Red Rising

Red Rising

First edition cover
Author Pierce Brown
Country United States
Language English
Genre Science fiction
Publisher Del Rey Books (US)
Publication date
 January 28, 2014
Media type
Pages 382
ISBN 0-345-53978-8
Followed by Golden Son

Red Rising is a 2014 science fiction novel by American author Pierce Brown, the first of his forthcoming Red Rising trilogy. A sequel, Golden Son, was released in January 2015.

Set on Mars, the novel follows lowborn miner Darrow as he infiltrates the ranks of the elite Golds.

In February 2014, Universal Pictures secured the rights for a film adaptation, to be directed by Marc Forster.

Plot summary

It has been 700 years since mankind colonized other planets. Sixteen-year-old Darrow is a Red, one of the miners who toil beneath the surface of Mars as part of humanity's effort to terraform the planet and someday make it habitable. But when he discovers the treachery of the ruling class known as the Golds, Darrow is galvanized to action by his beloved wife Eo's sacrifice and put to use by the shadowy organization called the Sons of Ares. His appearance changed and his body enhanced, Darrow is tasked to infiltrate the world of the Golds, rise to a position of power and destroy the Society from within. But as challenging as it is to gain entrance to the Institute, the training academy for elite young Golds, Darrow soon finds that their war games are far more brutal and deadly than he could have imagined.

Reception

Red Rising was well received by both readers and critics, and hit #20 on The New York Times Best Seller list in February 2014.[1]

Marc Snetiker of Entertainment Weekly gave the book an A-, writing, "Brown writes with cinematic grandeur, cleverly fusing Roman mythology with science fiction and pacing his action scenes for a slow-burn build to a hold-your-breath final act."[2] Brian Truitt of USA Today gave the book 3.5 out of 4 stars, proclaiming, "Red Rising ascends above a crowded dystopian field." [3] Writing for The Huffington Post, Britt Michaelian explained, "The morals and values that are explored through the characters in Red Rising have the potential to inspire a generation of readers to think intelligently about the impact of their decisions on themselves, their family and friends and on their world as a whole. This book is truly a powerful lesson in leadership."[4] Niall Alexander wrote for Tor.com:

On the surface, Red Rising resembles any number of other genre novels of note, but dig a little deeper ... to reveal real uniqueness: in Brown’s nearly seamless assemblage of several time-tested traditions, if not in a great many of his debut’s myriad threads independently ... Its final act ... is like a heart attack: a no-holds-barred bastard of a finale in which the author gathers a spread of elements together in much the same way George R. R. Martin’s does in the best and most brutal bits of his bestselling saga ... For once I would have loved more in the way of worldbuilding, and Brown could have made the most of a longer novel by exploring a few of his fiction’s most interesting figures further, but it bears remembering that Red Rising is only the beginning of a trilogy—which is to say there’s space and time for this impressive young author to work out its biggest kinks.[5]

However, Publishers Weekly said of the novel, "Pierce offers a Hollywood-ready story with plenty of action and thrills but painfully little originality or plausibility."[6]

Film adaptation

In February 2014, Deadline Hollywood reported that Marc Forster had been selected to direct a film adaptation of the book, with Joe Roth, Palak Patel and Renee Wolf producing and author Brown writing the screenplay.[7] A subsequent article reported that Universal Pictures outbid Sony Pictures for screen rights in a seven-figure deal.[8]

References

  1. ↑ "Best Sellers for the week of February 16, 2014". The New York Times. February 16, 2014. Retrieved January 29, 2015.
  2. ↑ Snetiker, Marc (February 5, 2014). "Red Rising (2014)". Entertainment Weekly. Retrieved January 29, 2015.
  3. ↑ Truitt, Brian (February 1, 2014). "Red Rising ascends above a crowded dystopian field". USA Today. Retrieved January 29, 2015.
  4. ↑ Michaelian, Britt (January 17, 2014). "14 to 40: The Mother-Daughter Book Experience of Red Rising". The Huffington Post. Retrieved January 29, 2015.
  5. ↑ Alexander, Niall (January 17, 2014). "Game of Golds: Red Rising by Pierce Brown". Tor.com. Retrieved February 1, 2015.
  6. ↑ "Red Rising by Pierce Brown". Publishers Weekly. 2014. Retrieved January 30, 2015.
  7. ↑ Fleming, Jr., Mike (February 5, 2014). "Hot Book Du Jour: Red Rising, With WWZ‍‍ '​‍s Marc Forster Helming". Deadline Hollywood. Retrieved January 28, 2015.
  8. ↑ Fleming, Jr., Mike (February 6, 2014). "Universal Wins 7-Figure Auction For Red Rising, With Marc Forster Helming Mars Tale". Deadline Hollywood. Retrieved January 28, 2015.

External links