Review: Red Rising (Red Rising #1) by Pierce Brown

Source: Purchased my own copy.
Publisher:Del Rey (Random House)
Release Date: January 28. 2014
Number of Pages: 382 (Hardcover)


Description from Goodreads:

"I live for the dream that my children will be born free," she says. "That they will be what they like. That they will own the land their father gave them."

"I live for you," I say sadly.

Eo kisses my cheek. "Then you must live for more."

Darrow is a Red, a member of the lowest caste in the color-coded society of the future. Like his fellow Reds, he works all day, believing that he and his people are making the surface of Mars livable for future generations.

Yet he spends his life willingly, knowing that his blood and sweat will one day result in a better world for his children.

But Darrow and his kind have been betrayed. Soon he discovers that humanity already reached the surface generations ago. Vast cities and sprawling parks spread across the planet. Darrow—and Reds like him—are nothing more than slaves to a decadent ruling class.

Inspired by a longing for justice, and driven by the memory of lost love, Darrow sacrifices everything to infiltrate the legendary Institute, a proving ground for the dominant Gold caste, where the next generation of humanity's overlords struggle for power. He will be forced to compete for his life and the very future of civilization against the best and most brutal of Society's ruling class. There, he will stop at nothing to bring down his enemies... even if it means he has to become one of them to do so.

Wowza!!! As soon as I read the description for RED RISING, I was intrigued and I'm really not sure what's taken me so long to read it!! From the first page, I was hooked!!

I absolutely loved Darrow!! I'm going to leave out all that happens to him because there are sooo many ways just mentioning Darrow could spoil this book, but he just amazed me! His drive, his strategic mind, and his snarky attitude were the perfect fit for this story. I already can't wait to read the other two books in the trilogy because it's clear that Darrow will do amazing things and he's in for some extremely tense adventures!!

Darrow wasn't the only amazing character though! I also loved Sevro, Roque, Mustang, Pax...and sooo many others!! RED RISING was packed pull of dynamic characters. Interestingly, I actually disliked a handful of my favourite characters in this book when they were first introduced. I've always been a sucker for well written characters, but I think this is the first time I've been swayed by so many characters like that. The characters were all so well-rounded and they developed so fully that it was easy to sympathize with those you should dislike, and to grow to love the ones that first came off as "enemies." The character development was superbly written and I can wait to see what becomes of them all in the sequels...although I've heard I should be afraid which doesn't surprise me. Pierce Brown didn't go easy on his characters in RED RISING and I would've been shocked if that changed.

Not only were the characters fantastic, so was the world-building! It was spectacular and I loved learning the intricacies of Darrow's world. The hierarchies, colours, and subtle nuances between each class of people was super fascinating and understanding it all through Darrow's narrative lens made it even better!! I'm not quite sure how Darrow can achieve his ultimate goals but I'm extremely excited to see him try!!

I loved RED RISING! It was a remarkable story with some of the best character and world-building that I've ever read! I enthusiastically and whole-heartedly recommend it and I can't wait to get started on GOLDEN SON and MORNING STAR!

Have you started the Red Rising trilogy yet?
If you have, what do you think?
If you haven't, does it sound like something you'd like to read?