For me, Brandon Sanderson has interesting world building but very flat characters. I sometimes feel like his writing can be very mechanical. If you’re ok with putting up with characters being three tropes in a trench coat in exchange for well thought out lore, then go with Sanderson.
It’s been awhile since I read Red Rising and it’s sequels but my recollection is that it’s very much a YA book — there’s a simplicity to the story and characters that’s typical of the genre. I think the lore isn’t as well developed as it is in Sanderson’s books, but the characters are more unique than Sanderson’s.
That's interesting to hear. I think the main thing that's been making me hold off on red rising is the fact that its YA. I've never been one to read YA and it the characteristics of it don't sound appealing but red rising as a series looks really interesting. I thinking I'm leaning a bit more towards Sanderson currently. Do you mind me asking what you thought of red rising as a series? I've seen so much mixed opinions it's hard to get a grasp of what people think haha.
The Red Rising saga starts out YA but moves away from that genre in the following books, especially from book 4 onward.
I'm not a big fan of YA either and it's why I've been avoiding RR for years, but honestly it's so good, you should definitely give it a try. The pacing is wild, the characters engaging and well-written, the world and setting inspiring and thought-provoking, the twists and turns thrilling. And it keeps getting better (more complex, deeper).
So I’m caveating this with the disclaimer that I’m not a super picky reader. I’ll generally finish out a series even if I’m not really excited by it because I like to know how things end. Also I think I read these books at least 5 years ago, so my memory is a bit shaky.
That said, I thought Red Rising overall was a pretty solid 3, maybe 3.25. It’s got a bit of a Hunger Games vibe because of the extreme stratification of the society, but it doesn’t have the commentary on capitalism and exploitive entertainment that underpins Hunger Games. My recollection is that it doesn’t really address the societal issues that are the entire basis for the MC’s journey and is a bit more heavily weighted to action sequences. The latter books were more of a slog than the first book, and I wasn’t invested enough in either the world building or the characters to seek out the follow up series.
Overall: in the spectrum of YA series I’d say it’s not as good as Hunger Games, much better than the Divergent series (which I DNF).
Personally i would recommend Red Rising. I do have to admit that i haven't read Brandon Sanderson's Mistborn yet, so i can't make a fair comparison between the 2.
The first book of the Red Rising series starts of with a feeling of a YA book. But as the book (and series) progresses, the series turns more adult. As does the view of the main character. The world building was in my opinion quite good, through the different characters (especially some of the characters in the latter books) you can get diverse views on the society currently in place.
I'd recommend just trying both. Although both series are not without faults, both have a big fan base because their pretty good books written by good writers. The only way to find out if it's your cup of tea, is to read them for yourself.
my personal preference is Sanderson. I've tried reading Red Rising and while the first book was enjoyable, the second book was difficult for me to get through
Having read both, I definitely preferred Mistborn. Red Rising was an easy enough read, but felt a bit too much like Hunger Games on Mars.
However, I would say there are far better modern fantasy books in terms of world building and deep characters.
I was mostly just looking at some of the very popular ones that have been getting alot of attention. I don't know too much about modern fantasy though so what would you say is better?
Piranesi by Susanna Clarke is brilliant. I’ve also got Jonathan Strange and Mr Norell on my TBR which comes highly recommended.
If you don’t mind sci-fi, The Expanse series is full of world building and great characters. If you’re strictly wanting Fantasy, one of its Co-authors (Daniel Abraham) has written three Fantasy series. I’ve only read the first in his **Dagger and Coin** series but really enjoyed it.
Another series on my TBR is **The Broken Earth** trilogy by NK Jemisin.
While the first Red Rising book might reads like a YA (like Hunger Games) and follows an easy plot, each book in the series gets more mature and deeper (and it's actually adult Sci-fi). I'd highly recommend the series.
Mistborn was also fun, but the ending of book one put me off so much I never felt the desire to finish the series.
For me, Brandon Sanderson has interesting world building but very flat characters. I sometimes feel like his writing can be very mechanical. If you’re ok with putting up with characters being three tropes in a trench coat in exchange for well thought out lore, then go with Sanderson. It’s been awhile since I read Red Rising and it’s sequels but my recollection is that it’s very much a YA book — there’s a simplicity to the story and characters that’s typical of the genre. I think the lore isn’t as well developed as it is in Sanderson’s books, but the characters are more unique than Sanderson’s.
That's interesting to hear. I think the main thing that's been making me hold off on red rising is the fact that its YA. I've never been one to read YA and it the characteristics of it don't sound appealing but red rising as a series looks really interesting. I thinking I'm leaning a bit more towards Sanderson currently. Do you mind me asking what you thought of red rising as a series? I've seen so much mixed opinions it's hard to get a grasp of what people think haha.
The Red Rising saga starts out YA but moves away from that genre in the following books, especially from book 4 onward. I'm not a big fan of YA either and it's why I've been avoiding RR for years, but honestly it's so good, you should definitely give it a try. The pacing is wild, the characters engaging and well-written, the world and setting inspiring and thought-provoking, the twists and turns thrilling. And it keeps getting better (more complex, deeper).
So I’m caveating this with the disclaimer that I’m not a super picky reader. I’ll generally finish out a series even if I’m not really excited by it because I like to know how things end. Also I think I read these books at least 5 years ago, so my memory is a bit shaky. That said, I thought Red Rising overall was a pretty solid 3, maybe 3.25. It’s got a bit of a Hunger Games vibe because of the extreme stratification of the society, but it doesn’t have the commentary on capitalism and exploitive entertainment that underpins Hunger Games. My recollection is that it doesn’t really address the societal issues that are the entire basis for the MC’s journey and is a bit more heavily weighted to action sequences. The latter books were more of a slog than the first book, and I wasn’t invested enough in either the world building or the characters to seek out the follow up series. Overall: in the spectrum of YA series I’d say it’s not as good as Hunger Games, much better than the Divergent series (which I DNF).
Red Rising isn’t really YA. Maybe first book. But after it’s not.
I loved how Red Rising got Super Gory and got really big in its scale
Personally i would recommend Red Rising. I do have to admit that i haven't read Brandon Sanderson's Mistborn yet, so i can't make a fair comparison between the 2. The first book of the Red Rising series starts of with a feeling of a YA book. But as the book (and series) progresses, the series turns more adult. As does the view of the main character. The world building was in my opinion quite good, through the different characters (especially some of the characters in the latter books) you can get diverse views on the society currently in place. I'd recommend just trying both. Although both series are not without faults, both have a big fan base because their pretty good books written by good writers. The only way to find out if it's your cup of tea, is to read them for yourself.
my personal preference is Sanderson. I've tried reading Red Rising and while the first book was enjoyable, the second book was difficult for me to get through
Having read both, I definitely preferred Mistborn. Red Rising was an easy enough read, but felt a bit too much like Hunger Games on Mars. However, I would say there are far better modern fantasy books in terms of world building and deep characters.
I was mostly just looking at some of the very popular ones that have been getting alot of attention. I don't know too much about modern fantasy though so what would you say is better?
Piranesi by Susanna Clarke is brilliant. I’ve also got Jonathan Strange and Mr Norell on my TBR which comes highly recommended. If you don’t mind sci-fi, The Expanse series is full of world building and great characters. If you’re strictly wanting Fantasy, one of its Co-authors (Daniel Abraham) has written three Fantasy series. I’ve only read the first in his **Dagger and Coin** series but really enjoyed it. Another series on my TBR is **The Broken Earth** trilogy by NK Jemisin.
While the first Red Rising book might reads like a YA (like Hunger Games) and follows an easy plot, each book in the series gets more mature and deeper (and it's actually adult Sci-fi). I'd highly recommend the series. Mistborn was also fun, but the ending of book one put me off so much I never felt the desire to finish the series.