Reviews

This is the best "dystopian" book I have ever read. I even liked it more than the Hunger Games and Divergent. It was far more mature and brutal and the world building is very in depth. I feel like it takes some patience to get through the world building parts but in the end it's so worth it.
When I first heard about this book, I expected a typical sci-fi YA book. Simply because that's what people describe it as. You know, like Illuminae or something like that. But this is so much more. Though it is set on Mars, it doesn't feel like a full-on sci-fi novel even though there are obvious sci-fi elements. I'd describe this book as an adult sci-fi dystopian with a little bit of romance and horror (there are some gory passages in this).
The female characters are problematic, though. I feel like none of them had a real purpose except for being an incentive for all the men to fight each other and specifically to motivate Darrow to start a rebellion. Pierce Brown obviously tried to create strong female characters but in my opinion kind of ruined these characters by letting most of them die or be kidnapped.
This is still a 5 star book to me, though. I don't have any major issues with it.

I think I'm going to start reading the sequel right away. :D

astrireads's review against another edition

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5.0

Science fiction books are not my go-to books and you probably won't find any in my bookshelves. So why did I pick up Red Rising? I saw a picture of it here on bookstagram, looked it up and was intrigued. I mean, a dystopian story with caste, sign me up!

Red Rising is pretty much the first science fiction/dystopian book I've ever read so I'm not going to lie, it took a while for me to get into it. As I got deeper into the book, my fascination grew towards Pierce Brown's writing. I've said it once and I'm going to say it again, his writing is unlike any that I've ever read before. A perfect example of that is: 'In his light, the shadow I cast looks like it knows what it's doing. It doesn't. It, like me, was born in a mine.' I have no idea why I love this bit!
The story itself is incredibly reminiscent of our own society, where there are caste, struggle of power and injustice. The characters are strong and determined, which I suppose is due to the fact that they are struggling to survive! I must say I was uncomfortable when there were hints of sexual assault, even if it is not explicitly written.

All in all, I thoroughly enjoyed reading this book and excited to know the next chapter of Darrow's golden journey. I expect that I will get the second book as soon as possible! I BLOODYDAMN love it!

alexatwice's review against another edition

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4.0

yeppppppppp

rheachandran's review against another edition

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adventurous dark emotional funny fast-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

5.0

I need a movie adaption asap that was so good! Can’t believe I didn’t read it when I was younger. Can’t wait to recommend this to friends.

briannarebar's review against another edition

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adventurous dark tense medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? No
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.0

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