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ekmurphey's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
mysterious
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? It's complicated
5.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: War, Violence, and Blood
Moderate: Torture
Minor: Cannibalism
st_ender's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.0
It was a good end to the trilogy. I liked it, I was shook many times, gasped out loud, sat on the edge of my seat, etc. Was it a good book? Let's not think about it!
Content Warnings
Graphic: Confinement, Cannibalism, Medical trauma, and Torture
_forestofpages's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
emotional
funny
hopeful
inspiring
reflective
sad
tense
fast-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
5.0
Break the chains.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Sexism, Kidnapping, Gun violence, Cursing, Death, War, Xenophobia, Suicide, Slavery, Racial slurs, and Murder
Moderate: Torture, Emotional abuse, Child death, Self harm, and Death of parent
Minor: Excrement
miak2's review against another edition
adventurous
emotional
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
3.5
If you're watching, Eo, it's time to close your eyes. The reaper has come and he's brought hell with him. Chapter 46.
3.5 stars
And LISTEN it was going to be a 4-star read until a certain plot point, when Pierce Brown pulled one of my biggest book no-no's. I hate it when the protagonist in a first person book hatches a secret plan and, as it unfolds, acts surprised at the turn of events. It 100% just serves to keep the reader in the dark, but when the story is told in first person, there's no way of doing that unless the narrator has a good reason to be an unreliable one. Which, obviously does not apply here, since Darrow was the mastermind behind it. Gah.
That said, apart from that frustration, I did really enjoy this book, probably more so than its predecessors. (Also I listened to it as an audiobook and I think that helped, since Brown's choppy writing style translated better in that format). I think he writes really phenomenal plot twists (even though I have some issues with the execution), and his character work definitely stepped up in this final installment. I mean, all the female characters are still essentially the same. And there's a couple molds for the male characters that you could group them under. But I understood their motivations and their fears better despite them all having been cut from similar cloths. Sevro's consistently fantastic though, absolutely unhinged in a really loveable way.
I can definitely see why this series is so beloved! I enjoyed it a lot - it was fast paced throughout, with a lot of great twists and dire consequences. I didn't love it as much as I'd hoped I would, but I'm glad that I stuck through it. (Excluding the new books in the universe, don't think I'll get to those).
Content Warnings
Graphic: Torture, Death, and War
grets_reads's review against another edition
adventurous
challenging
dark
emotional
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
Scifi and dystopia isn't really my thing and I didn't think I was that into this series... Until I couldn't stop listening.
It kept me engaged and guessing the whole time - just when I thought I knew where it was going, it would go in a completely different direction (but in a completely plausible way).
I'm fairly certain that a large part of my enjoyment was due to how well the audiobook was narrated. Would definitely recommend.
It kept me engaged and guessing the whole time - just when I thought I knew where it was going, it would go in a completely different direction (but in a completely plausible way).
I'm fairly certain that a large part of my enjoyment was due to how well the audiobook was narrated. Would definitely recommend.
Content Warnings
Graphic: War, Violence, Racism, Injury/Injury detail, Torture, Blood, and Death
Moderate: Suicide, Physical abuse, Grief, Genocide, Police brutality, Murder, Kidnapping, Classism, and Confinement
Minor: Excrement, Cannibalism, Alcohol, Slavery, and Vomit
heyjaycee's review against another edition
adventurous
challenging
dark
emotional
funny
hopeful
inspiring
tense
fast-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
After the end of Golden Son, everything is different. It's one of those 'where can we even go from here?' moments. But there is somewhere to go, and the only way is up.
Kept captive and tortured by the Jackal, Darrow must escape and return to his struggling rebellion. But when he does, he must contend with the clashing personalities of everyone he has brought together.
I appreciated how Morning Star became less about Darrow—though of course he is centre stage—and more about the people around him. Brown really shines at creating memorable characters, and they were all given their moment in the spotlight in this final book of the series.
Of course, the exceptionally grimdark tone continued, and I began to find the endless setbacks and awful surprises hard to bear. There was a moment, three quarters from the end, where yet another terrible thing happened and I immediately put the book down and didn't come back to it for three weeks. Eventually I returned to it, and was glad I did. But still—the neverending tension was wearisome.
Oh, and the ending? Allow me to sigh heavily. The political conclusion made sense, but the interpersonal wrap-up for Darrow felt agonisingly hackneyed. But there will be those who like that kind of thing, I guess.
It's been a rollercoaster of a series. Pierce Brown is a master of emotional intensity, conflict, and sci-fi coolness. I'm glad I experienced it.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Murder, Violence, Torture, Suicidal thoughts, Kidnapping, Gore, Emotional abuse, Death, Cursing, and Blood
Minor: Cannibalism and Genocide
stacey332's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
emotional
hopeful
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
Reread April 2023 - Loved it even more this time around, such an amazing series!
Original read January 2021 - My Cawpile score: 8.07
A great conclusion to the original trilogy in the series even though it wasn't quite the ending that I was expecting!
I wish that Darrow had a lot more introspective moments and that we got to be in on what was going on in his head more often and there were a few things that felt a little bit convenient or a little bit rushed but overall I'm really happy with soooo much of this book. There were so many satisfying moments both character and plot wise!
Original read January 2021 - My Cawpile score: 8.07
A great conclusion to the original trilogy in the series even though it wasn't quite the ending that I was expecting!
I wish that Darrow had a lot more introspective moments and that we got to be in on what was going on in his head more often and there were a few things that felt a little bit convenient or a little bit rushed but overall I'm really happy with soooo much of this book. There were so many satisfying moments both character and plot wise!
Content Warnings
Graphic: Blood, Violence, Cursing, and Death
Moderate: Confinement, Grief, Torture, and Gun violence
Minor: Excrement, Cannibalism, and Vomit
okays1331's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
emotional
funny
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
Break the chains.
I cannot move past this book. My poor family and friends. None of them has read this series, and I won't shut up about it. Some of the scenes in this book will live in my head for the rest of my life.
It's the found family. It's always the found family. It's love of family, of partners, of friends, of people propelling the story. It's the hard choices and the laughter and the grief and the redemption.
It's Sevro becoming the leader he needed to be without ever losing his sense of humor. It's Darrow repeatedly offering forgiveness and redemption to people who have wronged him. It's no good deaths, but deaths that mean something. It's Victra coming out from behind her walls. It's Ragnar choosing to be the shield instead of the sword.
Pierce Brown has shattered and rebuilt my heart in so many places and in so many ways throughout the first three books. He is a master at writing the twist. I am so upset with him, and also so thrilled to be surprised again and again.
The scenes that will live in my head rent free:
-Holiday and Trigg's banter and New York (I think??) accents busting Darrow out of captivity.
- Sefi's reunion with her brother on the ice
- Literally any time the whole gang gets on the com link before a big battle and teases each other like brother and sister and then Darrow gets all earnest and tells them all how much he loves them.
- Darrow driving a claw drill through SPACE into another spaceship
- "And what do we do with murderers?" Sevro backflips off the platform to hang beside Cassius.
- The MANY MANY pages where Brown just let me think that there was no plan, and I had lost another of my favorite characters to the war. That reveal made me scream out loud.
-Darrow's own mother choosing to hide Mustang's secret from him because if he knew, he could not do what needed to be done, sacrifice everything up to and including himself for the cause.
I cannot move past this book. My poor family and friends. None of them has read this series, and I won't shut up about it. Some of the scenes in this book will live in my head for the rest of my life.
It's the found family. It's always the found family. It's love of family, of partners, of friends, of people propelling the story. It's the hard choices and the laughter and the grief and the redemption.
It's Sevro becoming the leader he needed to be without ever losing his sense of humor. It's Darrow repeatedly offering forgiveness and redemption to people who have wronged him. It's no good deaths, but deaths that mean something. It's Victra coming out from behind her walls. It's Ragnar choosing to be the shield instead of the sword.
Pierce Brown has shattered and rebuilt my heart in so many places and in so many ways throughout the first three books. He is a master at writing the twist. I am so upset with him, and also so thrilled to be surprised again and again.
The scenes that will live in my head rent free:
-Holiday and Trigg's banter and New York (I think??) accents busting Darrow out of captivity.
- Sefi's reunion with her brother on the ice
- Literally any time the whole gang gets on the com link before a big battle and teases each other like brother and sister and then Darrow gets all earnest and tells them all how much he loves them.
- Darrow driving a claw drill through SPACE into another spaceship
- "And what do we do with murderers?" Sevro backflips off the platform to hang beside Cassius.
- The MANY MANY pages where Brown just let me think that there was no plan, and I had lost another of my favorite characters to the war. That reveal made me scream out loud.
-Darrow's own mother choosing to hide Mustang's secret from him because if he knew, he could not do what needed to be done, sacrifice everything up to and including himself for the cause.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Torture and Violence
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