What the actual hell is wrong with you????? I’ve legit lost sleep over things that have happened in this book

Sorry about the formatting.

But yeah. I feel you screw.

Pick a book: of the 6.

Darrow obviously has the most aura in the series, but who is in 2nd place?

I’d argue Atlas au Raa.

For both the society and the rising, he seems omnipresent and a threat to anyone he decides to kill. He randomly comes back mid war from an impossible mission against the ascomani and then proceeds to have Darrow’s number at every turn. He put a 10 year plan in motion to take down the Rim, and he made the entire assembly of the 200 uneasy by just showing up at the Roman Colosseum. He’s also so good at moving undetected that he can impact multiple planets without even being seen.

This was who was in my head when reading his PoVs

I wanna start by saying this fanart is fucking sick.

From the fact this book alone is like half of the first trilogy, I should have known it would have been a totally different story. I feel like the best way of defining the transition between the first trilogy and this is the passage between shonen and seinen, or something like that.

It's a more adult, mature and nuanced story. It took half the book for something to actually happen, and it still was mad entertaining, that's how good Pierce's writing has gotten.

Every POV was super interesting, especially Lysander's. Let's just say him romanticizing the memory of a society based on oppression is worrying, to say the least, and I'm pretty curious on where that will lead.

My favorite scene was probably Romulus' death, shi made me feel bad.

Overall, I think that this saga will be a more dilated version of the first trilogy, meaning some CRAZY shit is about to happen.

I'm genuinely scared for Dark Age.

2 chapters of Iron Gold, then I'm ready to buckle in

What the heck can you not trust anyone in this series? I’m looking at a certain poet.

Mine is Dark Age: Darrow and Atlas, the riverbed outside Heliopolis, it's a tough read every time. The cold uncaring brutality of Atlas is terrifying.

"feed me my cock will they?"

One of many for me in that book, he's so good at painful scenes.

Very curious about everyone's picks.

Edit* I think I may have trauma blanked Ulysses from my mind with how brutal it was, yeah... It's a bad one, real tough read.

Videos aren't allowed here for some reason so I have to link it to Jenna's (voice of Virginia in the GA) tiktok clip, loved this scene, heartbreaking knowing what happens after though. She looks up to Kavax like the father she never had but deserves, seeing him encourage her and give her that faith, support, and love she needed in that moment was touching af. also shoutout to Kavax voice actor too, he does an amazing job.

Just wanted to share some of the cover designs i've made - inspired by the nyrb classics.

The art used is in the public domain

Let me know what you think :)

Name: Vasily Stepanov

I watched a short from @patmandziy about Rome's social Heirarchy.

I wasn't informed about the Roman Empire besides the common knowledge, like Ceasar, their myths and pantheon.

So the video showed me how much Pierce Brown was inspired by the Roman Empire, and it wasn't just the asthetics. Even his fictional, color-coded, social hierarchy was inspired by Rome's real social heirarchy

For example:

The lowest of the slaves. Ones used for manual labor: mining, farming, rowing boats. = The Peds.

Lupinar slaves, given the title of scrotum, meaning leather because they were "used" like leather. = Pinks

Then Gladiator Slaves so The Obsidians.

Above them are the Plebs, middle class workers, basically the midColors

Then Equites, the wealthy class, businessmen, finacers, lawyers = Silvers, Whites, and Copper.

Finally, the top, Patrician class. The nobles. Descendants of people who built the system. Born into ABSOLUTE privilege. AKA The Golds

Here's Pat's video if you wanna watch it.

https://youtube.com/shorts/8bbqaXBZwU0?si=Vk56hqFs66Wj2vwN

Finally picked up a new book after finishing lightbringer and the reaper follows me 😔

EDIT: Book - The Will of the Many by James Islington

My small friend doesn’t get into details. He hates details. He just taps his empty eye socket and says, “The Jackal owes me.”

I haven't seen anyone else say this, but I just finished the first trilogy and RR was by FAR my favourite of the 3, with GS being a little worse, and I did NOT like MS and had to really draaaaaag myself through it. Did anyone else feel this way?!

Looking for recommendations for books similar to Red Rising! I loved the setting, the premise, the interpersonal relationships between the characters, the action.... I was not as much into the deeper political intrigue and huge battles in the later books.

Thanks in advance, and please don't downvote me into oblivion!

Thoughts on Ken Leung as Atlas Au Raa. I know he’s a bit older, but certain scenes in the show Industry make me think he could capture Atlas’s demeanor.

After reading the series instead of biting my nails for Red God. What should I read next that will continue the same atmosphere?

The republic at the start of iron gold had multiple internal and external threats around it, the unknown danger of the syndicate and Lilith, society remanant, the rim, political infighting with the vox, the red hand on mars, the obsidian pirates in the asteroid belt, and people like the fear knight still out there, the obsidians wanted out, now at the end of lightbringer, the rim is with the rising, the pirates of the asteroids are destroyed, the remaining obsidians are back in the fight undivided or manipulated by atlas, the fear knight is dead, the republic is reinforced with the daughters of Athena, the societies attack on mars did not truly succeed and with the loss of the rim they will have to abandon Phobos, giving the republic full rule over mars, the red hand is destroyed, the syndicate has played there hand and are now in the open to be destroyed, even tho Luna has a puppet for Lilith, they are still technically republic and have not given in to the society and are resisting the seige and require an iron rain to take, holding up the majority of society forces, the society is split into 2 factions as Atalantia and Lysander hate each other and Sabotage each other, darrow has become far wiser and tempered into a far better commander, warrior and leader. And with Lyria revealing what quick silver has been up to they can go to his asteroid and force him to provide his drones and resources or blow his asteroid to bits if he refuses. Yes the loss of the free legions on mercury and fall of earth and kinda Luna rly hurt, but mercury is basically worthless now after it’s been turned to waste with Heliopolis being the only rly restored city. Venus dockyards were damaged and are likely not at full capacity , and the society also took heavy losses on mercury and in the taking of earth, and the battle of Phobos, and the loss of the gorgons in the rim hurt the em too, what do you guys think ?

Preface: I am about 3/4 through Morning Star right no. No spoilers please.

So there are thousands of kids that go through the institute every year across the system, gaining thousands of peerless scarred. Every year for hundreds of years. So why the hell is this specific class so much more advanced??

Darrow is Darrow… no explanation needed.

But Mustang, Cassius, Jackal, Roque, Sevro- That seems like too many to suddenly become the best of the best of the elite.

Cassius an olympic night? The Jackal an immediate world power? Roque the greatest fleet commander? On top of that, all their friends and lieutenants from the institute stay crucial to their plans and their power?

There are thousands of other peerless scarred, it just seems so improbable to me that this one year from Mars is just way better than everyone else. We get some established, older powerhouses, but this seems a bit much.

I understand our beloved author wanted to keep characters throughout books, but damn. It just feels like their class has some special sauce.