Red Rising
Pierce Brown’s relentlessly entertaining debut channels the excitement of The Hunger Games by Suzanne Collins and Ender’s Game by Orson Scott Card.
“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 miner and a Red, a member of the lowest caste in the color-coded society of the future. Like his fellow Reds, he digs all day, believing that he and his people are making the surface of the planet livable for future generations. Darrow has never seen the sky.
Yet he spends his life willingly, knowing that his blood and sweat will one day result in a better future 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 joins a resistance group in order to infiltrate the ruling class and destroy society from within. He will stop at nothing to bring down his enemies... even if it means he has to become one of them to do so.
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Pierce Brown
Pierce Brown is an author whose work has reshaped the landscape of modern science fiction, blending brutal action with profound philosophical musings on power, society, and freedom. Best known for his Red Rising series, Brown’s gripping tales of rebellion and survival in a brutal, hierarchical future have captivated readers worldwide, drawing them into a universe where every victory comes with a cost, and every betrayal stings deeply.
Born in 1988 in Denver, Colorado, Brown’s writing journey began with a fascination for the human spirit and the complexities of society. He was drawn to the idea of dystopian worlds not merely as settings for adventure but as mirrors reflecting our own struggles with inequality, power, and oppression. This thematic focus is at the heart of his Red Rising saga, where the fight for justice plays out across a harsh society divided into rigid color-coded classes. The series, beginning with Red Rising, follows the journey of Darrow, a low-born miner who becomes a revolutionary force in a society built on the backs of the oppressed.
Red Rising Saga
Pierce Brown’s Red Rising series is a pulse-pounding blend of science fiction, dystopian intrigue, and space opera, delivering a gripping tale of rebellion, power, and sacrifice. Set in a brutal caste-based society spread across the solar system, the saga follows Darrow, a young miner from Mars, as he rises from the lowest class to challenge the oppressive rule of the elite. With its masterful world-building, morally complex characters, and relentless twists, the series has captivated readers worldwide.
Red Rising Saga consists of six books and series is set to expand with the upcoming release of one more book. The current recommended reading order for the series is provided below.
Book Reviews
From early on Red Rising reminded me of Dune by Frank Herbert. Power struggle in space centered on a young man. In Red Rising this young man, Darrow, just happens to be of low descent, unlike the high-born Paul Atreides. Later, the story began to be more reminiscent of certain YA dystopians, but I still suspect Pierce Brown has read his Dune.
The story kicks off strongly. The early events create tension and maintain interest excellently. Darrow seems to be a sympathetic guy. But then the schoolyard brawl begins, in which parents, teachers and other people try to get involved to the best of their ability. I never got interested in these kind of quarrels when I was a kid, and it wasn't much more engrossing, even though it occurred on Mars. In addition, Darrow became more or less monstrous as the hassle progressed.