Golden Son (Red Rising #2) by Pierce Brown

Golden Son continues the stunning saga of Darrow, a rebel forged by tragedy, battling to lead his oppressed people to freedom from the overlords of a brutal elitist future built on lies. Now fully embedded among the Gold ruling class, Darrow continues his work to bring down Society from within.

A life-or-death tale of vengeance with an unforgettable hero at its heart, Golden Son guarantees Pierce Brown’s continuing status as one of fiction’s most exciting new voices.

This book destroyed me. It gutted me out into small pieces and stomped on my heart. I feel victimized and betrayed. I feel empty. I have never been this affected by a sequel in such a long time. I don’t I’ve ever been this affected by a sequel. It had me laughing, crying, screaming, panicking, and clutching my heart at 2AM. I am being dramatic, but this is how invested I am with these characters and their story. Pierce Brown has just earned a special seat on my Favorite Authors Thrones.

 

“Home isn’t where you’re from, it’s where you find light when all grows dark.

Golden Son picks up two years after Red Rising left off and at first I was really confused because I read Red Rising so long ago. I didn’t remember details and had to basically relearn the entire slang/lingo all over again. This is what slowed me down. This is what slowed me down with Red Rising to begin with, but I quickly was able to jump back into the world and find the rhythm again. Darrow is now a Peerless Scarred and still working for the ArchGovernor , Nero au Augustus. After Darrow loses in a space battle against House Bellona (Cassius still determined to avenge Julian’s death), Augustus decides to sell Darrow’s contract and let him go. Without Augustus’s protection against the Bellonas, Darrow makes an unlikely alliance. I actually really liked this alliance because you never knew what was going to happen. You were stepping on eggshells the whole time because you knew this person couldn’t be trusted, but there is just something so intriguing about him. I won’t say who it is, but if you’ve read this book you know.

“Friendships take minutes to make, moments to break, years to repair.”

What I really like about this trilogy is all the characters. I have so many favorites and they are all precious little cupcakes to me. It’s so hard to love one more over another because they all carry their own light and shine. Mustang is smart and independent and strong. Darrow is loyal and self-sacrificing. Once he lets someone into his inner circle and heart, he will do whatever to protect them and even for the lowColors who don’t have anyone to protect them. Sevro is funny, strong, and loyal to Darrow and the Howlers. He adds just the right amount of comic relief. Roque, the poet, is also still one of my favorites. He’s so sweet and genuine that it broke my heart for what he had to go through. His rift and doubting of Darrow really tore my heart open and I was constantly worried for him. I am still not over everything that happened in the ending. THANKS PIERCE. THANKS A LOT.

“Wise men read books about history. Strong men write them.”

One of my favorite parts of the book was getting to know more about the Sons of Ares. We finally meet Ares and I have to say…I was shocked. I did not see that coming at all and I loved it! I really enjoyed hearing the story about why the Sons were formed and why everything was set in motion, why Darrow was chosen. I look forward to see what is next in store for the Sons because…ahem. I am anxious. I am scared.

The action sequences in this book really packed a punch! There was constant action and they were so vividly written that everything played out exactly like a movie. There was intense and nervewrecking which made the pacing of this book even better than the first book. Usually I will want to read quickly because I am anxious to know what will happen next, but with this book so much was happening that I had to stop and take a breath to absorb everything. It was just that great. I am that attached.

Now this book sets up Morning Star quite nicely. Golden Son left off on one of the most gut-wrenching cliffhangers and I am itching to get my hands on Morning Star. It will be nice to see how this trilogy ends. But if the past two books were any indication, I know Pierce won’t let me down.

“I will die. You will die. We will all die and the universe will carry on without care. All that we have is that shout into the wind – how we live. How we go. And how we stand before we fall.”

If you are skeptical about reading this trilogy, please do. Stick with it. It gets better and is a great ride.
If you didn’t enjoy Red Rising that much, give Golden Son a try. 🙂

Until next time,