Red Rising
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- Create Date：2021-04-05 10:51:49
- Update Date：2025-09-06
- Status：finish
- Author：Pierce Brown
- ISBN：1444758993
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Summary
The Earth is dying。 Darrow is a Red， a miner in the interior of Mars。 His mission is to extract enough precious elements to one day tame the surface of the planet and allow humans to live on it。 The Reds are humanity's last hope。
Or so it appears， until the day Darrow discovers it's all a lie。 That Mars has been habitable - and inhabited - for generations， by a class of people calling themselves the Golds。 A class of people who look down on Darrow and his fellows as slave labour， to be exploited and worked to death without a second thought。
Until the day that Darrow， with the help of a mysterious group of rebels， disguises himself as a Gold and infiltrates their command school， intent on taking down his oppressors from the inside。 But the command school is a battlefield - and Darrow isn't the only student with an agenda。
Break the chains。 Live for more。
Or so it appears， until the day Darrow discovers it's all a lie。 That Mars has been habitable - and inhabited - for generations， by a class of people calling themselves the Golds。 A class of people who look down on Darrow and his fellows as slave labour， to be exploited and worked to death without a second thought。
Until the day that Darrow， with the help of a mysterious group of rebels， disguises himself as a Gold and infiltrates their command school， intent on taking down his oppressors from the inside。 But the command school is a battlefield - and Darrow isn't the only student with an agenda。
Break the chains。 Live for more。
Reviews
Steadfast Rooke
，
Okay！ When it began， I started to worry it would be another depressing coming of age/revenge book。 Well。。。 That is not so。 It was a ride！ Tiny hints of ERB Mars series as well as Pirates of Venus， in so far as there is a subtle pulp feel in the background。 Strong characterization with good interaction and motivations。 Solid feed of suspense and resolution right up to the biggie at the end。 Very much looking forward to the next in the series！
Tori Gross
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Red Rising was one of those books that had me hooked from the start。 From the very first sentence， I was a Red， a dexterous Helldiver tied to a machine as I am tied to my husband。 The prose brought me in， Darrow’s voice so clearly resonating in my eardrums as if he were speaking directly to me。 I could hear him and see him， tousled red hair and all。And then it happened。 The thing。 The catalyst that starts Darrow on a journey from cowardice to fear-inducing rage and left me sobbing in the first t Red Rising was one of those books that had me hooked from the start。 From the very first sentence， I was a Red， a dexterous Helldiver tied to a machine as I am tied to my husband。 The prose brought me in， Darrow’s voice so clearly resonating in my eardrums as if he were speaking directly to me。 I could hear him and see him， tousled red hair and all。And then it happened。 The thing。 The catalyst that starts Darrow on a journey from cowardice to fear-inducing rage and left me sobbing in the first third of the book。 As I read aloud to my spouse， my voice cracked and tears cascaded down my cheeks。 With Darrow’s， my heart was breaking。There comes a point in every person’s life when they think they cannot go on， when something so catastrophic happens to them that they long to succumb to the desire to give up。 But something inside Darrow burns bright–fury。 In the beginning， Darrow is meek and reserved， always willing to let injustices go unpunished if it doesn’t directly affect his livelihood。 But when he is pushed beyond his limit， a fury he didn’t know he possessed overtakes him and transforms him。 While he becomes something else entirely on the outside， he also becomes something else on the inside。 I won’t give too much away， but Darrow’s transformation is so much more than physical， and I think this was a necessary choice the author had to make in order for the story to progress the way it did。For Darrow， survival is no longer about making it out of the tunnels he mines。 Pitted against the most elite warriors he has ever met， he must fight and access reserves of strength never before possible。 I found this to be fascinating， but also troubling。 When Darrow is among the Golds， he must behave and speak like them。 But there is a point when he begins to think like them， even subconsciously， outside of necessity。 He begins to think of himself as almost a god， as most Golds do， and that seems to stray from what his initial mission is。 I wish I could say more， but it would delve too far into the realm of spoilers。I won’t say that I didn’t love every second of Darrow’s time with the Golds。 I just question the choices he made。 Still， there are certain things he did that （if you’ve read the series） you’ll know he had to do in order to cement his place among their ranks。 My biggest gripe， and the thing that prevents this book from getting a perfect score， is the ending。 Ultimately， Darrow had a choice to make。 He needed to get in with the most elite of the Golds in order to fulfil his mission with the Sons of Ares， but it felt like such a deviation from the character I had been reading that it upset me。 So much so， in fact， that I delayed writing this review until I could collect my thoughts and express my love for the story and disdain for the ending in the same review。 Before I ruffle any feathers， though， I fully understand why Darrow made the decision he did。 I just wanted him to throat punch You-Know-Who one good time to make me feel better。 That felt like something Darrow would do， not lick That Guy’s boot。I’ve heard time and again that the story only gets better from here and I am eager to get my hands on Golden Son。 Pierce Brown is an incredible storyteller， and even if I’m not entirely happy with the way the first book ended， I’m not going to discount the entire series。 I am ready to watch Darrow upend the entire caste system and burn the world anew， but I am going to lick my salty wounds and pout for a moment that I didn’t get my way。Still…I loved it。 10/10…except for the ending。 。。。more
Hayley
，
This book was just awesome。 Solid， intriguing plot。 Solidly written， with the occasional beautiful sentence。 Centered around the idea of a terraformed Mars， which reminds me of my favorite board game。 Pretty good main character， even better side characters， and lots of introspection about how society works and how it should work。 What is the goal？ What are the costs？ How do you get there？ What even is justice。。 （because I left wondering by the end）？ Are there long-term goods that require short-t This book was just awesome。 Solid， intriguing plot。 Solidly written， with the occasional beautiful sentence。 Centered around the idea of a terraformed Mars， which reminds me of my favorite board game。 Pretty good main character， even better side characters， and lots of introspection about how society works and how it should work。 What is the goal？ What are the costs？ How do you get there？ What even is justice。。 （because I left wondering by the end）？ Are there long-term goods that require short-term evils， or betrayals， or horrors？ Can a society remain uncorrupted if it tries？ The author asks these questions within an arena of sorts - a training ground for future leaders。 It really blurs what is real life， and what is just going to be forgotten once people enter the "real world"。 I am so intrigued to see where this goes。。。eventually。 Because it was also a hard read， and I'm going to need to read some light， fluffy， bubble-gum fantasy before I can jump into this cut-throat world again。 。。。more
Mason Wagemann
，
Hunger Games mixed with Lord of the Flies and a tinge of Game of Thrones。 I plan on reading the rest of the series because I am told it gets exponentially better。 Not that this was bad just I don’t know if Sci-Fi/Fantasy is really my genera。 Wasn’t a big fan of the first person POV either。 Red Rising: 3。5 Stars。
Mirisauriorex
，
Empecé este libro como recomendación de una amiga。 Saqué los tres libros de la trilogía de la biblioteca y los devoré en un mes。 No esperaba engancharme tanto a una saga que estaba leyendo tan a destiempo y sin embargo， Darrow entró en mi vida como una garra perforadora。 El pequeño sondeainfiernos de Lico no deja a nadie indiferente， desde luego。No sabía qué esperar con este libro y lo que encontré fue guerra， guerra， guerra y un poco más de guerra de guarnición。 Un comienzo de saga trepidante。L Empecé este libro como recomendación de una amiga。 Saqué los tres libros de la trilogía de la biblioteca y los devoré en un mes。 No esperaba engancharme tanto a una saga que estaba leyendo tan a destiempo y sin embargo， Darrow entró en mi vida como una garra perforadora。 El pequeño sondeainfiernos de Lico no deja a nadie indiferente， desde luego。No sabía qué esperar con este libro y lo que encontré fue guerra， guerra， guerra y un poco más de guerra de guarnición。 Un comienzo de saga trepidante。Lo único que me dejó un poco fría fue el final， demasiado rápido para el tiempo que le habían dedicado a cosas más triviales， a mi parecer。 。。。more
Ryan
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First off - these sort of books aren't my cup of tea。 I couldn't careless about dystopian fiction， especially those of the past 15-20 years。 I don't even know where to peg this as far as audience， it seems a bit heavy for the 'young adult\teeny-bopper' crowd。 NOW， with that said， this was a surprisingly engaging book。 I blasted through the first 50 or so pages pretty quickly that's how good a job it does of drawing you into it's story。 However， after that it tended to fall into familiar tropes w First off - these sort of books aren't my cup of tea。 I couldn't careless about dystopian fiction， especially those of the past 15-20 years。 I don't even know where to peg this as far as audience， it seems a bit heavy for the 'young adult\teeny-bopper' crowd。 NOW， with that said， this was a surprisingly engaging book。 I blasted through the first 50 or so pages pretty quickly that's how good a job it does of drawing you into it's story。 However， after that it tended to fall into familiar tropes where I really started to worry that this was a lame 'Hunger Games' clone。 But then it would quickly switch course and throw twist upon twist in to set itself apart， and then ramp up the insanity to a 10。 I never read the 'Hunger Games' and I think maybe watched the first two films， but I can say this is a far superior story to that。 The setting on Mars might as well be Earth， but works for the utterly insane societal hierarchy that has 'evolved' from humankind。 Also the violence in this book （while I would say stops just short of over the top） was definitely unexpected and why I peg this a more serious adult book then for the kiddie crowd。 Any knocks I have are more around the writer's style， some of the dialogue is dumb and the introspective nature of the lead character gets a bit tiring at times。 But overall it's got a ton of creative thought which I certainly didn't think it capable of when I opened it。 。。。more
EmmaPorzee
，
I Fluently and confidently and enjoying the book。 You are such a good Author！ 。。。 If you have some great stories like this one， you can publish it on Novel Star， just submit your story to hardy@novelstar。top or joye@novelstar。top
Michelle Cheng
，
4。5 stars
Violet
，
4。5
Viviane Cavalcante
，
Abandonado @50%。Eu tentei， e eu queria muito gostar desse livro， mas ele não foi pra mim。 Meu maior problema com esse livro é a escrita do Pierce Brown。 Algumas das escolhas narrativas que ele fez não fizeram sentido pra mim， a invenção de algumas palavras， a forma como os personagens falam。。。 Tudo tornou a leitura pouco fluída， pouco interessante， o que me fez não sentir vontade de voltar para esse universo em momento nenhum。 Cheguei ao ponto de estar irritada enquanto lia， o que foi o máximo d Abandonado @50%。Eu tentei， e eu queria muito gostar desse livro， mas ele não foi pra mim。 Meu maior problema com esse livro é a escrita do Pierce Brown。 Algumas das escolhas narrativas que ele fez não fizeram sentido pra mim， a invenção de algumas palavras， a forma como os personagens falam。。。 Tudo tornou a leitura pouco fluída， pouco interessante， o que me fez não sentir vontade de voltar para esse universo em momento nenhum。 Cheguei ao ponto de estar irritada enquanto lia， o que foi o máximo de sentimento que essa leitura conseguiu me despertar。 Como se não bastasse a escrita ruim， os personagens dessa história são arquétipos ruins do que pessoas deveriam ser。 A falta de carisma， personalidade， motivação （e até mesmo distinção entre eles， todos os Ouros são a mesma pessoa， e eu dificilmente serei convencida do contrário） contribuiram pro meu crescente desinteresse por essa história。 A falta de conexão com esses personagens me levou ao ponto de ler sobre o protagonista em primeira pessoa， e ainda assim não sentir nada com relação a ele， já que eu não o conhecia， não entendia suas reais motivações。 O único traço de personalidade do Darrow é ser um mergulhador e ter uma esposa bonita。 A construção de mundo é confusa， muita informação é jogada no nosso colo de forma gratuita e cansativa; o desejo de trazer uma crítica social foda faz com que as coisas soem forçadas e pouco naturais。 O autor realmente se esforçou pra fazer esse livro ser maior do que necessariamente ele é。 PS: Um bando de gente branca， loira， e padrão sendo o suprassumo do que a humanidade tem pra oferecer， dominando todo o sistema solar me fez revirar os olhos pelo menos umas 500 vezes durante a leitura， assim como todo o bla bla bla sobre o Império Romano。 Ainda bem que atualmente nós temos cada vez mais autoras não-brancas dando o nome e escrevendo SFF de qualidade， porque putz， que livro puxado。 。。。more
the_bookish_poet
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*3。5
Jafumbwa
，
An exciting mashup of Braveheart， Captain America， Hunger Games， and Lord of the Flies。 Good beginning of an epic series。
wpschrec
，
This was a pretty interesting story。 Takes place in a future society on Mars that is set up in a strict caste system after they destroyed Earth。 A man in the lowest caste rises to the highest through deception and takes part in their academy to find the strongest and smartest among the best。 The violence is really gritty and brutal。 The society is incredibly wicked and cruel。 The author gives you a really strong emotional reaction against them early in the book， though it seems like he is afraid This was a pretty interesting story。 Takes place in a future society on Mars that is set up in a strict caste system after they destroyed Earth。 A man in the lowest caste rises to the highest through deception and takes part in their academy to find the strongest and smartest among the best。 The violence is really gritty and brutal。 The society is incredibly wicked and cruel。 The author gives you a really strong emotional reaction against them early in the book， though it seems like he is afraid of you （or the main character） forgetting it as the story goes on， so he reminds you of it frequently。 The methods that the society uses to oppress the lower castes are really interesting and good to think about and keep in mind。 The lowest is through suffering and direct enslavement。 The next up is through welfare though。 It shows really well how welfare is designed to be a type of indirect means of enslavement。 Welfare isn't supposed to help anyone， it's supposed to keep them where they're at。Overall， the story intrigued me a good bit。 I'm curious to see how it continues through the series。 At times I really hated it， other times I loved it。 The author seems to know how to illicit strong emotional reactions well。 。。。more
Christine
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Fab series of Sci fi books。。。
Hazelbue
，
This book blew me away。 I don’t normally read sci-fi stories， but I took a chance with this one and I am so happy for it。 Premise:In a dystopian future where there is a “color system” Darrow a red （the lowest of society） finds out he has been lied to his whole life。 After personal tragedies he gets recruited into the Sons of Ares， an underground group intent on taking down the color system。 He’s “carved”/transformed into a gold （the highest color/level） and joins their institute competing to mak This book blew me away。 I don’t normally read sci-fi stories， but I took a chance with this one and I am so happy for it。 Premise:In a dystopian future where there is a “color system” Darrow a red （the lowest of society） finds out he has been lied to his whole life。 After personal tragedies he gets recruited into the Sons of Ares， an underground group intent on taking down the color system。 He’s “carved”/transformed into a gold （the highest color/level） and joins their institute competing to make himself stand out so he can get an internship and move forward in the Gold world with the overall goal of bringing it down。 The three books are about him navigating the gold world and later about the resistance。 Filled with friendship， love， growth， deception， betrayals， and fun plot twists。 What I loved:-I loved the slow burn romance between Mustang and Darrow。 It never overshadowed the book， but it was sweet and fun to read。 I really appreciated how they were attracted to each other because of who they were as people （in a genuine non superficial way） and how Darrow grows and becomes a better leader because of her。 -the side characters were so fun。 I love sevro， Cassius， pax， and all the rest。 I loved how Darrow inspires others to follow him。 - A lot of people wrote that the beginning was hard to get into or was slow。 I didn’t find this to be the case at all。 I loved the parts of him mining in mars。 I loved reading about him and Eo。 I felt like this backdrop gave us insight to who Darrow was as a boy and sets the backdrop for how he changes and grows。 -the introspection of Darrow as he thinks back to his past and is continuingly willing to learn and adapt。 -In general， I just found Darrow to be an amazing hero/main character。 What could have been better:-not much。 I really enjoyed the first book。 POV: first person single POV Story type: dystopian sci fi Characters: 4。5/5Plot: 4/5Enjoyment: 4/5Writing style: 4。5/5Depth: 5/5Humor: 4/5Story ending: 4。5/5 。。。more
Savana Phillips
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Got halfway through and stopped。 Too much toxic masculinity。 Overly dramatic。 Too many plot points。 Found myself rolling my eyes。 Intriguing but more geared for male audiences。 As a female had no reason to continue reading。
Britt Nicole
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I have had this book on my TBR FOR MANY YEARS！ This is probably one of my top books I have read in 2021！ I love this book so much and wish I was friends and allies with Darrow！ He is one of the best male characters that i have seen in a very long time。 I CANT WAIT TO JUMP INTO THE NEXT BOOK SOON。
Kristel
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Yes， this reminded me of Hunger Games。 This is an adventure， dystopia environment and young people playing a game （coming of age） and character growth。 Also a bit of romance as well。 An enjoyable read。
Sydnie
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2。5 stars
Em （iforgotsalt）
，
Absolutely unreal。 This brutal， heart-stopping， rage-filled novel goes so far beyond the description， "The Hunger Games in space，" that everyone on BookTube gives it。 I don't think I've been this in love with a series since Gideon the Ninth。 I'm so glad I had the foresight to pick up the full trilogy at once， because I'll be rolling into Golden Son， like， now。 Absolutely unreal。 This brutal， heart-stopping， rage-filled novel goes so far beyond the description， "The Hunger Games in space，" that everyone on BookTube gives it。 I don't think I've been this in love with a series since Gideon the Ninth。 I'm so glad I had the foresight to pick up the full trilogy at once， because I'll be rolling into Golden Son， like， now。 。。。more
Jared Bush
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One of the best books I've read in a long time。 Don't let the fact that it is within the dreaded "Young Adult" genre deter you from reading。 I could've avoided it because of the stigma that is carried with those two words， and would've missed out。Yes， there were times where I felt that déjà vu you get when reading something that has so many elements from other books。 It made me think of the Hunger Games with it's splitting up of society and war games premise。 Enough to where I wondered if it was One of the best books I've read in a long time。 Don't let the fact that it is within the dreaded "Young Adult" genre deter you from reading。 I could've avoided it because of the stigma that is carried with those two words， and would've missed out。Yes， there were times where I felt that déjà vu you get when reading something that has so many elements from other books。 It made me think of the Hunger Games with it's splitting up of society and war games premise。 Enough to where I wondered if it was inspired by the books。 However， I felt like it was done so much better， and feels more "grown-up"。 。。。more
Graeme
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It didn’t grab me at first， but glad I stuck with it。 The book changes tone quite dramatically， and becomes quite violent and unpredictable。 The world is well realised and quite well thought out！All in all a great story and great intro to a new series。
Mohammad。Bookworm
，
خب。 میگن بعضی کارا و نویسندهها با همون کار اول توی دل جا باز میکنن。 برای من توی دسته فانتزی گمل بود。 توی علمی تخیلی آرتور سی کلارک。 اما توی رتبه بندی کلیم میخوام تغییر بدم。 پیرس براون برای من دیوید گمله توی ژانر علمی تخیلی。 قیام سرخ برگرفته از اساطیر یونانیه。 همه چیز این کتاب به چشم من عالی پرداخت شده بود。 از شخصیت پردازی بگیرید تا نثر و روایت داستانی。 یه سری جملهها کنایهآمیز ولی کاملا نغز و به جان。 مثال بارزش: 《من دروگرم。 مرگ سایه منه》。نمیدونم قبلا چیزی به اسم علمی تخیلی حماسی وجود داشته ی خب。 میگن بعضی کارا و نویسندهها با همون کار اول توی دل جا باز میکنن。 برای من توی دسته فانتزی گمل بود。 توی علمی تخیلی آرتور سی کلارک。 اما توی رتبه بندی کلیم میخوام تغییر بدم。 پیرس براون برای من دیوید گمله توی ژانر علمی تخیلی。 قیام سرخ برگرفته از اساطیر یونانیه。 همه چیز این کتاب به چشم من عالی پرداخت شده بود。 از شخصیت پردازی بگیرید تا نثر و روایت داستانی。 یه سری جملهها کنایهآمیز ولی کاملا نغز و به جان。 مثال بارزش: 《من دروگرم。 مرگ سایه منه》。نمیدونم قبلا چیزی به اسم علمی تخیلی حماسی وجود داشته یا نهمن فرض به نبودش میذارمپیرس براون یه زیر ژانر کاملا جدید رو پایه گذاری کرده به اسم علمی تخیلی حماسی。و همه اینها به خاطر جلد یکیه که همه بهم گفتن تازه ضعیفترین جلد قیامه！اگه ضعیفترینش اینه وای به اوج！！！！قیام بخوانیدقیام بخوانیدو با دارو لیکوسزاده آشنا شویدThe Chosen OneThe Reaper 。。。more
Jake Cliffiord
，
Love the colour hierarchy in this books！
Sarah
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Audiobook！ Wow。 This story has a familiar flavor， yet it is full of surprises， endearing characters， and lays the groundwork for so much to look forward to in future books。 The audiobook reader does a great job。
Jonathan
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I didn't have high expectations， but I really enjoyed this book。 I normally take my time with a book but I flew through this one in 2 weeks （and I've already checked out Book 2）！ While it's a familiar story， the range of characters were great and the twists and turns made for a satisfying read。 It's just making me more excited to see these characters come to life when the board game is released later this month。 I didn't have high expectations， but I really enjoyed this book。 I normally take my time with a book but I flew through this one in 2 weeks （and I've already checked out Book 2）！ While it's a familiar story， the range of characters were great and the twists and turns made for a satisfying read。 It's just making me more excited to see these characters come to life when the board game is released later this month。 。。。more
Nancy
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Red Rising had a slow start， but this was necessary to build the foundation。 It was well-paced after that。 Unlike many closely themed novels， Red Rising weaves mythology， ancient history， and literature if you look for it。 I enjoyed reading it and will reread it。
Peyton Pearson
，
This book has absolutely no right being this good。 I went into this completely clueless on what this book was about and I didn’t expect it to be so much of a YA novel。 At first I was pretty disappointed， but damn did it turn it around。 I’ve seen a lot of people compare this to the hunger games and I’d have to agree， but this book didn’t read like a YA。 The writing didn’t feel as on the nose and overt as most YA novels are， which I really appreciated。 I will be honest， I didn’t and still don’t re This book has absolutely no right being this good。 I went into this completely clueless on what this book was about and I didn’t expect it to be so much of a YA novel。 At first I was pretty disappointed， but damn did it turn it around。 I’ve seen a lot of people compare this to the hunger games and I’d have to agree， but this book didn’t read like a YA。 The writing didn’t feel as on the nose and overt as most YA novels are， which I really appreciated。 I will be honest， I didn’t and still don’t really like the main character。 He’s just too goddamn perfect。 Atop that I felt so disoriented with how many characters there were， and that they all looked alike， but that’s a pretty small criticism overall。 Maybe it was the fact that I had such low hopes starting off this book， but by the end I was sold。 I don’t know if I’m ready for the 4 books coming up next in the series， but at the very least this first book hit way harder than I thought it would。 。。。more
Skyler
，
Let's clear things up before we move into a review。Repeat after me。 This is not the hunger games。It。 Is。 Not。 The。 Hunger。 Games。Besides the deadly competition， the only relation this has to the Hunger Games are the weird names the characters have。Alright， now that that's been established。。。This book kind of threw me off。 I had no idea what to expect going into it。 I heard about a caste system， a deadly competition， oppression， revolution yadda yadda yadda。 These themes and tropes have been exha Let's clear things up before we move into a review。Repeat after me。 This is not the hunger games。It。 Is。 Not。 The。 Hunger。 Games。Besides the deadly competition， the only relation this has to the Hunger Games are the weird names the characters have。Alright， now that that's been established。。。This book kind of threw me off。 I had no idea what to expect going into it。 I heard about a caste system， a deadly competition， oppression， revolution yadda yadda yadda。 These themes and tropes have been exhausted to death。 However。。。What really sets this book apart from every Hunger Games -Divergent-Giver-Legend dystopian-scifi out there， is the world。This world is massive， impressive， and is one out of three reasons for my almost 4 star instead of 5 star rating。We are introduced to a caste system defined by colors。 Reds at the bottom， golds at the top。 Hierarchy and status are everything in this world。 It defines the characters， the story， and the themes。 At the start of the book， the world is described in great detail。 So much detail in fact， that I was afraid that most of it would go over my head。 It gets info-dumpy a lot of times， but I'm kind of glad for that。 I usually focus on everything except world-building in books， but the world is what makes this book shines。 I was dying to spend more time near all the colors to see how they lived their lives， to learn the differences between them， to be completely immersed in this strange and dark world。 But。。。Pierce Brown had other plans。He gets readers hooked on this luscious world， only to keep the majority of the book in this awful wilderness setting as part of the competition。 So instead of getting info-dumped about the unique， universal conquer-or-be-conquered caste system， we get info-dumped about mud， trees， mountains， and gore。Speaking of gore， I didn't expect this book to go as dark as it did。 A lot of violent and disturbing things take place， which bring me to my next negative: assault Oh。 Ma。 Goodness。 Sexual assault is used as such a character device in this book。 It felt like something meant to provide a challenge for the women， and an opportunity for the men to act gallant （or to paint the men in a villainous light） This same thing kept occurring to the point where it felt ridiculous。 And the flippant way the author handled such a touchy subject as something outrageously normal was upsetting。 I actually like the charcters in the book though。 I really appreciate how everyone in this world is gray。 There are no good guys。 Only mildly good guys and vile people。 I wish some of the relationships between characters could have been fleshed out more， and I was kind if annoyed with the two romantic connections Darrow had in here。 We never got to see him with Eo， and were forced to just assume that they had the strongest love for each other ever in the whole galaxy。 And then him and the other girl who I won't name because some might view it as a mild spoiler。 It was so random and fast。 Especially for Darrow's character， it felt so unrealistic。Also， speaking of Darrow。 I didn't connect with him much。 He was just too。。。perfect。 It was basically a play on the chosen one trope。 Darrow is strong。 He is handsome。 He is fast， can fight like Bruce Lee， and can strategize better than Caesar。 Also， do you know how many times I forgot that he was supposed to be 16？ 16 years old this guy is supposed to be， and yet he talks and thinks like a middle aged man whose had a hard knock life。 I was still rooting for him at first though， but as the story went on and we saw his decent into darkness， that changed。 His mild corruption arc into becoming like one if the Golds was too quick for me。 For someone who is supposedly so averse and repulsed by the Golds， he sure took no time in becoming buddy-buddy with them。 I know it seems like I'm being mostly negative here， but besides all that stuff， this book was solid。 The world is its strongest element， and the characters as well as the plot have so much room to develop and turn into something truly epic。 I also liked the writing。 Darrow's perspective isn't the best to be in， but there are so many great metaphorical quotes to take from this。 This wasn't bad for a first book。 It was fast， action-packed， and even has some political intrigue in the mix which I surprisingly enjoyed。 The clever plot twists and conflict resolutions had me impressed。 Overall， I'm very happy with this book， and am excited to see what the next two books do。For being a solid read， and being a possible help in getting me out of my sci-fi-fantasy-dystopian reading funk， I give this book 3 stars⭐（**Not sure if this would be considered a spoiler， but I just had to mention it**）That moment where they hid in the stomachs of dead horses and crawled out in an ambush had me gasping and thinking about the horse head situation from "The Godfather" for some reason😂） 。。。more
Meryl
，
Red RisingBook 2021 #12“The measure of a man is what he does when he has power。”Bloodydamn！ Why have I been sleeping on this series？！ I’ve had the first three books just sitting on my shelf for a year and a half now。 Whoops！ I bought books 4 and 5 brand stinkin’ new from B&N back in January。 I guess I’ve got some binge reading to do。4 stars
Reference
google book https://www.google.com/search?tbm=bks&q=Red Rising
hathitrust digital library https://babel.hathitrust.org/cgi/ls?q1=Red Rising&field1=ocr&a=srchls&ft=ft&lmt=ft
The British Library https://bll01.primo.exlibrisgroup.com/discovery/search?query=any,contains,Red Rising&tab=LibraryCatalog&search_scope=Not_BL_Suppress&vid=44BL_INST:BLL01&lang=en&offset=0