Iron Gold

Wow. So, this went in a few unexpected directions. At first, all of the new characters and their seemingly random stories was a little disconcerting. But, as always, I trusted Pierce Brown and the journey and it was worth it.

Ten years later, and Darrow is a different man. He ended up the only way that I think someone could end up after a decade of war and uprising: sad, lonely, and full of regret for not being a better father. His decisions have been between the greater good of the society and his family, which came after the initial events of the Red Rising trilogy. This is not the Reaper of the original books--he is older and tired of war but is caught in the cycle of war that seems to be never ending.

The other stories that came show more together were great. I really enjoyed the separate strands coming together and was genuinely surprised a few times.

I'm excited for the next book and was worried that Pierce Brown would overstay his welcome with Darrow. I was VERY wrong and the way he has gone about this is brilliant. This is a different Darrow. This is a different time. show less

Note: Some spoilers for the Red Rising trilogy

Iron Gold is a new trilogy that follows the story of Pierce Brown’s immensely popular and appealing Red Rising trilogy, picking up ten years later.

The first trilogy began with Red Rising and continued with Golden Son followed by Morning Star.

The main premise was the existence of a solar-system-wide hegemony of one race (the “Golds”) based on a scaffolding of lies promulgated through propaganda and socialization; the use of violence; and the cultivation of prejudice and internecine conflict among the lower orders. But one man, hand-picked to lead a revolution from below, determined to tear that scaffolding down. That man is Darrow, who has come to be known throughout the solar system show more as The Reaper.

Darrow’s goal wasn’t just to tear down the corrupt ruling autocrats. An idealist, he had a vision of a better world, and a belief that people just want to be valued and not feel alone in the world. Some people responded to his message with hope, but others were too jaded, greedy for wealth or power, or evil. Darrow attempted to keep to the high ground, but when this new story begins, Darrow himself has become corrupted.

The war for power in the Solar System has continued with the forces for change and equality battling those who want to restore the old order. Some 200 million lives have been lost so far. This is twice the number killed by the casualties caused when the Golds established their rule. But the conflict continues.

There are three new narrators in this book besides Darrow, now 33. They provide new lenses through which to view Darrow and the Republic he helped to establish.

Lyria, 18, is a Red from Mars who is disillusioned by the supposed liberation. She and her family eke out the bare bones of existence in a “Gamma” refugee camp. Yes, they were rescued from a life of slavery, but then they were abandoned by the Republic. The Red Hand, a terrorist marauder group, has a vendetta against the previously privileged (by relative standards) Gammas, and Lyria and her blind nephew Liam are the only ones to escape alive from a Red Hand attack. The forces of the Republic finally arrive to help, albeit a little too late for almost everybody. But because Lyria saves the life of Gold, Kavax au Telemanus, during the rescue, he accedes to her request to take her and Liam off the planet and back with him to the moon.

Ephraim, 46, is a freelancer in the capital city who, along with a small team, performs heists on contract. He was previously romantically involved with a man from the original trilogy who was killed, so he avoids any “legitimate work” with the Republic because it is too painful for him to be part of the world of his former lover. But unfortunately, Ephraim and his team are a bit too successful at crime, and are coerced into participating into “the heist of the century.” It goes against everything Ephraim believes in, but his life, and the lives of his team, are on the line.

Lysander au Lune, 20, is the grandson of the former Sovereign Octavia. He was groomed by Octavia to be her successor. During Octavia’s overthrow, Lysander was rescued from slaughter by Cassius au Bellona, although Cassius is also the one who killed Octavia. With mixed emotions, Lysander now regards him as his teacher and protector. The two travel through the “backwater” of the galaxy helping those who need it. It is the way Cassius is trying to get redemption.

Now that he is older, Lysander feels he has “outgrown” Cassius, finding Cassius hypocritically sanctimonious. Furthermore, he retains the racist feeling of Gold superiority and the desire for revenge against Darrow for taking away his grandmother’s power. In his arrogance, he envisions himself as one day being a leader that Cassius would follow, rather than the reverse.

Lysander must have been reading the Dune series at one point, because he often needs to invoke the litany against fear taught to him by his grandmother. In Dune, Paul Atreides often recited the litany his mother taught him:

"I must not fear.
Fear is the mind-killer.
Fear is the little-death that brings total obliteration.
I will face my fear.
I will permit it to pass over me and through me.
And when it has gone past I will turn the inner eye to see its path.
Where the fear has gone there will be nothing. Only I will remain.”

Lysander uses a similar mantra:

"Do not let fear touch you.
Fear is the torrent.
The raging river.
To fight it is to break and drown.
But to stand astride is to see it, feel it, and use its course for your own whims.”

And Lysander in fact has plenty to fear when he and Cassius are captured by hostile forces out in the Rim. Both Lysander and Cassius need to conceal their identities, but they inadvertently get caught in the middle of a power struggle in which exposure is probable. Lysander has his head turned by the daughter of the rulers, and moreover repeatedly ignores Cassius’s advice about how to handle the situation. [He seems not to notice that he keeps saying to himself “Cassius is right, yet again.”] In spite of being wrong over and over again, he never lets go of his high opinion of himself. Lysander is young, but thinks he knows everything.

Meanwhile, Darrow is barely home from previous battles when he tells his wife and son Pax he has to leave again. Venus still is controlled by “the Ash Lord,” and Darrow fears they won’t be safe until the Ash Lord is destroyed. The Senate, more interested in peace, tries to stop him. Darrow escapes, but in the process, he kills his friend, a hero of the Republic. Darrow is now considered a villain, by no one more than he himself. Further, because he has left his son again, he also feels like a bad father, not to mention a bad husband. But he is convinced he is doing the right thing.

Discussion: The characters of this new trilogy are full of faults. The “good guys” think nothing of raining down death and destruction in pursuit of the goal of “peace.” Darrow seems incapable of gauging reality anymore, as his cohort Sevro says:

“Well, slag me sideways. You really are drunk on your own myth, aren’t you? . . . You think you’re a god. You can’t die.”

Darrow learns just how right Sevro is, and how disastrous his own hubris has been for everyone. His response to this epiphany is perhaps quintessential Darrow.

Note: The Red Rising trilogy was completed two years ago. Those books were best read one right after another because of the large dramatis personae and the changing alliances among all of the parties. This new series has an abbreviated list of characters at the beginning, but if you can’t remember the first trilogy well, you will still be at sea a great deal of the time. I regretted not rereading the whole first series before tackling this new book. I would not recommend starting it without reading or rereading the Red Rising trilogy first.

Evaluation: This fantasy series features all the great and timeless epic themes of war, power, fear, hope, family, loyalty. The heroes of the first books have acquired warts, but fans of the first trilogy will find this to be essential reading. show less

Pierce Brown delves back into the world he created with his phenomenal Red Rising trilogy, and it does not disappoint! Ten years after the events that broke the chains of Society, the war still rages and the aftermath is still being felt. Pierce gives you four different POV’s to follow: a young Red girl, the Gold boy, now man, who saw first hand the wrath of the revolution, a disillusioned Grey who self medicates as he maneuvers through the criminal underbelly, and Darrow, is he the hero of the Rising or the destroyer of everything?
The multiple storylines give this story depth and varying purposes. It is a glimpse of what happens in the aftermath of revolution, nothing can be solved overnight, and not everybody lives happily ever show more after.
Darrow and the Howlers are not young rebels any longer. They have families and responsibilities as well as political positions. Darrow in particular is interesting to revisit, as Red Rising was truly about his mission to tear Society down. Now, the people created the Reaper condemn his actions. I mean, if Sevro is your voice of reason, you are well and truly fucked up. 😉
Lysander was just a boy when the Revolution stormed his home and destroyed his way of life and his family. Cassius saved him and the two of them have been traveling the realm protecting people. However, Lysander still holds the ideals of the Golds as something to aspire to. Cassius is still in search of redemption in some form. The two of them are set on a course that will alter their lives, again.
Ephraim has every reason to hate the new world order as he blames it for killing His love, Trigg. But his latest shady job will either get him killed, or, no, it will probably kill him.
Lyria represents the people who were supposed to benefit from the Rising. Instead of the freedom and equality, her family lived in camps. When the Red Hand murders her family, Lyria and her nephew have an unexpected chance out of the camp. But is it a better life, or more of the same?

All of this is brought to technicolor life by Pierce Brown’s amazing writing. This promises to be another full throttle ride into that man’s gorgeous imagination, and I for one, cannot wait!! show less

What a great continuation to a trilogy that I thought was all wrapped up, but Brown pulled it off. A great book that shows how a hero gets caught up in his own legacy and arrogance. Darrow transforms from a boy with rage and a taste for revenge who liberated a withered civilization to a man struggling with accepting that the world he created is nearly as flawed as the one before it. I can't wait to see what happens with the rest of the trilogy, and I'm sure Brown will deliver just as he always does.

You know when you read a book that's so good you do one of two things, devour it in one sitting or try to pace yourself because you already cannot stand the thought of it ending? I was the latter. Ever since I read Pierce Brown's first book "Red Rising" I have been obsessed with this series. I think it may have actually taken the place of my first science fiction love, "Dune" by Frank Herbert. This man is an absolute poet with the way he uses words. I would get this feeling in my chest of pure emotion that made me feel as if I were to burst out cheering or crying.
Needless to say, I loved this book. I literally screeched at work when I got the email that I got an ARC of "Iron Gold", and I work in a public library ;)
This story takes up show more 10 years into the rebellion and Darrow and the remnants of his Howlers have gone against the wishes of the government led by his wife Mustang in a last attempt to end the battle that has raged for years. The story is also told from the point of view of three other characters. One is a new character, a young girl by the name of Lyria. Her family has been rescued from the mines of Mars only to live in a refugee camp forgotten by their saviors. Ephraim, survivor of the original rising, he makes his way through life as a smuggler but will he get drawn into something far bigger than he can imagine? And lastly, Lysander, the heir to the throne of the empire. His grandmother was Octavia au Lune, the Sovereign of the Society. He has been hiding from his birthright but his past may have caught up him anyways.
This book was, as I knew it would be, incredible. I still recommend the Red Rising Trilogy to anyone not fortunate enough to have read them. It will definitely be part of my all time favorite book series. show less

I hardly know where to begin. Brown switches from the single first person POV he used in the original trilogy, to four POV narrators. This gives a much wider scope to the story. There are some great new characters and I am very grateful to Brown for not indiscriminately killing off original characters just for the heck of it (a la GRRM). Yes, there’s a body count, and it’s high. However, the deaths we do see make sense, even though they may be painful.

I spent most of the book with my heart in my throat, nervous and nauseated. The ending left me frustrated with Darrow, crying, and inches from tossing my book across the room. This seems to be Brown’s preferred method of ending, so I’m not surprised. I expect to be equally show more horrified and traumatized by Dark Age and can only hope that the third book of this second trilogy has as much hope at the end of it as Morning Star. show less

This is the 4th book in the Red Rising series, a story that seemed quite finished after the original trilogy. But of course all histories continue, even after successful revolutions, so I guess there's no reason not to revisit this universe.

And Pierce Brown doesn't shrink from the likely results of his story 10 years later: Darrow has continued to fight the war, which wasn't actually over with the defeat and death of the Sovereign and her henchmen and women. Many powerful Golds remain, in the Core on Venus that has yet to be conquered, and also in the Rim where there is a truce.

The story is very complex, with lots of characters- too many actually. One problem with continuing the story in a plausible way is that the story gets bigger and show more bigger- this feels realistic to me, but confusing for the story.

We follow Darrow, who is on the run from his own government (led by his own wife!) after committing war crimes in his assault on Mercury. He is hatching a plan to finish the war despite the opposition of the peaceniks of the Republic who want to sue for peace. Separately, we have the old Sovereign's grandson Lysander, who is wandering the asteroid belt with Cassius for some reason, and gets embroiled in a political coup in the Rim. A third thread follows Lyria, a young Red woman fleeing Mars after her family is massacred, under the protection of the Telamanus family. Finally, a fourth thread follows Ephraim, a Brown thief who is forced to plan an operation for a powerful crime syndicate that will impact the other stories.

It's a lot to take in. There are new characters, old characters, and minor characters from earlier books who are now major- it's too much going on.

But the action remains good, and the writing style remains riveting- a page turner. show less