When Kate meets Max in the first week of university, a life-changing friendship begins. Over the next four years, the two become inseparable. But loving Max means knowing his family: the wealthy Rippons, all generosity, social ease and quiet repression.

Theirs is not Kate’s world, and yet she finds herself drawn quickly into their gilded lives, and the secrets that lie beneath. Until one summer evening at the Rippons’ home, just after graduation, her life is shattered in a bedroom while a party goes on downstairs.

I did have high expectations for this book especially after reading the premise and some of the spectacular ratings but unfortunately for me this book did not work out.

This book deals with a very strong topic of rape and sexual abuse. The book was slow at times and I didn't quite understand the need for the constant reference to Max's family. There was very little about Kate and her relationship with Max after the incident. I felt that the focus of the main plot was lost due to all that the unwanted distraction.

Overall, I feel that the idea behind this book was great but it kind of lacked in execution.

Thank You to NetGalley and Random House UK, Vintage for this ARC!!

What Price Red is a powerful novel dealing with the harrowing subject of sexual assault.

When Kate from a single parent family meets Max Rippon from a wealthy family at university a very close platonic relationship develops. Kate meets Max’s family and is impressed by their lifestyle which is in contrast to her own home life which she found claustrophobic. The rivalries and family issues in the Rippon household are succinctly described with great characterisation.
During a Summer Party she is sexually assaulted by Max’s cousin.
The novel centres on how Kate deals with this trauma. At first she struggles to tell those closet to her the ordeal she has been through.

An excellent debut novel that is intelligent and thoughtful. Highly recommended.

Let me start by saying that I had high expectations for this book. Due to the comparison's with David Nicholls writing, I had expected something as beautifully written as One Day. One of my favourite books of all times.

It's easy to understand the comparison initially because Max and Kate meet at university. They become instant friends. However, unlike the aforementioned novel they're not the only ones at centre stage. Max' whole family, the wealthy Rippons, are as well.

It took me around 50 pages to realise that this book is nothing like my much loved One Day. The plot is incredibly linear. I don't know if this is a thing in literary land, but it feels like everything is as it should be. As such, it's incredibly predictable. The friendship between Max and Kate was a fact from the moment they met without explanation on internal ruminations. It felt a bit too set in stone for my taste.

After graduation, Kate's whole life is turned upside down during a party at the Rippons. I really hope that the author has tackled all the heavy subjects such as rape, self-harm and suicide well. I can't comment on any of that, just know that there are quite a lot of mentions of these subjects.

The ending as a reveal I thought was incredibly strong and needed. It took me by surprise, which I'm happy about since it redeemed part of the novel for me.

Not enough to call it one of my favourite novels. I'm happy I persisted through to the end though, because I thought the second half was a bit stronger and less predictable than the first. It's still unfortunately a bit of a mediocre read in my opinion. I give it 2.5 stars, rounded up to 3.

Many thanks to the publisher Random House UK, Vintage and Netgalley for providing me with a review copy!

Price’s novel is both a deeply personal account of a friendship between Max and Kate (and how it changes following Kate being raped by Max’s family member) as well as a family saga of sorts, sweeping across a decade and various members of both protagonists’ families. Price handles a tough subject with care, and the novel is incredibly readable, but like many others I was unsure about the ending.

Kate and Max met in the 1st week of Uni and have been platonic friends ever since even though they come from different walks of life. Working class Kate lives with her single mum (when not at Uni) and Max is a Rippon - posh but grounded and comes from a very wealthy family.

Her life changes in a split second at Max's party when she's raped in his parent's bedroom. She can't let Max know. Her life spirals out of control and she begins drinking too much, looses all confidence, has panic attacks and begins to self-harm.

She fears seeing him again as Max and his sister Nicole moves in the same circles. She can't confide in anyone until Max's mother takes her into her confidence. Zara is a famous film director who likes Kate and wants to help her.. At the film premier she's shocked how true to her experience the film is.

I felt the author made us the reader feel everything that Kate's going through and we are there awaiting for her to come out the other side. Something kept me reading so I guess I'd recommend it..

Two university friends, Max and Kate, find their relationship changes when Kate is raped. She does not tell Max who assaulted her, however as we all know by now, these things have a way of coming out, and in this case, quite a public way.

The first part of the book reads like Mary Wesley; lots of glamorous young things in a stately home, a few random names and some old buffer uncles. It was a pleasant ramble, although I did query where it was all going.

Once the rape has taken place Kate, understandably, distances herself from the perpetrator. Her mental torment and self-harming made for a difficult read, all the more frustrating as those around her seemed oblivious to her distress.

At this point the book took a rather surreal turn with Max's film director mother taking justice into her own hands. I am still not quite sure what to make of this - I was not cheering her on as her motives appeared too self serving to be admired. An interesting book, but I can't quite make up my mind whether I liked it or not.

What Red Was is a stark and riveting debut novel that vividly depicts the lasting effects of rape on a young woman's mind, body, and life. This is not for the 'faint of heart', and I am not writing this as some sort of snide but more of a 'heads-up' since this novel portrays rape and trauma in an unflinchingly way. At times I was overwhelmed. The story will make you angry, sad, distressed, experience all the sort of emotions you should feel when reading about such a horrific act.
Another thing that I appreciated is that the story didn't reduce its characters to convenient stereotypes. Nor did it glamorise depression, addiction(s), or self-harm. (Unlike a certain other novel out there...)
Kate wasn't reduced to the abominable violation committed against her. She was a relatable and interesting character, and following her life prior to 'that day' really brought her character to life. Her friendship with Max was complex and poignant, and it didn't fall victim to the friends-to-lovers cliché. The way their relationship changes over the years saddened me, yet it seemed inevitable and far too realistic.
Initially I thought that following the perspectives of Max's family members detracted attention from Kate's storyline but it soon becomes apparent that by shifting the focus to them made them into far more fleshed out characters. However uneasy this shift made me feel (especially when we read of the thoughts and general worldview of Max's cousin) it gave the novel a more 'democratic' approach, were everyone, regardless of their likability had page-time.

This story is relevant, raw, and compelling even in its darkest moments. While I wished for a neater ending, I still would recommend this to those interested in reading a novel filled with fraught (and believable) familial relationships and a young woman's uneasy path towards recovering her sense of self after being raped.