59. Red Rising
Rating: ☆☆1/2
Recommended by:
Author: Pierce Brown
Genre: Young Adult, Science Fiction, Fantasy, Dystopia
382 pages, published January 28, 2014
Reading Format: E-Book on Overdrive
Summary
The dystopian future world of Red Rising is a place where people are strictly segregated by class and color. Darrow is a Red, a member of the lowest and relegated to a life underground working in the dangerous mines of Mars. Like his fellow Reds, he works all day, believing that he and his people are making the surface of Mars livable for future generations. Soon Darrow discovers that humanity already reached the surface generations ago and that vast cities and sprawling parks spread across the planet. He and all Reds are nothing more than slaves to a decadent ruling class. When Darrow’s wife Eo is executed, he is chosen by a group of rebels to undergo a physical transformation that will turn him into a member of the Gold ruling caste. His body successfully altered, Darrow’s challenge is just beginning. He is thrown into a battle among young Golds to see who will emerge as the victor.
Quotes
“I live for the dream that my children will be born free. That they will be what they like. That they will own the land their father gave them.’ ‘I live for you,’ I say sadly. She kisses my cheek. ‘Then you must live for more.”
“Funny how a single word can change everything in your life.”
“It is not funny at all. Steel is power. Money is power. But of all the things in all the worlds, words are power.”
“You do not follow me because I am the strongest. Pax is. You do not follow me because I am the brightest. Mustang is. You follow me because you do not know where you are going. I do.”
“The measure of a man is what he does when he has power.”
“The world is soundless. We cannot hear, but a pack of wolves does not need words to know that it is time to hunt.”
“The fleas would jump and jump to heights unknown. Then a man came along and upturned a glass jar over the fleas. The fleas jumped and hit the top of the jar and could go no farther. Then the man removed the jar and yet the fleas did not jump higher than they had grown accustomed, because they believed there to still be a glass ceiling.”
“Society has three stages: Savagery, Ascendance, Decadence. The great rise because of Savagery. They rule in Ascendance. They fall because of their own Decadence.”
My Take
Getting ready to board several long flights from Paris back home to Denver, I needed something to read on my iPad. Red Rising, which was available on Overdrive, looked promising. I had really enjoyed all three Hunger Games novels and thought that perhaps the Red Rising Trilogy would provide a similar experience. Unfortunately, Red Rising did not live up to my expectations, not even close. Not only was the book hyper-violent, it was also hard to follow and the story kind of falls apart in certain places. Needless to say, I will be skipping books 2 and 3.
