My Thoughts: Red Rock, by Kate Kelly

• Paperback: 224 pages
• Publisher: Curious Fox (12 Sep 2013)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1782020616
• ISBN-13: 978-1782020615
• Product Dimensions: 19.4 x 12.8 x 1.8 cm

"The ice caps have melted. The coastal areas we once knew are gone, and only scavvers now live in the flooded towns. The world has changed, but as 14-year-old Danni Rushton soon discovers, it isn t the first time... Living with her uncle after the tragic death of her parents, Danni s world is turned upside down when her aunt is assassinated. With her dying breath, she entrusts Danni with a strange, small rock. Danni must not tell a soul that she has it. 

But what is the rock for, and to what lengths must Danni go to keep it safe? This action-packed adventure takes the reader from the barren terrain of Greenland, to the flooded ruins of Cambridge, and on to a sinister monastery in Malta. In her effort to save her uncle and evade a power-hungry space agency, Danni discovers that friends aren t always what they seem, and a rock isn t always just a rock..."-Goodreads

My Thoughts:

I want to begin by saying that "cli-fi" is a nice concept, and I believe Ya/Middle Grade fiction would benefit from more of it. Red Rock, being the offshoot of both Cli-Fi and Dystopia, means its especially readable by the masses. I think it would serve as a good "introduction" to grittier thrillers for 9-12 year olds.

Glancing upon the cover (as my friend did) you may presume this novel is about "some stone" that fell from "some planet". However within those white pages, hides a story about ancient civilizations, a nefarious space agency, and betrayal. The latter of which, I think we saw coming from the start. 

"yes, my rock," said Robert, taking up his camera and walking round the table, lining up shots of the skeleton. "I found that further down the valley. But now we've got the whole thing thanks to you"

Red Rock when it came down to it, was a globe trotting treasure hunt. One that took us to many locations, and gave us many sights. This aspect of the book really highlighted what is one of the main focuses of the story. How Danni's world (once like ours) was turned upside-down by climate change. Gladly, Kate Kelly wasn't too "preachy", and this subdued message didn't gnaw away at Ms. Rushton's tale. 

Tie-ing in with my point above, there is one thing I wished Red Rock contained extra of. And That thing would be robust descriptions. I really wanted to get "In" to a world flipped over, and Kate Kelly's descriptions didn't provide me with enough info to do that. 

This being my introduction to cli-fi, I think I really like this genre. It would be interesting to see what other themes you could mash this up with. Cli-fi/steampunk anyone? One thing is for sure though, Red Rock is great great for the kids.

 My Rating: 3.8/5 

Click Here to Visit Kate Kelly's blog!