Do you enjoy reading romantic romance novels? Novels filled life and suspense? Then Ruby Red is a fantastic option for you.

Ruby Red is about a 17-year-old, girl named Ruby whose parents treat everyone of all races equally. Ruby becomes close to a character called Julian. She falls deeply in love with this character. He is a blue-eyed African. This is not acceptable and people disapprove of her love for Julian. This caused many problems in the story such as her mum helping ‘black’ people show their love and passion for art and her dad helping the Africans break out of jail.

I enjoyed and loved that I could relate to other teenagers in a different society as well as the heart-warming storyline and the themes in this book. This I feel is an easy read except for some scenes, which made it a bit more difficult to picture the image in my head.

I recommend this book to teenage girls between the ages of 12-18, because I feel anyone younger would not understand the meaning of this book and anyone older would not connect with the characters and storyline as much. This book is for people who like exciting stories with a bit of romance. Personally, as a teenage girl, I can relate to some of the topics mentioned and overall the whole idea of this book interested me.

You have to read this book, especially if you love romance with suspense. It’s a great book as teens can relate to scenarios mentioned in this book. I rate it 4/5 stars.

By Grace, Year 9

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If you enjoy reading romantic novels filled with heartache and suspense that make you feel like you can relate to the story, then I suggest you read Ruby Red.

Ruby, the main character, is a 17-year-old girl whose family treats everyone with equality and respect. Julian, a dark-skinned blue-eyed African sends Ruby head over heels for him. Many people disapprove of this love, which causes many problems throughout this story. Ruby’s mum helps dark people express their love for art and her dad ends up helping the Africans out of jail.

I loved how relatable this book was for teenagers, especially in our society. It also included a very influential message. You don’t have to be the best reader to read this book. I found it was an easy read and very easy to understand. There were a couple of scenes in this book that were very busy and had a lot going on which made it a bit harder to comprehend.

I’d recommend this book to teenage girls between 12-19, as younger girls would not be able to understand the storyline or message as well but any older I believe would not be able to connect as much to this book or the characters’ personalities. This book is overall very exciting and makes you want to read more. I also really like this book personally as I feel I can connect easily to the storyline and there’s always something happening, which keeps it interesting. I would rate this book a 4/5, as it includes, heartache, suspense, romance and is relatable.

Chloe, Year 9

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If you love a forbidden love story with adventure in it I suggest you read Ruby Red by Linzi Glass.

Ruby is a white girl who lives with her family in Johannesburg in the town of Seweto where there is hate and anger by ungrateful people. Ruby is a popular girl who is trying to fit in. But behind that, Ruby isn’t who everyone thinks.

Ruby suddenly falls in love with Johann who is African. It is forbidden that black and whites have a connection.

The main characters in the book are Ruby, Johann and the mother Annabelle. Ruby is kind, loving and stands up for what she thinks is right. Her mother Annabelle owns the art gallery and treats the black and white with the same respect. She doesn’t judge. Johann is charming, kind and handsome. That plays a major role in the book.

I enjoyed this book because it teaches you to have respect for others and not judge them. This is a different book from any other book as it talks about the life of blacks and whites and how it’s not respectful to treat people differently. As for Ruby’s family, her family treats both of them with the same respect and don’t judge anyone.

I recommend this book to teenage girls of ages 12-17, as it is based on romance and adventure. Under the age of 12 might not understand the meaning of the story.

In conclusion, Ruby Red is a great book to read and it talks about the history, love and adventure between the blacks and the whites.

Charlie, Year 9