Review: Red Rising by Pierce Brown

Red Rising

(Red Rising Trilogy # 1)

By: Pierce Brown

Pub. Date: January 28, 2014

Publisher: Del Ray

Pages: 400

Source: Netgalley

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.

I received this galley in exchange for an honest review. Thank you Netgalley and Random House.

I was really excited for this one. It sounded like a very different kind of dystopian than others out there, and I am so glad I was given the chance to read it.  Darrow was one of the most interesting characters I have ever read in YA. He's only 16, but he has the brain and soul of a middle-aged man. He is desperately in love with his wife, and suffers every day working and drilling to make a better life for the future children of Mars. Darrow is considered a Red in a color coded society. Reds are basically slaves. He doesn't mind the work, knowing it's for everyone's good. He believes what he was told and doesn't thrive for anything else. When Darrow finds out the truth, he becomes a hardened man, whose goal is to revolt against the society that has lied to him his entire life.

The book takes place in a span of two years, and the amount of character growth from Darrow was amazing. I loved watching him grow, even if it was painful to read.

The writing was absolute perfect and I was intrigued the whole time. I couldn't swipe the pages fast enough on my mini iPad, and I needed to know where the story was going to take me next. Red Rising is a fast paced read and I can't wait for the next book in the series!