From the Bookshelf of Sci-fi and Heroic Fantasy…

Red Rising (Red Rising Saga, #1)

Pierce Brown

Start date: July 21, 2014

Finish date: August 20, 2014

Discussion: Book Discussions

Discussion leader: Charlie

Why we're reading this: Group Contemporary Novel Discussion July 2014
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What Members Thought

May 26, 2016 Jim rated it it was amazing · review of another edition

Shelves: 1ebook, 3series, 2fiction, scifi

My friends' reviews compare this book to everything from Battle Royale to Harry Potter, Ender's Game, & even The Hunger Games. The last isn't even in the same class - kindergarten compared to college. The others are as well written, but still don't come close & I don't want to say more. Don't read much about this, just read it. The discovery of what it is & where it is going - the journey - is one of the greatest parts. I had no expectations going into it beyond knowing that it was SF & it was r ...more

35 likes · Like · see review

Sep 19, 2018 Carrie rated it it was amazing

Shelves: fantasy, 4-and-a-half-to-5-stars, mgr, read-my-shelves, science-fiction, young-adult, 24-for-24

4.5 stars....

*May contain spoilers*
Set in time that our time is ancient history, and humans have colonized the cosmos. Where people are not considered equal and have been divided into a color class system.

Red are slaves lowest and Gold the ruler and highest. Darrow is a red and a helldiver on Mars, trying with the other reds to get the planet ready , terraforming it for humans left on a "dying" Earth to come and live. But little do they realize they are nothing more then slaves.

So this was fan ...more

11 likes · Like · see review

Feb 02, 2018 mina rated it liked it · review of another edition

Pertama "membaca" ini dalam bentuk audiobooks, tapi diriku ketiduran melulu. Natnat membaca buku ini dan memberikan review bagus (sambil mengingatkan diriku bahwa penulisnya cakep, yeah). Tapi tidak pernah tergerak membaca ebooks-nya entah kenapa. Sampai lagi-lagi minggu lalu diriku stress dan memutuskan shopping buku (this happened a lot lately). Terbelilah buku ini, edisi terjemahan.

Duh, bacanya melelahkan. Entah karena memang cara menulisnya atau karena terjemahannya (terjemahannya kurang bag Pertama "membaca" ini dalam bentuk audiobooks, tapi diriku ketiduran melulu. Natnat membaca buku ini dan memberikan review bagus (sambil mengingatkan diriku bahwa penulisnya cakep, yeah). Tapi tidak pernah tergerak membaca ebooks-nya entah kenapa. Sampai lagi-lagi minggu lalu diriku stress dan memutuskan shopping buku (this happened a lot lately). Terbelilah buku ini, edisi terjemahan.

Duh, bacanya melelahkan. Entah karena memang cara menulisnya atau karena terjemahannya (terjemahannya kurang bagus, by the way).

Darrow, salah satu kalangan Red, adalah kaum perintis di Mars yang bekerja keras menambang helium-3 yang berguna untuk pembangunan koloni-koloni di planet-planet selain Bumi. Di atas golongan Red, ada banyak warna lain, dengan level tertinggi adalah Gold. Yang tidak diketahui oleh golongan Red adalah bahwa koloni-koloni ini sudah jadi dan maju di berbagai planet; warna-warna level atas sudah hidup nyaman di kota-kota modern, sementara Red dan warna-warna level bawah dibohongi selama ratusan tahun, terus menambang dan hidup secara primitif sebagai budak dengan makanan yang dijatah berdasarkan hasil tambang mereka, serta dihukum mati di tiang gantungan bila ada pemberontakan sedikit saja (misalnya: menyanyikan lagu tertentu). Yap, Darrow dihukum mati. Tapi terus dihidupkan lagi oleh kalangan pemberontak bawah tanah (*sigh) dan kepadanya ditunjukkan keadaan sebenarnya, supaya dia mau berkorban (mengubah fisik, mental, dan jati diri dari Red menjadi Gold) menyusup ke kota dan mengikuti kompetisi untuk memperoleh posisi pimpinan di Gold, dan kemudian menghancurkan sistem warna ini (at least that's what they wanted, diriku gak gitu yakin juga).

Yang membuatku senang karena nampaknya akan ada cerita tentang the Institute. Diriku pencinta buku tentang sekolah (dulu St Clare, Malory Towers, sekolahnya Elizabeth si badung, sampai yang aneh-aneh seperti Hogwarts, sekolahnya keluarga Flood, the University-nya Rothfuss, sekolahnya si Ender, dan banyak lagi), jadi diriku excited. Ternyata..... buku 1 (ya ada 4 buku dalam serial ini) ini malah bercerita tentang saling bunuh-bunuhan a la Battle Royale atau Hunger Games, sebelum mereka diizinkan sekolah di Institut. Diriku suka cerita berdarah-darah sih, tapi cara bercerita dia begitu melelahkan, dan ada banyak sekali House yang harus dilawan kelompoknya Darrow (yang tadinya ditempatkan di House of Mars) sampai diriku bosan membacanya. Darrow juga terlalu banyak bercakap-cakap pada dirinya sendiri dengan depresifnya, sehingga diriku lama-lama kehilangan minat pada nasibnya. Yang diriku suka justru, lagi-lagi, the misunderstood, the underestimated, the small and unimportant, feral and wild student candidate: Sevro. Diriku sungguh berharap dia bisa naik terus ke pucuk pimpinan suatu hari.

Oh ya, penulis ini sepertinya terobsesi dengan segala sesuatu yang bau, kotor, dan jorok. Harus banget dia setiap beberapa kalimat mengatakan bahwa mereka sangat bau, memakai kulit serigala/beruang yang super bau (ya iyalah habis dibunuh, kulitnya langsung dipakai), masuk ke benteng musuh melalui kakus sehingga mereka bau kotoran, bersembunyi dalam perut kuda mati sehingga mereka bau, begitu terus diulang-ulang.

Habis itu, ending-nya. Diriku tadinya memutuskan berhenti membaca di buku 1 saja. Tapi ending-nya. Keterlaluan. Sesudah membaca 1 buku penuh darah ini, ending-nya begitu? Sekarang diriku harus membaca buku 2.

Yah, begitulah. Katanya gak suka buku ini, tapi me-review-nya berapi-api. ...more

2 likes · Like · see review

May 21, 2016 flajol rated it really liked it

Shelves: science-fiction, dystopia

I really enjoyed Red Rising. It has shades of The Hunger Games trilogy, but in tone, gore and downright nastiness of some of the characters is much more reminiscent of Battle Royale (both good reads if you're looking for some vicious dystopian fiction).

Some of the jargon was a little jarring, but didn't really get in the way of my enjoying the book. I'm not a big fan of authors using unusual slang, but I suppose it does serve a purpose here.

It took a while for me to warm up to Darrow, but I lik ...more

1 like · Like · see review

Nov 13, 2014 Shhhh... Books rated it it was amazing

Shelves: scifi, thriller

This was freaking badass.

The beginning was a bit typical but it held my attention well enough. I like the Captain America trope in which the character gets a whole new body. Then there's the Academy. More interesting. Kind of horrifying, but I found the initial part of the games very frustrating.

But THEN, Darrow is almost killed and exiled and he at last finds his feet, and um, the rest of the book was heart stopping, revel-in-it thriller fun. I LOVED how he formed his new army. BAMF. And the f ...more

1 like · Like · see review

Dec 27, 2013 Tani rated it it was amazing

Shelves: male-author, favorites, scifi, five-stars, 2015-novels

I spent most of yesterday reading this book, and I have no regrets! I was intrigued by the beginning, but not overwhelming thrilled. I struggled a little to get through the first 100 or so pages, not because it was bad, but because there was a lot of set-up to do, and my expectations for this one were really high. And then things started happening, and I could not put this down! I'm not sure how other people were bored by this book, as I was riveted, but to each their own, I guess. I will say th ...more

Like · see review