(WARRENSBURG, Mo.) – I read “Morningstar,” the third book of the “Red Rising” series by Peirce Brown.  At the end of book two, “Golden Son,” Darrow kills the Archgoverner of Mars, Augustus Bellona, and plunges the Golds into war with the Reds.  Darrow and the Red army are trying to build an alliance with the other colors to help them win the revolution against the Golds.  Mustang, the daughter of Augustus, falls in love with Darrow, and realizes how her father and the Golds have enslaved the other colors, and joins Darrow in the revolution.  Darrow wants to accomplish the dream his wife, Eo, had before she was killed, which was uniting the colors.

I greatly enjoyed the Red Rising series.  In the color-coded society of Mars, each color has a certain skill or purpose.  Darrow’s people, the Reds, work in the mines of Mars, digging for gems or other riches.  The Pinks are trained for physical pleasure, like prostitutes.  The Obsidians and Grays are the military and the police force.  The Yellows are doctors and scientists.  The Golds, of course, are the rulers of Mars and have control over the other colors.  Darrow wants to show the other colors that they can be what they want to be, and not what their color trained them to be.  After Darrow takes down the Golds, he wants to get rid of the colors and have everyone be united and equal.  The series has a different kind of love triangle in it.  Darrow wants to be loyal to his wife, Eo, who died in the first book, but Darrow still falls in love with Mustang.  He comes to realize that Eo would want him to be happy and find someone new to love.  I also like Darrow’s inner conflict.  He is angry at the Golds for killing Eo, but he tries to focus on uniting the colors and rebelling for peace, and not to be consumed by his hatred and thoughts of vengeance.

I heard that there is a show in the making based off “Red Rising.”  I don’t know when it comes out, but I think it will be on TV or online.  I am very excited for it.  Brown just came out with a fourth book called “Iron Gold.”  It is in the library already, and I am eager to read it.  I thought at the end of “Morningstar,” Darrow would defeat the Golds, but it sounds like they are still around in this book.  I want to know what else happens in Darrow’s life, and if the Golds remain at large.  I also like all of the relationships between the characters, as I mentioned before with Darrow and Mustang.  I like how Darrow falls in love with Mustang.  One part in the book that made me really sad was when Darrow corners a Gold named Roque, whom he was friends with.  He tries to get him to turn to his side to help them defeat the Golds so he doesn’t get killed, but Roque is too consumed by the ideas and standards of the Golds.  There are many layers to the story.  If you like books about revolting, love and standing up for justice and what you want, you will enjoy “Morningstar.”

Merrin Gutherie is a THRIVE intern for the Muleskinner. THRIVE is a UCM program that focuses on young adults with intellectual or developmental disabilities in a two-year residential college experience meant to build the required knowledge and skills to transition from home to independent living.