Pierce Brown: Golden Son

I finally understand why I had so much trouble connecting with the characters in the first book. Pierce Brown provides almost no physical descriptions for anyone. I had a hard time remembering who was who because I simply had nothing to picture in my mind. It hit me about 150 pages into this sequel. Brown was describing Fitchner, and I thought to myself, "Well, that is not what I was picturing at all." Then the realization washed over me. That applies to all the characters. Aside from a select few, I really do not "know" what anyone actually looks like.

Book two tackles the same basic narrative concept as Brandon Sanderson's The Final Empire from the Mistborn series. I hated that book. However, the trope is done here with a level of detail and political intrigue that never feels formulaic. There is a general layer of grime and strategy in this universe. Mistborn always felt like a sanitized television miniseries in comparison.

The first book was incredibly heavy on action. It only hinted at the larger pieces moving on the board. Golden Son is almost the polar opposite. The grand game is on full display here. Trust, fragile alliances, deep strategy, and massive revelations take center stage while the physical action takes a back seat. It starts to bridge the gap toward the complex, continuous plotting you would find in heavy hitters like The Sun Eater or The Book of the New Sun. It is still not as fully fleshed out as I would prefer, but it is definitely a massive step in the right direction.

Things get incredibly tense as Darrow comes to a brutal realization. The deck is completely stacked against him, his past is finally catching up to him, and he simply cannot do this alone. As he weighs the terrifying option of telling Mustang the truth about his mission and his previous life as a Red, the plot reaches a boiling point. Her reaction to his ultimate revelation feels a bit untapped. The book could have devoted more time to building the emotional fallout, but it is still highly effective.

Just when it seems things are finally going to kick into high gear and Darrow is conveniently about to be promoted, we hit the climax. Pierce Brown delivers a brutal, Game of Thrones style Red Wedding finale. It takes almost all the major pieces completely off the board. We are left with multiple unanswered questions and a genuine sense of shock, wondering where the story can possibly go from here.

This book perfectly sets up Morning Star, the final chapter in the first Red Rising arc. What happens when Sevro finds out the truth about his crew? How will Mustang react to the revelation that her father is dead and the man she thought she loved is presumably gone as well? Will she take up Eo's charge and stand where Darrow has seemingly failed? Will Darrow return? There is only one way to find out.