Book #5 of 2018:
Golden Son by Pierce Brown (Red Rising #2)
This is my second time reading this novel — although the first time as an audiobook — and I think my original review from 2016 mostly stands:
“Given their common themes of dystopian wargames and rebellion against a corrupt government, The Hunger Games remains the go-to comparison for the Red Rising series of books. But this second novel of the series deepens the plot outside of the arena far more successfully than The Hunger Games managed. Darrow remains a compelling protagonist, an Ender-like strategist who excels at thinking his way out of tough spots and seeing the tactical solution that no one else could have. In Golden Son we see that that’s just as true in politics and all-out war as it was during the wargames in the first book.
The twists in this series are wicked, and seeing Darrow’s improvisations to meet them is ever a delight, even at those times when things still end in heartbreak for him. This book also does a nice job of fleshing out more of its supporting cast — yay for more female characters! — as well as the details of the wider Society into which Darrow’s deep-cover mission has sent him. And it ends on such an unexpected cliffhanger that it’s hard to stop myself from diving right into the final book of this trilogy.”
★★★★★
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