Title: Golden Son (Red Rising #2)
Author: Pierce Brown
Published: Januray 6, 2015
Publisher: Hodder and Stoughton
ISBN: 978-0345539816
Genre: Sci-Fi
Ender's Game meets The Hunger Games in this, the second in an extraordinary trilogy from an incredible new voice.
'I'm still playing games. This is just the deadliest yet.'
Darrow is a rebel forged by tragedy. For years he and his fellow Reds worked the mines, toiling to make the surface of Mars inhabitable. They were, they believed, mankind's last hope. Until Darrow discovered that it was all a lie, and that the Red were nothing more than unwitting slaves to an elitist ruling class, the Golds, who had been living on Mars in luxury for generations.
In RED RISING, Darrow infiltrated Gold society, to fight in secret for a better future for his people. Now fully embedded amongst the Gold ruling class, Darrow continues his dangerous work to bring them down from within. It's a journey that will take him further than he's ever been before - but is Darrow truly willing to pay the price that rebellion demands?
Hic sunt leones.
A life-or-death tale of vengeance with an unforgettable hero at its heart,Golden Son guarantees Pierce Brown's growing status as one of fiction's most exciting new voices.
Rating: ★★★★★
HOLY FUCKING SHIT GUYS!!
These books are beyond incredible. Pierce Brown, take a bow.
I got this book straight after I finished Red Rising, and then I froze. I couldn't do it. I couldn't start this book. I was scared. What if it didn't live up? What if this book was an acute sufferer of Second Book Syndrome? How would I cope? So I put it off. And put it off. And put it off. Then, I couldn't put it off anymore because I kept thinking about Red Rising. Yes, it was that good. I had a book hang-over for weeks. So I sucked it up and started Golden Son.
This book picks up about 2-3 years after the last one left off. Darrow is now 20 years old and on the verge of becoming a Praetor. On the verge. Then everything goes to shit. Really, this is the only way I can describe the plot, because there really is no other way. It defies explanation and the only way you will understand is if you read this book. Which you need to do. Everyone needs to read this book.
I love how brutal Brown is with his characters. One thing that really, really bugs me about a lot of characters in this type of book is how "noble" they are. They don't want to get their hands dirty. When confronted with a really difficult decision, they chicken out. They are the crux of a world-saving, revolutionary force, nearly everything is riding on them, but in a "their-life-or-yours" decision which could potentially destroy everything they have been working for, they can't go through with the plan. They always back out and save the other person's life, and then, somehow, miraculously escape. Brown does not do this. Darrow knows how important his position is, and Darrow has absolutely no problems with doing whatever he feels necessary in order to keep that mission alive.
He is the ultimate MC. I have NEVER come across an MC that I like anywhere near as much as I like Darrow au Andromedus. Not even Harry Potter, and I'm sure everyone knows how much I fucking adore Harry Potter. No, Darrow blows that completely out of the water. He's incredible. He's intelligent, confident, and ruthless. What's not to like?
I don't know what else I can say that's not going to spoil this book for those who haven't read it? So, so much happens and I feel like everything I want to say would give something away. So I won't.
What I will say is: THAT FUCKING ENDING, THOUGH?! George R.R. Martin, take your Red Wedding and stand aside.
I did not see it coming until it was too late. Pierce Brown is a master story teller.
I have no idea what to expect from the next book, but I know what I'd like to happen:
"If your heart beats like a drum,
and your leg’s a little wet,
it’s ‘cause the Reaper’s come
to collect a little debt."
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