Review of Pierce Brown's Red Rising trilogy

I really didn't know what to expect from the Red Rising trilogy and new author Pierce Brown, but I had to read it because EVERYBODY else was and it was developing such an unbelievably loyal and fervent following. Glad I did!

Red Rising begins with an almost staccato, jarring, even somewhat abrasive style that hooked me just because it was different - and I like different. That smooths out a bit, and then I was wondering where all this was going to go - and then the hook, which I won't mention, but what a hook.

Brown has managed to provide so many things I like in fiction together in one series, and kept things moving so quickly, I read these books one after the other and groaned when I had to stop reading for the night and get some sleep. Action worthy of any action-adventure novel, grand scope of epic fantasy/sci-fi, even ancient history and mythological elements, fascinating characters, all in a supremely intriguing future setting. It's got the "school," it's got the dystopia, it's got the "rebellion," everything we've loved about the biggest fantasy and sci-fi novels of the last two decades. But far from being derivative, Brown makes it all work in a refreshing, exciting way.

Sure, Brown takes some liberties with his "science," and a few are a little eye-rolling, but what the hell, it's all in the service of great fun. One of Brown's greatest skills is the ability to fork the story into entirely unexpected directions, providing "what the...?!" moments that make you wonder why he did it and how the heck he's going to make it work - but he does, and that is not an easy thing to do. Highly recommended!
 

Review of M. R. Carey's Fellside

Amazing new effort by Michael Carey. I loved The Girl with All the Gifts and couldn't wait to get started on Fellside. Carey has a real knack for a creating a wide variety of "voices" and POV, and Fellside is very different from Girl in that respect. The narrative and writing style fit the story perfectly (form follows function). Though it was a while before I could really find myself absorbed, and the build has a gradual curve, the effort is well worth it. Grim, flat (not in a bad way), in the beginning, with nearly no characters to actually "like" or root for, there's a thread of impending... something, that drew me further and further into what becomes an almost psychedelic nightmare of characters' bad choices following good following bad and so on, then I DID begin to care about the characters very much, becoming a story of hope that climaxes in a most bizarre but incredibly satisfying manner. And I must say, Fellside has some of the most beautiful closing lines I have ever read. Highly recommended.