Golden Son by Pierce Brown

Golden Son continues shortly after where Red Rising left off, Darrow, a rebel battling to lead his oppressed people to freedom from the overlords of a brutal elitist future built on lies. Embedded fully in with the Golds ruling class, Darrow continues his work to bring down society from within. 

"...So it's pride."
"It's always pride."
"Pride is just a shout into the wind."
He shakes his head, voice deepening. "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." He leans forward. "So you see, pride is the only thing..."

Red Rising took me by surprise... Way way by surprise. Golden Son did the same and then some. I have no idea where Pierce Brown came from and I really don't care. Golden Son puts Red Rising too shame! Everything I wanted too get out of book one and didn't till the end you'll get out of the entire book two. Golden Son is none stop action! 

There were a lot of politics in this book and I would usually be turned off by this but not in this case. Darrow navigates his way through all of the plotting and plans of others in ways that nobody expects. In a way that I've never read before. Darrow is a character unlike anyone else. He isn't the only character in this book that you'll be falling for. Servo is a character you can't ignore. Easily one of my all time favorites. Lorn is another strong and ballsy character, and constantly telling it how it is. Friends become enemies, enemies become friends. Characters I don't even want to mention will have you freaking out.

The plot of this story is just action, unlike the first which was a lot of info dumping and world building, Golden Son is just nonstop the whole time. Until the last page you'll be on the edge of your seat. I started this book at 6pm and ended it at 8pm... It was that captivating.   Instead of the story being held in one solid location reads will get to see and experience more of universe. More second books suffer from "second book syndrome", but this wont be a problem when you pick this up. There's so much suffering, pain, and sorrow pushed into this book.

This novel had me freaking out and wanted to flip tables until the ending... because that ending... that ending is world shattering. I CAN'T REMEMBER THE LAST TIME MY BRAIN ACTUALLY CRIED OUT IN PAIN BECAUSE A BOOK SHOOK ME SO HARD.

 Intense, brutal, heart-breaking, The Red Rising series isn't one you're going to want to miss. I could go on for days about plot, characters, and my love for what this series turned out too be but this is something you need to enjoy yourself. I find it so hard to find books I can recommend for guys but I will no longer have to struggle with a book to mention.

Comparing this book to Ender's Game and The Hunger Games makes complete sense, but at the same time Golden Son is in a class all of it's own. 

Take everything you love in books, throw in a bitchin ending, gore for days, and a touch of Star Wars and you'll get Golden Son. 

10/10 Stars 

-Angela