Red Rising (Red Rising Saga, #1)

Author: Pierce Brown

Rating: ⭐ 3/5

Date Read: 2016/12/22

Pages: 382

Well, this started out strong.

At the beginning of Red Rising, we follow our young protagonist, Darrow, into the mines of Mars. Something not so awesome seems to have happened in this society and, to put it mildly, the Martian Dream doesn’t seem like all it’s cracked up to be. But, in science fiction, things are never what they seem, and it’s always up to the unlikely youngster to save the world. Joseph Campbell would be proud.

Unfortunately, after setting up a strong conflict, Pierce Brown abruptly shifts into a secondary plot, in which he can set up our young Darrow to be inexplicably awesome at everything. And yeah, I know, I could easily accuse Rothfuss of doing the same thing, but the difference is that the secondary plot of Red Rising, which becomes the primary plot, just isn’t that interesting. It’s a lot of ploty plot plot, with all sorts of Ploty McPlotersons doing a lot of ploty plot stuff.

I’ll likely continue the series, as I really was intrigued by the main premise. However, I’m not exactly champing at the bit to start the next book.