Blood Red Road (Dustlands #1) by Moira Young

Summary from Goodreads
Saba has spent her whole life in Silverlake, a dried-up wasteland ravaged by constant sandstorms. The Wrecker civilization has long been destroyed, leaving only landfills for Saba and her family to scavenge from. That's fine by her, as long as her beloved twin brother Lugh is around. But when a monster sandstorm arrives, along with four cloaked horsemen, Saba's world is shattered. Lugh is captured, and Saba embarks on an epic quest to get him back.
Suddenly thrown into the lawless, ugly reality of the world outside of desolate Silverlake, Saba is lost without Lugh to guide her. So perhaps the most surprising thing of all is what Saba learns about herself: she's a fierce fighter, an unbeatable survivor, and a cunning opponent. And she has the power to take down a corrupt society from the inside. Teamed up with a handsome daredevil named Jack and a gang of girl revolutionaries called the Free Hawks, Saba stages a showdown that will change the course of her own civilization.
Blood Red Road has a searing pace, a poetically minimal writing style, violent action, and an epic love story. Moira Young is one of the most promising and startling new voices in teen fiction.
Blood Red Road was the most original story I've read this year. Everything about it was surprising and exciting. Saba was an understandable character and unless you got where she was coming from, she could be unlikable. She is tough and strong-willed, but believes that her brother Luge comes first all the time and she always follows behind. She blames her sister Emmi for her mom's death and the downfall of her father. When her father is killed and Luge is taken by robed Tontons, Saba doesn't hesitate to start on her journey to get him back. What made Saba so understandable was that she was an angry and sad person. She has had so many downfalls in the past and when Luge, the only stable person in her life is taken, she doesn't know what to do without him. Honestly, Saba was a despicable person in the beginning and her treatment of Emmi was unbelievable. The journey of Saba growth is incredible and to me, the overall plot of the book. How with the help of strangers turned friends, a sister, and a silver-eyed Jack, Saba learns that not every person besides Lugh is trustworthy and that it is okay to care.
     I have to admit that there were some things about Blood Red Road that made me a bit weary. The lack of punctuation and correct grammar, for one. I am a total freak about this kind of stuff and when I saw that it was blatantly absent, I almost wanted to stop on the first page. I am glad I soldiered on and read and embraced this unique dialogue. By the middle of the story, I loved the lack of punctuation and correct grammar. I feel that it made me read deeper. That I read slower to fully get an understanding of the words and of Saba. Blood Red Road was action-packed and gruesome. It had vivid descriptions of fighting and suspenseful scenes that made you want to bite off your hand, but what will forever stick with me the most is Saba. She, over the course of one book, has become a loyal friend and truly shared with me all that is her.