Red Rising

I couldn't quite decide whether this book deserved 3.5 or 4 stars.

The story follows a 16-year-old boy from a struggling planet who unknowingly lives the life of a slave. He goes undercover to infiltrate the elite class known as the Golds. Alongside some other kids, he's sent place called the “Institute,” where they're forced to fight for honor, or something like that. It's a bit Hunger Games-esque.

But, honestly, it took me a while to really get into it. The beginning is slow, and there's a ton of violence - seriously, a lot. There are frequent mentions of murder, slavery, and r*pe. It was giving me Game of Thrones & GRRM vibes. I understand the true brutality of war, but the frequent recurrence of the ‘incidents' left me questioning the necessity.

On a brighter note, the main character is appalled by these actions and doesn't shy away from dishing out punishments to those causing trouble.

Another thing of note is that I sometimes struggled to picture what was happening. Maybe it's because I was listening to the audiobook, but the descriptions just didn't quite click. Though it's clear that Brown has a grand imagination.

The ending is a bit abrupt, like it's just setting the stage for more to come. And there are five more books in the series, I don't know if I can take that much darkness and brutality. Sometimes, I just need a happy ending.

Still, I liked Pierce Brown's writing style, and I'm curious to see if he's written anything else. So, while this book might not be for the faint of heart, it's worth a shot if you're a big sci-fi fan.