[End of Disc One]

Yeah the first Red Rising book has some YA tropes and is a bit too close to Hunger Games in plot, but I still really enjoyed it. After that is when the series really takes off. The best thing I can say about these books is that they get my blood pumping. Apt, you seem to hate some good books but I have a feeling you would enjoy these.

This post has been edited by End of Disc One: 01 August 2019 - 04:11 PM

[Aptorian]

This is not true. There are NO good books that I hate. Now bad books. That's a different matter.

[Abyss]

Yeah, seriously EoDO, it's hardly fair to criticise Apt's horrible taste in books even tho everyone disagrees with him all the time and also he smells bad and dresses funny and is probably a communist.

[Aptorian]

Exactly!

[Whisperzzzzzzz]

The synopsis for Red Rising is quintessential YA. Does it really get more adult?

[Abyss]

Whisperzzzzzzz, on 01 August 2019 - 06:00 PM, said:

The synopsis for Red Rising is quintessential YA. Does it really get more adult?

Very.


Very VERY.


And i would argue as of book 2 it's wholly out of the YA spectrum and stays out.

[Tiste Simeon]

Hmm there are 5 in the Red Rising series on Audible, are the first 3 a self contained trilogy? Sounds like I might dig it.

[End of Disc One]

Tiste Simeon, on 01 August 2019 - 06:48 PM, said:

Hmm there are 5 in the Red Rising series on Audible, are the first 3 a self contained trilogy? Sounds like I might dig it.

Yeah, the first 3 are a self contained trilogy with no real plans to continue at the time. The follow-up trilogy is 10 years later.

[worry]

If you wanna know how not-YA it is, "Red" is the nickname of the main character's penis. Why is it rising? Well that's RAFO.

[Aptorian]

Is it going to make America great again?

[Abyss]

Ireland, actually.

[Abyss]

Abyss, on 01 August 2019 - 06:23 PM, said:

Whisperzzzzzzz, on 01 August 2019 - 06:00 PM, said:

The synopsis for Red Rising is quintessential YA. Does it really get more adult?

Very.


Very VERY.


And i would argue as of book 2 it's wholly out of the YA spectrum and stays out.

I should point out that the first 1-2hrs of the book 1 earbook, i almost dropped the series, so trite and YA was i finding it.

It takes some time to really kick off, but once it does, it is awesome.

[Tiste Simeon]

I think you guys have sold me on it, especially worry.

[worry]

In all seriousness, I didn't love it as much as these guys but it is very propulsive/addicting, and it was at least refreshing to have -- and this shouldn't be a spoiler cuz it's built into the premise -- protagonists who are every bit as scheming and dangerous and competent as the baddies. They're still underdogs, of sorts, but not the kind where everything always goes wrong for them until some final stroke of genius. There's real push and pull all the way through, and I felt that "can't put it down" feeling pretty often in all three books.

This post has been edited by worry: 01 August 2019 - 08:08 PM

[worry]

That means don't start it while you're on vacation with your wife.

[Andorion]

Looks like I get to be the dissenting vote.

The book suffers from what I consider to be one of the primary weaknesses of any YA-ish book - it has utterly shallow and sometimes entirely nonsensical worldbuilding. It tries to substitute character interaction and conflict for worldbuilding, but does not really do a good job of it.

After finishing the first book I had no real desire to pick up the second. Also the "fantasy in space" format is rather poorly imagined and executed.

Having said that, I know that this book and series is insanely popular and I am part of a small minority, so my opinion probably does not reflect the general sentiment.

[QuickTidal]

Andorion, on 02 August 2019 - 02:06 AM, said:

Looks like I get to be the dissenting vote.

The book suffers from what I consider to be one of the primary weaknesses of any YA-ish book - it has utterly shallow and sometimes entirely nonsensical worldbuilding. It tries to substitute character interaction and conflict for worldbuilding, but does not really do a good job of it.

After finishing the first book I had no real desire to pick up the second. Also the "fantasy in space" format is rather poorly imagined and executed.

Having said that, I know that this book and series is insanely popular and I am part of a small minority, so my opinion probably does not reflect the general sentiment.

And I agree with Ando about it, as I had an identical experience.

[Abyss]

QuickTidal, on 02 August 2019 - 11:32 AM, said:

Andorion, on 02 August 2019 - 02:06 AM, said:

Looks like I get to be the dissenting vote.

The book suffers from what I consider to be one of the primary weaknesses of any YA-ish book - it has utterly shallow and sometimes entirely nonsensical worldbuilding. It tries to substitute character interaction and conflict for worldbuilding, but does not really do a good job of it.

After finishing the first book I had no real desire to pick up the second. Also the "fantasy in space" format is rather poorly imagined and executed.

Having said that, I know that this book and series is insanely popular and I am part of a small minority, so my opinion probably does not reflect the general sentiment.

And I agree with Ando about it, as I had an identical experience.

Here's the thing: i agree that large chunks of the worldbuilding in bk 1 are weak. It's just... let me block this for those not read the series yet...

SPOILERS

SPOILERS

SPOILERS

MAJOR SERIOUSLY MAJOR ASS SPOILERS

FOR RED RISING BOOK ONE

SPOILERS

Spoiler

...the key elements are the Red communities on Mars, which are not only fake, but fake to the point that anyone with a few years reading sf will see right through the facade, but that characters never do, which makes them look dumb, and the Gold academy, which starts out Harry Potter before shifting to Hunger Games.

I actually like the shift where the students are thrown in pairs into an empty room and told only one gets to walk out and continue, but the balance of the academy as the students compete is only marginally better, but much darker. This was the point where i started to like the series, because it was brutal to its cast in a way that let the (surviving) characters evolve (as opposed to say Hunger Games where character evolution amounts to more depression between episodes of stabby), and then the students turn the game on the teachers and i REALLY enjoyed that.

It still drags at times, but the inversion of the 'students must compete in arena' trope was fun.

Book 2 and onwards are pretty much straight sf/sfant, fight the evil empire, save the solar system. The setting builds nicely and evolves into something much wider than book 1.

I don't take issue with your wrong opinions WT QT and Wrongo Ando because you're of course wrong entitled to them and i acknowledge the weaknesses in book 1 that could easily throw wrong people wrongly out of the series and into a life of wrongitude.

[T77]

QuickTidal, on 02 August 2019 - 11:32 AM, said:

Andorion, on 02 August 2019 - 02:06 AM, said:

Looks like I get to be the dissenting vote.

The book suffers from what I consider to be one of the primary weaknesses of any YA-ish book - it has utterly shallow and sometimes entirely nonsensical worldbuilding. It tries to substitute character interaction and conflict for worldbuilding, but does not really do a good job of it.

After finishing the first book I had no real desire to pick up the second. Also the "fantasy in space" format is rather poorly imagined and executed.

Having said that, I know that this book and series is insanely popular and I am part of a small minority, so my opinion probably does not reflect the general sentiment.

And I agree with Ando about it, as I had an identical experience.

I also didn't like the first book. But, seeing all the praise and that my library has the audiobooks for 2 and 3, I'll give it a second chance.

[Imperial Historian]

I read the first two, they were fairly average and the trend was downwards so didn't bother with the third. Surprised at how popular they are!