book. 
 My first impressions weren't great. The characters were a little flat, the relationships a little forced, and it was starting to become very apparent that this was one of those novels with a great concept, but only so-so execution. And the opinion held, until about half-way through the book. 
 I know what you're (probably) thinking. A book that's only good 50% of the time really shouldn't have four stars. But hey, my review, my rules. So here, without further ado, are the highs and lows, according to me. 
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 The Lows: 
 1. Early character development 
 As I said in one of my status updates early on, I really didn't care about these characters (at first). Rachel was kind of one note, Erec was the token winking/smirking bad boy who made our heroine tremble with lust, Armand was... "meh", and Amelie was unconvincingly sweet, innocent, loyal, etc, etc. Luckily I was somewhat invested in the plot, so I was able to remain at least partially entertained. 
 2. The maddeningly boring scavenger hunt 
 I get it. Rachel needs to find Joyuese. But when chapter after chapter starts to read like, "Here it is! No... Here it is! No... Here it is..." things begin to drag. I felt like I started to involuntarily skim, then had to make myself start paying attention again in case I was missing something important. (I wasn't.) 
 3. The love triangle or whatever 
 Was it a love triangle? Was I supposed to believe she had really loved Erec? Or was it just (MAJOR SPOILER!!!) that he was her forestborn and had the other end of the red string, and thus had an inordinate amount of power over her? I still don't know, and frankly, I don't really care. I found it pretty grating that Rachel kept comparing him to Armand on every other page. Especially when it seemed fairly obvious that she only wanted Erec for his hot bod and nothing more. But that's being 17 for you. 
 4. Rachel and Amelie, crushing my dreams 
 Was it just me, or was there something a little more than friendship between these two besties? If Erec was a foil for Armand, Amelie was practically his counterpart. The way they interacted, Rachel's need to protect her and keep her happy, the peace she experience when they were together, it was all very intimate. I half expected her to ditch Armand in the end and run away with Amelie instead. But that was one twist that was not to be. 
 5. Rachel is a bad friend 
 As much as I would have liked to end up with two girls shacking up at the end of a YA fantasy novel, I would have judged Amelie pretty severely if they had. Why? Because Rachel is the worst. I get that she has a job in the Chateau (and that it turns out Amelie lied about why she wanted to go there anyway), but she brings her along so that Amelie can practice cosmetics on her and then won't let her practice cosmetics on her, save once or twice. She also goes off to guard Armand or find Joyeuse for hours on end and leaves Amelie to... what? She's not a courtier, she has no job at the Chateau, and her friend could noticeably care less what she does all day. We do find out she's been up to a few things in her (endless) down time, but the fact remains that Rachel doesn't give a crap about her except in the few moments when they're actually together. Come on Rachel, get it together. 
 6. World-building 
 Where are we? Is it France? Is the religion basically just Christianity with slightly different characters? What is happening? I wish that knowing the answers (which I do, I promise) made me feel better, but it doesn't quite. The components of Gevauden were too familiar to make it feel like another world entirely, which I suppose is fine, but I found it a little disorienting. 
 The Highs: 
 1. Lore 
 I loved the whole concept of the Devourer, the forestborn, The Great Forest, Zisa and Tyr, Joyeuse and Durendal. The bloodbound were a really refreshing alternative to vampires, as the power they gained came with a price, but also a choice. I also really enjoyed how the story of Zisa and Tyr was revealed more and more as the book went on. 
 2. Erec d'Anjou 
 The badboy heart-throb was definitely evil. I have no reservations about that. Although we are told, quite literally and a tad repetitively, that he loves Rachel, I personally don't believe that love can exist with that much desire to own and control. That being said, how dull would this book have been without his teasing, tempting, and often besting our heroine? Evil, yes. Boring, no. He also provided some of the best twists and surprises in the book, all of which I thoroughly enjoyed. 
 3. The twists and surprises themselves 
 Maybe I just wasn't paying enough attention, but I was truly taken off guard by many of the reveals. Every character of any significance had a moment where they defied expectation and made you wonder about their true nature. Even Amelie, who was written a bit simplistically for my taste, had more going on than we knew. 
 4. Moral ambiguity 
 Rachel is both sorry and sorry-not-sorry about the choices she makes. Maybe she is a good person, or maybe she's evil, or maybe she's neither. Although she always seems to be working towards the greater good, she kills quite a few people... and feels genuine remorse, most of the time. Erec d'Anjou is also apparently supposed to be made complex by his ability to "love" Rachel, although I'm far too opinionated to appreciate the sentiment. 
 5. The last half of the book 
 The first half was a bit of a snooze-fest. I could feel the author trying to elicit certain reactions and that awareness irritated me. But the second half surprised me. The plot gathered speed, I found myself actually caring about Rachel and Armand, and the previously mentioned twists caught me off guard. All-in-all, it made that trudge through the first half worth it. 
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 So... would I recommend this book? Yes and no. I definitely wouldn't recommend it to someone I was trying to introduce to YA fantasy, because in my opinion there are far better. Or rather there are others that I've enjoyed far more. I wouldn't necessarily recommend it to someone who loves fairy tale retellings either as there were only minor similarities to Little Red Riding Hood and The Girl with No Hands. However, if you want a quick, entertaining read with new mythical creatures and morally ambiguous heroes and villains, yes, read this book! Force yourself past those lulls and you won't regret it!