Thursday, February 6, 2014

Book Review: Red Rising by Pierce Brown

Red Rising
Author:  Pierce Brown
Publisher:  Del Rey (Random House), 400 pages
Publication Date:  January 28, 2014

From Goodreads:
Darrow is a Helldiver, one of a thousand men and women who live in the vast caves beneath the surface of Mars. Generations of Helldivers have spent their lives toiling to mine the precious elements that will allow the planet to be terraformed. Just knowing that one day people will be able to walk the surface of the planet is enough to justify their sacrifice. The Earth is dying, and Darrow and his people are the only hope humanity has left.

Until the day Darrow learns that it is all a lie. Mars is habitable - and indeed has been inhabited for generations by a class of people calling themselves the Golds. The Golds regard Darrow and his fellows as slave labour, to be exploited and worked to death without a second thought.

With the help of a mysterious group of rebels, Darrow disguises himself as a Gold and infiltrates their command school, intent on taking down his oppressors from the inside.


Review:
Dark, brutal, and disturbing, I was completely riveted and engrossed while reading this book.  Darrow is such an amazing main character, you will find yourself rooting for him the entire time, even when he makes horrible mistakes.  He's so badass but also such a good guy.  You'll feel his pain when he loses people that he loves, you'll feel his rage when he finds out how his people have been treated and betrayed, and you'll feel his need for revenge.  There is so much evil in this book, but it's complex and nuanced, and there are reasons for it (the politics and strategy are well done).  

The secondary characters are amazing too, so well fleshed out (no one dimensional characters here) and you're never entirely sure who Darrow can trust, although you're hoping he can trust some of them.  The world-building is stunning and I absolutely loved learning about Mars, the rest of the planets, and the caste system.  It's given out in bits and pieces and well integrated with the plot rather than info-dumping.  There are definitely some similarities to The Hunger Games (and Lord of the Flies), and that may bother some people, but the book is absolutely spectacular.  I devoured it.  Addictive, intense, compelling, filled with heart-stopping action, I can't recommend this enough.  Just read it.


Posted by:  Pam

17 comments:

  1. I'm definitely going to have to check this one out, it sounds amazing! I love me some dark, brutal and distributing books :)

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. It was amazing, I pretty much read it in one sitting. ~Pam

      Delete
  2. Omg now I am so excited. I might dive into this one after I finish Cress because I seriously can't wait. Great review!

    ReplyDelete
  3. I only heard about this book a couple weeks ago but once I did it seems everyone is talking about it! I think I need to get me a copy. So glad you loved it!

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. There was a big writeup about it in Entertainment Weekly and that made me really excited to read it. ~Pam

      Delete
  4. I had this one in my hand at Barnes & Noble but dropped it last minute! I'm kicking myself now. The sound of the characters...wow. I've got to get this one.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. It's really good, you should go back and get it! :) ~Pam

      Delete
  5. I've been really tempted by this book on numerous occasions, and this review makes me want to run out and buy it now! Sounds really great, thanks for the review :)

    ReplyDelete
  6. I'm SO glad to hear that you loved this one so much! I just bought a copy and it's one of 3 that I have been considering this evening to start next. I think I just made up my mind after your review, Pam! :)

    Sabrina @ I Heart Y.A. Fiction

    ReplyDelete
  7. I think I will really like this! No idea when I will be able to read it buuuttt it sounds amazing so I definitely will! Call me morbid but I love dark, brutal,. disturbing, and evil. I also love male POV and the whole Mars aspect is really intriguing, especially if its done so well!

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. I usually don't like male POVs too much (although I don't mind one of the alternating POVs being male) but this one...really well done (probably because a guy actually wrote it). ~Pam

      Delete
  8. I cannot wait to read this book! It is sitting on my shelf staring at me and I need to devote some time to it. But I fear it will be completely addicting, so I'm waiting until I have a good chunk. I'm ready for this hero, the moral the crazy, brutal society on Mars. I can't wait.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Yeah, I pretty much read it in one sitting, I couldn't stop. So definitely set aside a chunk of time. Hope you enjoy it! ~Pam

      Delete
  9. I've seen a ton of buzz for this book. I'm happy to hear that you really enjoyed it. I love the books that you just cannot put down. I'll have to give this one a try...sometime. Great review!

    ReplyDelete