"Red Rising" Review

RED RISING BY PIERCE BROWN

When I met my friend Steven, he quickly made it known that his favorite book series of all time is the Red Rising series by Pierce Brown. Since then, my friend has made it his mission to have me read the series and experience it for the first time. After many reminders, a very thoughtful birthday gift, and a month later, I finished the first book.

Red Rising, the first in this series, is about Darrow, a Red in a caste system where his people are considered the lowest class. Darrow and his people toil away under the surface of Mars to terraform the planet so civilization can leave the destroyed remains of Earth. They know nothing but the tunnels and heat, and they compete for better resources. Then Darrow’s wife dies and everything changes for him.

I plan to continue reading the series. This first book is a great set-up. We are thoroughly introduced to our main character of the first few books, and he is someone I like. We learn about Darrow’s values and convictions. We learn what will break him and what makes him fight. He is not the only well-developed or the only striking character either. Brown creates whole histories within a few sentences, filling the book with memorable characters. I want to continue following their journeys.

The world-building is also very particular and intriguing. The caste system is simple yet creative in this first book where the characters are still, somewhat, treated like children. The next book will undoubtedly go more into the intricate political details of the system in question while Darrow becomes an adult.

My favorite part of the book is the beginning. The tunnels of Lykkos are instilled in my memory in almost a nostalgic way, similar to how Darrow feels about them. It is where I wish he could be because it is his home. But the story moves on from that location for many good and logical reasons.

I found the majority of the book resembled The Hunger Games and Ender’s Game in different ways. All three are concerned with the idea of a dangerous game of one sort or another. Of course, I love Ender’s Game and the game portions of the Hunger Games trilogy. It only makes sense that I enjoyed this as well. I did, however, find the middle to be more of a hurdle to get through than with those stories. But once Darrow has a change of focus, everything fits into place and the rest of the book is too easy to get through.

Red Rising is a great YA for those missing the revolutionary thrill that dominated the late 2000s-early 2010s. Thanks for the recommendation Steven!