Reviews

Red Rising by Pierce Brown

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queenbee's review against another edition

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adventurous challenging dark inspiring reflective 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? N/A

3.5

stephanieluxton's review against another edition

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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? Yes

5.0

This book book did not hook me from the very beginning. It takes a but of time to get a feel for the setting and what is going on. I found myself thoroughly captivated during the second half.

This book is about 16 year old Darrow - a member of the Red's on Mars who beleiie they're slaving away in the planets mines for a higher purpose of terraforming the planet to get it ready for future generations. He lives with his family and wife, in terrible conditions. An act of disobedience triggers a series of events which shatter his entire world and he learns Mars is already terraformed and Mars is a bustling, fairly high tech civilization run by the Golds. His people, the Reds have been lied to in order to create an entire cast of people who are literal slaves. Darrow is then presented with the opportunity to infiltrate the Golds and must push himself beyond the limits to move up in society in order to reform the system.

So much happens in this book. The book takes place over the course of a couple years and it's fantastic. There's a ton of characters but they feel complex. The stakes feel super high in this book. I love feeling afraid for the main character. There's little twists and turns throughout the whole story. I loved not knowing how things would play out. The character growth is unreal. Darrow changes so much during the story and it's empowering to experience his growth - although he messes up quite a bit too.

I can see how some people may think of the Hunger Games or Lord of the Flies while reading this but it's definitely it's own story. I am not someone who enjoys series a lot, but I am really excited to keep reading this one.

Content Warnings

aelius_'s review

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3.0

disclaimer: this review contain mild spoilers to set the tone, nothing game changing, just to remind you what you are signing up for, a review of the book Red Rising by Pierce Brown

aelius goodreads verdict: 3.8/5

Introduction

If you came from a land of science fiction books, you may have heard of Pierce Brown several times, it is no fluke that his name flows like the wisdom he pens down on the books he published. Pierce Brown is a master at Science Fiction, what I mean by that is the limitless potential he throws at a dystopian world, set hundreds of hundreds of years forward.

Alluring readers to dive deep into his mysterious world, with much knowledge and entertainment to gain, Red Rising is truly a masterpiece, however, not perfect. But that’s only by my nitpicking and personal preference, undoubtedly his work is great!

Strengths

First POV writing style is great here, I had the privilege to be in the mind of Darrow, the protagonist, I have to say I hate how some YA protagonists usually always go through the arrogant, cocky attitude with the cold shoulders, but this boy, or should I say MAN, is god damn graceful at how he thinks, all thanks to Pierce Brown’s craft. You learn whats it like to live in this dystopian reality with Darrow, and how he seeps through a roller coaster ride of emotions. Absolute unit.

The pacing is great! It’s one of the most enjoyable first volume of a series I’ve read these years to come, it captures a lot in a moment, enough to engulf yourself through so much adrenaline and you just know you have to keep up, page by page, it doesn’t leave you bored, it doesn’t leave you satisfied.

The plot is incredible, but it is huge on political issues and ‘shounen’ character vibes, but it’s not like it’s a major turn off for readers that LOVE combat and humour, its just not the main focus. BUT trust me the combat is more than enough honestly to keep you enthralled.

Since it’s a dystopian world, we have our sister book here The Hunger Games, readers who read the series might feel a certain uneasy attachment to every page in Red Rising, However, personally I felt it to be different and brutal, a better version of it. It isn’t a copy, hell no, but not a 360 degree of a different take, which may seem unappealing to readers who don’t like the Hunger Games trope I guess? But it’s worth a try, truly it is, not a dealbreaker.

Weaknesses

Darrow as a character, is incredible to follow through, however readers who love to follow supporting characters might fall flat to this book, it is a major issue but inevitable for Pierce Brown as it is the nature of how the world is crafted. It is not an excuse; it is just how it is perceived and displayed in the dystopian world.

Darrow’s backstory might be a little subpar and trope-ish, but it works great throughout the book and I didn’t find it revolting or unamusing, it’s could have been better in different ways but alas, not a major issue here.

Pierce Brown’s writing style does not involve much humour, however sometimes his shower thoughts do get a hold of him in writing and sometimes it just clicks. Not always, rarely. The romance might feel lacking to some people here to, too predictable and it has lots of YA vibe, but I didn’t really hate it or anything, it was readable.

Combat and fighting scenes might be sub par for epic fantasy enthusiasts, I didn’t really felt immersed into most of the fighting scenes for some reason, it’s not as magical and real like Brandon Sanderson’s scenes, so well crafted and vivid.

The minor antagonist felt underwhelming for me personally, there was a lot of build up and momentum but fell flat for me, this was one disappointing factor for me throughout the book, because there was huge tension but relished with a anti climatic ending for the antagonist.

Recommend to:
Readers who enjoyed The Hunger Games and want to find something better to quench the thirst.
Readers who love political climate in fiction books, readers who yearn for a First Person POV to cheer on forever, readers who love ruthless, weird cultures in the fantasy world.

Readers who want to try an Adult science fiction book, this is a great book for you to bridge from YA to Adult, no joke! It’s a great book to experience both worlds and see which you prefer, because there’s a mix of YA and Adult elements.

Avoid this book if:
You really thirst for kick action word to word intense combat scenes that you can really imagine in your head from head to toe, wall to walls. Avoid if you like true romance, this is somewhat of a YA romance style.

At the end of the day, I genuinely enjoyed the book and was delighted to finish it, hopping to the second immediately because the worldbuilding and everything was so enticing, I hope this review puts you at ease on deciding whether or not to pick it up! Thanks for reading this!