Take a photo of a barcode or cover
4/5 is still a very respectable rating, however I'm a little sad to be giving it to a Red Rising book. The switch to multiple POVs in this chapter was initially very exciting, but I found the pacing it created to be frustrating in the first third or so. Brown loves to create mystery, but doing so for four different characters so slowly meant I didn't know what certain characters' plots were until about half way through.
Despite those frustrations, this is still such an enticing world to be in. The 10 year in story gap between Morning Star in this makes the logical move of throwing away any kind of easy resolution to that trilogy's story. These characters, their war, and their galaxy is a mess, and creating some sort of lasting peace won't be that easy. Seeing characters from radically different walks of life gives us strong, affecting viewpoints on this world when we need them the most. This feels much more like a Part 1 than even Red Rising did, and even though there were missteps here, this is a story I can't wait to continue.
Despite those frustrations, this is still such an enticing world to be in. The 10 year in story gap between Morning Star in this makes the logical move of throwing away any kind of easy resolution to that trilogy's story. These characters, their war, and their galaxy is a mess, and creating some sort of lasting peace won't be that easy. Seeing characters from radically different walks of life gives us strong, affecting viewpoints on this world when we need them the most. This feels much more like a Part 1 than even Red Rising did, and even though there were missteps here, this is a story I can't wait to continue.