Red Rising

By: Pierce Brown

Narrated by: Tim Gerard Reynolds

Length: 16 hrs and 12 mins

Publisher's summary

Darrow is a Red, a member of the lowest caste in the color-coded society of the future. Like his fellow Reds, he works all day, believing that he and his people are making the surface of Mars livable for future generations. Yet he spends his life willingly, knowing that his blood and sweat will one day result in a better world for his children. But Darrow and his kind have been betrayed. Soon he discovers that humanity 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 sacrifices everything to infiltrate the legendary Institute, a proving ground for the dominant Gold caste, where the next generation of humanity's overlords struggle for power. He will be forced to compete for his life and the very future of civilization against the best and most brutal of Society's ruling class. There, he will stop at nothing to bring down his enemies...even if it means he has to become one of them to do so.

©2013 Pierce Brown (P)2014 Recorded Books

HUMANS ARE ALWAY NEGOTIATING,

THAT'S WHAT CONVESATION IS.
This is entertaining and it is smartly written. It starts out similar to Wool Or Silo. One reason this appeals to most people is the, can do attitude, of the main characters. The book starts with The Reds, who are the most oppressed group in the Universe, a Universe they do not even know exist. Once they do realize that they have been lied to all their lives, the odds against them seem unsurmountable. Many times I thought the author had really gotten his characters in so deep, he surly was not going to be able to get them out. It has been a long time since an author has been able to make me wonder how in the world things were going to turn out.

RULERS HAVE A TENDENCY TO DISLIKE THOSE WHO BREAK RULES.
Then the book turns a 180 degrees. What was a story about a primitive, downtrodden people changes to high tech. In the past when an author has done this to me they lose me. This time I stayed with it and enjoyed the ride.

PRICK LICK
The last half of the book is similar to Hunger Games with Greek Gods. I liked it a lot better and there where no whinny characters. This part of the book reminded me of the writing of Robert Reed. The only complaint I have is that I did think this section of the book went on a little too long. It was very entertaining for the most part, but I was ready for them to finish the game, long before they did. When they do finish, it is a grand finale that you don't want to miss. I will be getting the sequel.

The narrator is excellent

CHEAT OR BE CHEATED.

Wow, what a performance and what a story

I don't remember the last time I stayed up all night to read a book, but this one had too much intensity too much momentum to put down. I just had to finish. Darrow's story is rich with memorable characters and emotion and had plenty of suspense. It's one that I'll remember for a long time. I can't wait for the second novel.
Tim Gerard Reynolds makes it come alive. his accent brings the story a perfect edge and he does the wide variety of characters justice.
A must read.

Dark, moving, action packed

First, let me say that the fact that this book was narrated by Tim Reynolds was a primary reason I took a chance with this story. I was not disappointed in the least. The story is told in the first person, which I particularly enjoy, and begins with a very dark and hopeless setting for our main character and his family and people. Even though our main character, Darrow, is only 16 when the story starts, I would hardly call this a young adult fiction. There are some pretty gruesome moments but nothing that is out of bounds.

The beginning is a bit clunky as the author is setting the stage for our young hero, and confusing at times if you let your mind wander. However, once Darrow's path is set, the story moves along smartly. As Darrow is faced with challenge after challenge, he learns about sacrifice, compassion, patience, and qualities that leaders must have in order to overcome incredible adversity. He learns...

Brown is effective creating believable characters, both good and bad, that are complex and struggle with life and death choices. There are some lighthearted moments which help ease the tension, but not many. I've read some comparing this to Hunger Games, which is a stretch I believe. Maybe some elements such as overcoming oppression and injustice but everything else is quite different.

Reynolds is at the top of the class in terms of quality narrators and bringing a story to life. Simply outstanding.

The story does end a little abruptly and clearly sets up the next story, but hardly detracts from the quality of the book. If you like epic fantasy yarns, and this one clearly sets up nicely for the remaining two books of this trilogy, you will enjoy this one. Most highly recommended.

YA Dystopian Over Run

Any additional comments?

This book was really hard to rate because it was well written, but it felt like a collection of YA book tropes.

Is it set in a Dystopian future? Why yes it is.

Is the main character avenging the tragic rebellious death of a loved one that happens to get played on TV? Well, now that you mention it, yes.

Does the main character have to attend a special school, where more than 70% of the students die in training (which is utterly ridiculous by the way)? How did you guess?

Is there a game in which the contestants fight each other to the death? Yes, there is.

Is the main character very cocky and smarter than everyone else, despite the fact that they are all better education than him? Yes, yes he is.

Name some more YA tropes and they are in this book.

Now if I had not read any other YA books in the last 5 years, this would probably be ranked as one of the best YA books ever written. However, there is just way too much, "been there done that" feeling when reading this. Which makes it an OK read but not great, and thus 2 stars, which means, "It was OK" per good reads.

excellent

20K+ ratings are believable - it's a great book.
All the reviews prior do a better job at explaining, so mine will be simple...
Logical, smart and creative world building.
Likeable characters. Good and credible twists and turns (for the vast majority of the time).
Excellent book.

Go ahead and download the next two as well

Any additional comments?

What a tremendous series. This was one of my favorite listens in a long time. The first book starts off a little bit slow, but picks up the pace quickly and maintains it all the way through the end of the trilogy.

One of the biggest draws of this book, for me, was how deep and rich the character development was. Each character is so multidimensional. And the complexities of the characters' personalities are reflected very well in the dialogue and the plot.

The narration was one of the best I've heard. I loved hearing TGR's representation of Darrow mature with the character over the course of the trilogy.

I highly recommend this book. And the next two as well!

Fantastic...

Would you recommend this audiobook to a friend? If so, why?

Yes. Already have. This book has everything a fantasy/sci-fi/dystopian lover could ever want.

What was one of the most memorable moments of Red Rising?

There were so many! I don't want to spoil anything. Suffice it to say, there are many ups and downs, lots of twists and plenty of tension to go around. The rise and fall of allegiances and friendships, betrayals and unswerving loyalties, is always surprising. Other than that, I guess I'm always a sucker for a good makeover...

If you were to make a film of this book, what would the tag line be?

A red son rises.

Any additional comments?

The only reason I didn't give Red Rising five stars (and maybe this isn't fair) but many elements of this novel seem cliche... like Hunger Games, Ender's Game, Sparticus and various classic mythologies thrown in a blender. Makes a very delicious smoothie though... Plenty in there to distinguish it from other dystopian works but enough similarities that it was a touch... banal? Still enjoyable. Still a thrill-ride.

Someone has to dot God's i's

My kids devour a lot of YA fiction. I read this to see if it would be something they would like, to scout the ground ahead. It is quick and fast. Seems to resemble the whole Harry Potter (school), Ender's Game (school/space opera), book:The Hunger Games|2767052] (kids fighting to the death dystopia), with just a dash of The Maze Runner and Divergent thrown in for sport. My kids will adore it. They are young enough to get past some of the clichés and SF short-cuts. But of course, they are only 13 & 14.

As far as BIG SF, I'm not quite convinced. It seems a bit too contrived, too packaged, too made for Hollywood optioning (write every book as if it is a blockbuster and make it a series for sure). I'm not quite sure if it will stand up, long-term, to the big ONES. I'm not sure if I need to make room on my top SF shelf next to Dune orThe Foundation Trilogy. But I will keep reading the series. I will give it tot the kids. It was fun. It was cotton candy.

Perfection!!!

I have over 300 books in my Audible library and this is the only book I've listen to twice. I look forward for the next books

These books will define this decade of writing.

The way these books captured my heart caught me completely off guard. I am not a Sci-Fi fanboy. I thought after the 1st few chapters that I knew how the whole book would play out. I was wrong. I am so elated with these books that I am crying. The only bad thing I cannot stop thinking about is that I heard they are going to make this book into a movie. A movie will in no way capture the heart of this book. A movie will ruin it. A TV series will be needed. Zero doubt in my mind.

Spartacus retold mixed with Red Faction

Many good reviews drew my attention to this book, it didn't really sound like my thing to be honest but because of the reviews I thought I'll give it a go.

I wondered were it was going at the beginning and it wasn't griping me, but out of nowhere it did! I grabbed by the throat and wouldn't let go.
once it started it didn't stop the was never a slow moment in the book. the story may not have been the most original but the way it was told and the characters were. I think it was a new take on the story of Spartacus.

I thought it was brilliant and if you are stuck for a new book to listen to I would recommend Red Rising.

just incredible!

I was listening to this book at 3am when I should have been sleeping instead.

Very good book

Would you listen to Red Rising again? Why?

No, but I generally just listen to books once. There are just too many good ones to get through 😏

Who was your favorite character and why?

Easy , has to be Darrow. Very likeable character that you are always rooting for and hoping that he doesn't get consumed by his anger

Which character – as performed by Tim Gerard Reynolds – was your favourite?

Fitchner - makes you laugh the way he does the character.

If you made a film of this book, what would be the tag line be?

Make gold bleed red

Any additional comments?

If you like the hunger games this one is for you. It's more sci fi in a good way. I'm reading the next book already...

Ender Wiggin meets Paul Atreides & Katniss

Firstly, I did enjoy this story. It is well written and the dialogue worked for me with a couple of pivot points where the narrative could turn one way or another. That said, there's an awful lot of Ender on Mars here (Ender even gets a hat-tip in a line of dialogue) with a good chunk of Paul Atreides and some obvious allusions to Katniss' story. So much so, that it really began to annoy me in the middle section of the book.

The narrator is decent and clear but having the poor underclass speaking with Oirish accents and the cruel elite in mock RP is crass and hackneyed. There's a lot of dialogue and thankfully, the narrator doesn't quite sustain the level of shrieking he delivers in the first third.

hunger games x10

This has been one of the most enjoyable books ever ! I absolutely loved the story, which had so many memorable moments. strongly recommended !

Hunger Games mixed with Spartacus

Absolutely brilliant
story gets better and better
brilliant character development, twists, surprises.
the anger and rage in the book is visceral!

superb narration also

cracking

loved it. Read the book a while ago and thought I'd give it a listen. an excellent telling of the story.

Unbelievably dull

I wanna start off by saying that Tim Gerard Reynolds’ narration was really good, and I’d listen to something narrated by him again in the future.

However, this story was just dull.

It started off really well, and I had such high hopes that this was gonna be an epic rebellion story. Maybe a more mature Hunger Games with a male MC. The world building, the way they manipulated Darrow’s physical appearance to infiltrate the elite, and his reasons for agreeing to it all, it was all great!

Then I hit about the half way point and things just stated to drag. Darrow’s time in the academy was just monotonous and repetitive and boring. I started to really dislike Darrow and he just became snivelling and dull, and I really wanted a passionate force of a MC. Don’t get me wrong. There was plenty of violence and brutality and gore, if that’s your thing. But for me, there just wasn’t enough emotion in it.

I stuck it out, as I thought the ending might have been worth all that bland in the middle, but it was very anticlimactic.

Unfortunately this one just wasn’t for me, although I know it’s a fairly well liked series, so could be for you!

Excellent discovery

Coming off the back of The Gentleman Bastards and First Law series I had big shoes to fill and this did just that. Only one book in but loved it and great narrative.

Here’s hoping the follow up books are as good!

Bloody dam good

Absolutely bloody mint, hooked from start to finish. Can't wait to listen to the rest of the series.

Best narration I have heard on audible.