Reviews

Red Rising by Pierce Brown

joshoonet's review against another edition

dark tense medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? It's complicated
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? No

4.0

mazzina's review against another edition

adventurous dark emotional mysterious tense medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Plot
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? It's complicated
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.0

this was SOOO interesting! the world building was really fun but the book did start to feel a little long. i’ll be reading the series eventually 

fnoerby's review against another edition

5.0

I really liked how the entire injustice of the society is set up in the beginning and carries through; I like how Darrow's motivation is always his love for his family, even if it leads him to do some awful things. It's iffy that the author can't seem to draw a nuanced parallel between the occupation, enslavement, and oppression of Mars and current events.

dowleyrachel's review

adventurous dark tense medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? No
• Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
• Flaws of characters a main focus? No

4.0

I really didn’t know what I’d think about this book! I often dislike books where the protagonist has to steel themselves emotionally to fit into high society. But I think Brown did a great job writing Darrow’s internal monologue. He thus far has not lost his sense of self or where he came from. 

I’m waffling on how I feel about the cadence of the book and its intended audience. These characters are teenagers but they feel like adults. The transformation of Darrow in the beginning is quite graphic too. In terms of cadence, it felt a little quick which wasn’t what I was expecting but I think I liked? It seemed that once Darrow set his mind on taking a fortress, they’d implement the plan within a chapter or so. It kept the book riveting.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Torture, Medical content, and Murder

Moderate: Sexual violence

nellyjem's review against another edition

adventurous tense medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.0

kittyminogue's review

out of touch 

experfectionist's review against another edition

tense fast-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Plot
• Strong character development? No
• Loveable characters? No
• Diverse cast of characters? No
• Flaws of characters a main focus? No

2.75

rach835's review

adventurous dark fast-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Plot
• Strong character development? No
• Loveable characters? No
• Diverse cast of characters? No
• Flaws of characters a main focus? No

2.5

It started out so well and intriguing, but it feels like a hollow attempt at the hunger games. The Hunger Games was excellent because it was extremely critical of the capital in nuanced ways and exaggerated the hypocrisy of the society. This novel fell very flat of that. The characters had no real depth besides arguably Darrow, but his internal struggle felt shallow throughout the novel. I would say it’s definitely creative, but at times the plot is so confusing that creativity is mute. Also, throwing everyone into an archaic form of tribal war felt cheap with the sci-fi setting. I just had an ‘eh’ feeling at the end, like the whole novel was taking itself way too seriously for the caliber of story it was telling. Also the whole Roman inspiration is just very cliché and tired. 

slimysocksss's review against another edition

adventurous dark funny inspiring tense fast-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Plot
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.75

28hdt's review

adventurous dark inspiring medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.75