Dylan Weekley > Recent Status Updates

I will be putting a pin in this one. I’ve read up to about book 6, just was not too consistent reading it and haven’t picked it up in over a month, but because it’s bad, I really enjoyed what I did read, just got caught up in reading other things. I do plan to come back to this book and finish it one day

One chapter to go. This is incredible. The tension, the emotion. I know I keep praising it but man it’s just continues to build and build into just greatness. That’s the best word I can use. Darrow coming back to his home was so beautiful and emotional and a good full circle moment. And this final confrontation is a masterclass in long form storytelling

Ok so we got a plan, the endgame plan to take over. Finally ares and Darrow work together. Crazy sevro is a half breed. It’s very obvious what they are setting up for the climax, it’s gonna be a more final climax then like an actual battle. The battle climax is done, this is more an epilogue and setting up emotional beats and set up for the 3rd book. All great set up and plot points that continues to hit hard

Friendship. Made in minutes, broken in moments, repaired in years

This is a slippery slope that Darrow is walking on right now, so many separate alliances that he’s trying to keep at his side. It’s impressive how he’s maneuvering right now but it will for sure catch up to him. The sons are no don’t the number 1 priority so I’m guessing the jackal will either bite it by the end or he finds out and it ends with them being at war. Also the roque line about friendship, tough

So we get a slight time jump, and find out that all of bellona has been killed but Cassius and his mom, which sucks we don’t actually get to see it, but I guess Cassius is the only one we really care about. And now finally the mustang and Darrow thing is official, good for them and nice to see after all this time, Darrow letting warmth enter his heart

OH MY GOD. Insane plot twist that I had no idea was coming but makes complete sense.The whole sequence in the ship is just heart pounding, insane tension. Pierce brown is so good at those insane situations, you really feel it. The emotion sevro had when Darrow left, so good. The quickness of Karnus death was something I did not expect, but in war people die so quick so it makes sense, I wish they had a longer battle

I am finally back and ready to finish this great book. This little chapter showed me why I read so much of this series so fast. Awesome action, deep emotion, and a huge scale plot and sci fi world that’s so entrancing to read. Servo and Ragnar are goated.

Part 3 complete. This was definitely the worst part so far. Not that it was bad but it just didn’t have the greatness the other parts had. We’ve officially entered the war, and lots is going on, but not a lot in tension built or anything like that. Hopefully they lock back in this last part.

This battle of mars is here. And this is probably my main problem with his book so far. These huge battles like this one, are so huge with so much going on it’s hard to track and picture it in my head fully. And there’s not much tension. My favorite parts of this book is the character work and the personal moments when they battle, the emotion. Here it gets lost to try and create a spectacle.

I really like the dynamic we are exploring between power and trust. You can gain power, but to keep it those must trust you with that power, or they will betray you and the power will flow to someone else. Overall people follow power, but when that power shows weakness, they go to the next powerful person or thing. Like the book put it, they flow with the wind

Another thing this book keeps bringing up is family, or how they effect your life and how people perceive you. With victra, she’s done nothing but loyal acts but still they don’t trust her simply because the family she is from, tactus, his family molded him into something he was not, his friends accepted him for who he was, his family did not. You can choose your friends, but not your family.

They just write so complex and flawed characters so well, I was hating on tactus but he really is such a deep character. The fact he kept the violin broke me a little. And with victra in this section, and legit every character has so many aspects, none are one note

Pliny should have been kicked out much, much earlier. It was so obvious he would betray us, how did Darrow let this happen

Finally tactus gets what he deserves, also this dude Darrow shoots 100% on his plans. It did kinda feel like they rushed the tactus death part, it was like 3 lines. I wish we felt the impact a little more and got to sit with it. I was getting hyped for a potential Darrow and Arcos vs tactus and Aja duel, but his strategy was good too I guess

Finally we get Lorn au Arcos, and I just loved this interaction. You can feel on the history he’s been through by his words, his wisdom. We also get much more backstory on the archGovenor which tells us more about the man he is, a true cold spineless snake, who cares only for glory in his name. Arcos says being a decent man is better than a good man, as good men do not live peaceful lives.

I like this plan Darrow has. His plans are always peak to see play out, normally we don’t know the details of them but this time we do, at least the outline of them. I like the constant expansion of this war and the world building getting deeper and deeper. Again my favorite parts are when they just have people talking, the character dynamics are so fleshed out and truly are just flow state every-time

Only real complaints is during the sequence when Darrow is on the new big ship and is escaping it was hard to really get a sense of what was going on around them, I got a little lost and confused on how the hanger would protect them from the amount of ships incoming. And confusion with sevro, was that pit stop the first co tact he had with the sons if ares, I’m pretty sure but not 100%

And officially halfway through the book. I’ve heard that the sequels of red rising are better than the original and this was certainly lived up to the hype for far. Such a compelling and grand narrative that’s held down by strong characters and emotional moments. This one is much grander than the first book and it does not feel overwhelming. Not many complaints at all currently.

Also the moment with mustang, truly incredible, it was like 3 pages straight of her just talking and it was just so good. I know they don’t make it subtle, but her parallels with Eo are so beautiful. I do root for them, I like how she is so competent on her own and really together they make an unstoppable team. I wonder when he will tell her the truth, I know he will be accepting of it

The character moments is where this book truly shines. The moments when it just two character talking to each other, being vulnerable, being open, it’s always so well written. The moments between sevro and Darrow here did make me cry, someone finally knowing who Darrow truly is and accepting him for it, and seeing him break down got me. It was so beautiful a moment. And thank god dancer is alive, shoutout ares

Roque is really going through it, in the first book and this one. He’s the kindest one and gets dealt the toughest hand. Also the simple use of bold words added so much aura to the Ragnar dude. I felt intimidated through the page. Also darrow is really good at speeches, just a natural leader, perfect person for the job

I always think I know where this is going, then I’m proven wrong time and time again. A big theme that keeps coming up is pride. With the powerful, pride is all that matters, it’s what drives them, guides their decisions. That’s what guides them just like Eo’s dream guides Darrow. That’s why the powerful keep getting caught off guard by Darrow, cause golds are born with high pride,Darrow it not one of them

A true masterclass is setting pieces up and building on each and every one of them. I lived this section, a long conversation with the true number one ruler of this entire series. We get so much information here and the political landscape is so grand with so many moving pieces and agendas. The tension here as well, had my heart beating so loud it’s crazy.

Idk why also Darrow kinda just motivates me do become just an absolute monster. Like this man is so badass I fell it inside my entire soul to try and be like him

The greatest flow state in ever seen put to page. Jaw on the ground this entire 17 page chapter, the best part of this entire series so far, so much craziness happens. It felt so cinematic and dramatic and epic and just man so good. This felt like such a climatic masterpiece and the book still has 300 pages left. This has set up the rest of the book so incredibly and it’s like a drug that makes me urge to read 24/7

I also like how much Eo’s dream still guides the story, it’s still guiding darrows mind and all his actions and thoughts, now with the new revelation, it’s grown even stronger. The sons of ares do think too small minded, too focused on short term revenge rather then long term decimation. It’s hard ti blame them, because long term is hard to commit to when you won’t see the results of your labor

God they know how to make you feel devastated. We all hate Cassius round here. The inner turmoil inside Darrow is really the entire highlight in this first part, all these different groups have plans for him to do for them in their goal, but he knows the true goal better then any, he knows what needs to be done better then any. And know it seems he is locked in a focused on that goal, he has a plan

I’ll say sometimes I feel the book is extremely fast paced, we are constantly moving from one big plot point to the next, not having much time to breathe and take it in, I think it might change here with this new revelation, but so much is being thrown at us, I thinks it all landing but it’s just a lot. Not as single focused as the first story. Not inch wide mile deep, this is started mile wide but still deep

I was wondering when we would learn what Eo said, and man it could not have been more devastating. This book is really expanding on the first so well. So many different plots people are scheming up to get power. I liked what Darrow said here, all the colors are broken, they all feel pain. Everyone in this society suffers and they all attack each other to fix it.