My rating: 5 of 5 stars
When I first stepped through the gates of the Institute, I wore the weight of the world on my shoulders. It crushed me. Broke me, but my friends have pieced me together.
After almost two years, I finally finished Morning Star. Don’t get me wrong. This book is not dragging or boring. The reason for my procrastination is beautiful in its simplicity (or stupidity): the hardcover edition is so heavy. I often stopped reading just because my left wrist was painful. Hence, I put the book on hold, picked it up after a few months, and then put it on hold for a year. Now, the fifth book in the series is coming out soon. Hahaha. To be fair, back when Red Rising was only a trilogy, I was so afraid to finish Morning Star because I did not want to say good-bye to the world and characters that I had grown to love. After I received an ARC of Iron Gold last December, I motivated myself and reread the first 200 pages of Morning Star. But the wrist problem kept on happening, and I found myself gravitating to other lighter books. It was only last week that I overcame my laziness and got the Audible version. Then, my problem was solved. xD
In a nutshell, Morning Star blew my mind like its predecessor, Golden Son. Pierce Brown is probably the most talented male author I know, and I’ll never get tired of bragging about his gift of crafting epic, evocative, and unforgettable plot twists. I’m telling you, one of the plot twists in this book almost made me cry. And to think that I wasn’t even that fond of this certain character! The last chapter that revealed Mustang’s secret was another tearjerker. Give me a high five if you also didn’t see it coming. Hahaha. With the exception of the dissolution of the corrupt Society, this book is practically unpredictable.
Pierce Brown is also great at creating platonic or romantic relationships. Protagonists at one point can turn out to be antagonists, and vice versa. Darrow was merciful to a fault, but if I were in his shoes, I would probably make the same decisions regarding Cassius, the Jackal, and the other fishy characters. Speaking of Cassius, he was the most intriguing character in Morning Star. I used to dislike him a lot, but now…hahaha. I hope that he will still be a major presence in the following books. Fingers crossed he stays…honorable.
Morning Star was supposed to be a concluding novel, and I loved that the ending was realistic; it wasn’t your typical happily ever after. I was sad that some characters had to die, but I knew that that was the truth about war: it will always have casualties. The same could be said about the demolished Society. I was glad that Pierce Brown emphasized that even though the Sovereign was defeated, there were still more problems to address.
To sum up my thoughts, reading Morning Star was a slow yet worthwhile experience. I loved the unique characters and the unpredictable events that molded them. I wish that I finished this book sooner, but there’s no point crying over spilled milk. May the odds be in my favor when I pick up Iron Gold.
