Light Bringer
Ratings177
Average rating4.7
My heart is heavy. There was no other way for this to end.
Coming from Dark Age this book was abit of a let down. I loved Dark age, with all its brutality but light bringer was softer. There are so many character moments I loved in this. But for quite a bit of the book it felt as if we were going nowhere.
There were the epic battles, one duel scene I loved but looking back on the book as a whole, the characters were stuck in places. Granted, they needed to be, but I was always waiting for more.
The beginning of Lyria storyline felt dropped, and I wondered why I followed her through it all for it to come to nothing.
I am one of the rare people who love Lysander. I find him interesting and while his story for the most part of this book was meh, by the end I was screaming at him.
The strong points of this book are the villains. I love Atlas. Volga grandad. Incredible characters.
And Cassius. Oh I loved his arc from the first book to now. He's become one of my favourites.
The ending is what is strong in this book. The whole beginning was leading up to this point and I can't wait for the next book.
Once again my heart was jerked from one side to the other in this epic space opera. I wept, I felt hopeful, angry, relieved. This saga has yet to disappoint me and I can't wait for book 7.
Starts off a bit slow, especially if you're like me and are trying to figure out who the hell is who 4 years after the last one, but once it gets going around the 25% mark, it doesn't let go until the end.
I always love reading a series where the author dares to experiment with his style. The first 3 were completely first person. He tried something new from book 4 with the different pov's, went a bit too far in 5 and now dials it back down to a more focused story. You can actually read Pierce Brown narrowing down this writing style to something that really fits him and I can't wait for the next one.
What a ride
I feel like the writing and plotlines are sloppy but overall I still enjoyed it. He cleans up trying to make Lyria more interesting than she is by getting rid of Figment, doesn't mention the Abomination, and doesn't rely on Quicksilver as a deus ex, which is good, but he also introduces a lazy plot device (the bioweapon that can kill any color). Fuck Lysander.
Se supera a si mismo, espero encontrarlo en otros formatos pronto , mejor que GOT.
A real home run that sets things up beautifully for the finale. The character work is excellent here, with Lysander and Darrow's points of view dominating, and Lysander's chapters towards the end of the novel being particularly rich. As is always the case with Brown, the fight scenes are visceral and there are a suitable number of gut punches for the penultimate entry in this series. My only criticisms would be that a couple of deaths felt a little rushed and perhaps under-developed, and there was a lack of focus on a certain antagonist, although I am sure that will make sense in Red God. Those issues are not enough for me to give this book anything less than 5 stars and I cannot wait for the final entry!
Pierce Brown did it again. The man ripped my heart out and left it in a million tiny pieces. Light Bringer is amazing, and pretty comfortably one of my favorite books in the series so far.. It has everything I love about Red Rising—the chaos, the heartbreak, the badass moments—but in each book Brown is showing an uncanny improvement on his pacing and writing style.
What I love most about this series is that Brown keeps pushing himself to improve with every release. It sets insane expectations, and just when you start doubting, he goes and blows your mind all over again. Light Bringer feels like a return to the emotional depth and character dynamics of the original trilogy, but with the brutal scope of Iron Gold and Dark Age. The pacing is different—more methodical, more intense—but it keeps everything that makes the series so damn addictive. The dialogue is sharp, driving the action forward in a way that felt a bit missing at times in the last two books.
And the emotions? Off the charts. The small gestures of affection between characters hit me almost as hard as the action. These people have suffered so much, and it shows, not just in their scars but in the way they hold onto each other. It makes the brutality of war feel even more real. Because this book doesn't shy away from the cost of war—but it also remembers that hope matters just as much. I'm so glad Brown leaned into that balance.
And then there's the action. Clang. Clang. Clang. That sound is going to live in my head rent free for a while. The battles in Light Bringer are some of the best in the series, and that duel? Ashvar? Holy shit.
Let's talk for a second about Sevro, because I missed him in Dark Age.
Sevro's verbal takedown of Cassius was one of the most brutal things I've seen him do, and he didn't even lift a blade. And when he shows up at the last second in a starShell to save Darrow and Cassius? I was literally jumping up and down. I swear, when this series gets adapted, I'll be the guy in the theater jumping up and screaming. Lastly, of all characters that can make my eyes tear up, I wasn't expecting Sevro in that list. But when he puts Ares' helmet in Cassius coffin, I had to stop reading for a minute.
There's only one thing I really didn't like and made me even consider rating this a 4 star: Why did we waste time with the Figment in Lyria's head just for her to have it removed in this book? Felt like a pretty big waste of a plot device.
I don't know how Red God is going to top this, but if there's one thing I've learned, it's that Brown will find a way. I'm not ready. But I also can't wait.
10/10
Insanely good the whole way through. The twists just keep on coming and minor characters are deeper and more interesting than many other books main protagonists.
Yet another series where I am waiting for the conclusion.
9
While golden son might be the more “exciting” book i think thats mostly because its such a drastic change from the pretty-good-but-not-breathtaking first book, and you just get so shocked at all the twists and turns. id go so far as to say this book has a much more complex plot with peaks/moments that give golden son a run for its money.
Without a doubt pierce browns best writing. I didnt know i could like darrow more than i already did!
This book is much more focused on darrow then the last two, and is in turn very introspective as it seems to start wrapping up darrows character arc.
What a journy!
that pixie piece of ass-lard lysander can eat dirt though.
A much better book than the previous one. I thought this was the last one, and then getting to the last hundred or so pages I was like "oh no this is not close to finished".
I'll read the last one.
Pierce Brown, you gorydamn pen wizard, you've created a penultimate chapter than makes me love your stories even more and hate how you've racked my heart with pride, pain, and longing. Thank you, sir. I sit eagerly awaiting Red God and anything else you choose to write afterward.
4.50/5.00
What an incredible journey! The story of Darrow delights, thrills and touches one deeply. Light Bringer is not the story of the Reaper, not of the Sovereign, not of the Fear Knight. It is the story of Cassius and Darrow, Athena and Ares, Volga and Vagnar, Diomedes and Darrow, and unfortunately, Lysander and Atlas. The characters are real and busting out of the pages. Brilliant storytelling, glorious battles, martin-level dialogue and incredible character moments. Light Bringer is the perfect penultimate book of the red rising saga. Per Aspera Ad Astra.
I think this is easily my favorite book of this series. I looked over my last reviews for books 4/5 (or 1/2 depending on how you count them) and I guess this was originally a trilogy and now its 4 books (or maybe I just assumed a second trilogy), so I had kind of thought this was the last book when I started it.
It does appear the last book will be out much sooner than this one was, so maybe as he was writing the final book he realized he had too much he wanted to do and split it in two.
I still prefer the Darrow chapters to all the others, but Lyria and Virginia were interesting as well.
Lysander is still far less enjoyable to read, but necessary to getting a big chunk of the plot. Overall I thought this book was more in lines with books 2 & 3 of the original trilogy and less like books 1, 4 & 5. Hopefully the final book will be as enjoyable if not more so.
The narration by Tim Gerard Reynolds is spectacular as always. I haven't listened to a book read by him in a while. He does a variety of voices and you can tell when the protagonist swaps in a new chapter simply by the way he reads them. I highly recommend the audio version.
Oh MY GOD THIS BOOK DEVASTATED ME. So much interpersonal drama. Really appreciated how the cast of characters was slimmed down and we were able to focus on the motivations and exploration of good and evil for each.
Straight into my favourites. Pierce Brown knows how to make you love his books but simultaneously break your heart all over again!
Excellent book that I feel is the best in the series so far, though that may be recency bias. Pierce Brown ramps the pacing back up to Golden Son level along with much needed “breathing time” to get more character interactions as well. I'm kind of sad I finished and need to wait for Red God now. Might be a good excuse for another re-read of the series before the last book comes out though.
Easy, easy favorite of the series for me. The last 25% of this book is unfairly good. Light Bringer makes me want to start this entire series over immediately.
10/10
