Red Rising

Darrow was born into the red color class, the lowest of all colors. Called the pioneers of Mars their life's duty is to mine helium-3, a substance needed to terraform the surface of the planet. For hundreds of years, various clans of Reds have been mining and living a lie. The surface of Mars is complete and an entire society rests upon the pits and mines the Reds call home. The Golds, the highest in the society look down upon all colors and have allowed the lies to continue. Who better to do their dirty work than the Reds? When Darrow's wife is killed, he learns the truth of his life and promises revenge. But the Golds are superior in every way. From the implants in their brains to their reinforced bodies. And in order to infiltrate their ranks, Darrow must become a Gold. The pain he endures as his body is literally torn apart and put back together again will be nothing compared to what he must face in the Gold's academy. A place where betrayal and bloodshed go hand in hand, and through it, all Darrow must not lose himself along the way.

Red Rising is an intense book. If you're familiar with the political oppression from The Hunger Games, take it to the next level. The Reds are kept in deplorable conditions and can be killed for simply singing the wrong songs. And the worst part is the way they must die. If you are sentenced to death you hang, but on Mars, there isn't enough gravity to snap your neck. You are forced to pull your loved ones by the feet and snap their necks. Most women also have to sell themselves for food and medicine in order for their families to survive.

Make sure you have a strong stomach, or at least prepare yourself before reading this. The procedure to change Darrow from a Red to a Gold is written in detail and the cruelties that take place throughout the book may be a trigger. But none of the violence is overdone, or for shock value. It allows the reader to see who the Golds really are and just how far they are willing to go. You will come to hate them as much as Darrow by the end of the first book.

This was brilliantly written and I can't wait to see what Darrow will accomplish in the next book.