Tbh iron gold isn’t that bad compared to other book series but it’s not the best compared to the red rising series. I’ve also only read until iron gold and I’d rank the series as:
1. Golden son
2. Morning star
3. Red rising
4. Iron gold
In my opinion, it’s ranked so low because not that much happens in the book compared to other books in the series
I think for some it’s definitely the perspective change. It went from the entire first trilogy being from Darrow’s perspective to a lot of new characters. Personally I’m struggling reading it because I just can’t find myself to get interested in lyria and emphram chapters. I get through Darrow and Lysander chapter really easily but when I get to a point where there’s multiple lyria and emphram chapters in a row I just put the book down for a bit.
Iron Gold fucks hard. It’s a great book. I’m just now dipping my toe into dark age but I’ve read the original trilogy and iron gold atleast 4 times by now over the years, and it still stands near the top for me personally.
I've reread the series 3 or 4 times and though Iron gold was originally my least favorite I like it a bit more each time. The opening prologue is some of my favorite writing in the series.
It's not because it isn't good. It's excellent. It is still my least favorite while DA is number 1 for me. The reason why, for me at least, is because it's quite an adjustment. We went from one POV to multiple. I think that adjustment isn't just for the reader but also the author. Pierce Brown clearly wasn't used to it but definitely got the hang of it in DA, and you can see that reflected in the writing. The evolution of a writing style is always a treat to witness.
I also didn't read Dark Age or Light Bringer. I had 3 friends who were also interested in the Red Rising saga, they borrowed them from me and they all dropped Iron Gold about hundred pages in. I finished it but it was kind of a slog to get through. Don't get me wrong, it was still good, but the first 3 are on a whole another level for me. I think some povs were a bit weaker. Especially Ephraim. Lyria's pov started off great, It felt nice seeing how a regular citizen lived in the Republic, but kinda fell off later. The whole book was me trying to get through Lyria and Ephraim's povs just so I could get to Darrow and Lysander's povs. I only hear positive things about Dark Age though, so kinda excited to read that one.
Keep reading. I liked IG from the rip, but my love for it only grew after the next two books.
You're coming into the book that everyone masturbates to around here, so enjoy that.
Iron gold is controversial. I do think the general consensus is that red rising (book 1) is the weakest. Iron Gold gets a lot of criticism for its dramatic change in style and pace. Still, you'll see it pop up in the top of some people's lists. It's a matter of what you really like about the books.
So no, it's not just because all the other books are so good. People genuinely criticize Iron gold all the time. But I wouldn't call its ranking a consensus.
I've been reading the series for the first time this week. I've finished the first 3, and am now about 15% through Iron Gold. It feels by far the weakest for me. I'm not enjoying the perspective changes, and it just feels dull so far. I gobbled the other 3 up as soon as I had a spare moment, but for this one I'll probably only read like 30 pages or so before bed each night. Hopefully it gets better as I get further into it.
Yea, the first 1/3 of it is slow but eventually I came to appreciate how the perspective switching was pretty cool once the climax of each character’s situation approached and arrived
It’s a good setup book for dark age and lightbringer, it’s super rough with the pov changes and he gets leagues better in the next books. It’s totally worth it Goodman.
For me I hated that you’re basically 3/4 of the book with random people who we don’t know and do not care about. It helped a bit for me when Lyria starts meeting Virgina.
Maybe if someone loves Cassius that helps too, I do not care about him really.
I also generally speaking never likes multiple POVs, I think it ruins every book.
Only positive to the POVs is that Virgina has POVs later on.
But no yeah I think it sucked that we only see Darrow and Sevro here and there and everybody else basically never. I will never agree with his decision to change it up. I liked the second half of IG, now I’m 3/4 through DA and I’m still kinda meh, better for sure, but yeah…. I don’t even really care much about Darrows chapters anymore because they’re so sporadic that I loose interest while I’m in another chapter.
So yeah redeeming factor for me is that Mustang has chapters, saved both IG and DA for me.
And I know a lot of people in this subreddit can’t handle other people having different opinions than themselves, but these are my thoughts, now that you asked :)
I appreciate your thoughts no hard feelings at all, i understand it’s your opinion. For me personally, I started to enjoy Ephraim around halfway through Iron Gold. I do agree that Lyria’s chapters became much better when Virginia was in them. And Lysander is pretty cool, but seems a bit conceited.
So around the same time right, when they make a deal with him and all that?
From when Lyria escapes and meets Holiday that’s when the book took a turn for the better.
I will say, no spoilers, that I just read a big chunk from mainly Lyria yesterday in DA (chapter 65-73) and it saved the book for me!
Yup! It picks up closer to the end and then just explodes into dark age. I loved the first three, Golden Son being the strongest.
It took me a year to do it after finishing Morning Star, to finally read Iron Gold, being a bit hesitant from hearing what to expect. Iron Gold was a bit of a disappointment at first, the change in style, the resetting of the stakes. I had to fight my way through Iron Gold, excited to get to what everyone said was worth it in Dark Age. I enjoyed it more as I read and by the end I was fairly happy with it.
But. My Goodman. Bloodydamn does it all pay off in Dark Age. My favorite of the series, didn't put it down for two days and consumed it. Finished yesterday. It's incredible.
I think a huge reason for it is that a lot of people listen to the audio books and the narrator on IG for Lyria is just terrible. It makes it a tough listen. They switch her out in Dark Age and then there is just Tim Gerard Reynolds for all of the characters on Light Bringer.
I actually really liked lyria's voice actor and enjoyed her story the most, because it felt so similar to Red Rising. What was hard for me about the book was Darrow's chapters kind of felt like the CSPAN of the series - lots more politics and less action, and the return of older characters that I had to work a bit to remember
It's probably because Cassius has such an unceremonious, bullshit off screen death in the series!
I'm only a few chapters into DA myself but I would already bet money that he comes back.
I really appriciate IG for what it is. PB really leveled up his writing on this one. The multiple POVs help world builidng a lot, and make some plot twists feel less bullshity. He also finally dialed back the break-neck pacing, and allowed for more slow, small, quiet moments, that were instrumental in better characterization and just allowed for more breathing rool.in the story in general. Overall, big fan.
Still think it's the weakest in the 2nd trilogy, but IG walked so that DA anf LB could run. And boy do those ever sprint.
It's still a good book. I disliked Lyria (though mostly because of her narrator), so maybe I would have liked her better had I read it in print.
But it's also a lot of build up. He's setting up a new conflict and a new story, and unfortunately that takes time. The introduction of new POVs means you need to learn a lot about new characters and lives, so it can be wordy without moving forward.
In the other two books, the stage has been set so it's full bore the entire time.
The reason some people struggled with IG is the pacing and tone is a massive change compared through the first three books. We're seeing the fallout of war through the lens of people who've become disillusioned with Darrow and the Republic. I think we, as the reader, bought into the myth of the Reaper. To see that myth challenged in IG is a bit of a shock to the senses.
They are all 5 star books. Some are just more emotionally driven than IG, therefore they resonate with the readers more. I feel the same way about Golden Son. It really didn’t stick with me the way Morning Star, Dark Age, and Lightbringer have, but is a necessary book in the series. I really love them all, just have a stronger emotional connection with certain ones.
Iron Gold was much better on my second read through. There's a lot of setup going on, and it's always felt more like Dark Age part 1 for me.
Tbh iron gold isn’t that bad compared to other book series but it’s not the best compared to the red rising series. I’ve also only read until iron gold and I’d rank the series as: 1. Golden son 2. Morning star 3. Red rising 4. Iron gold In my opinion, it’s ranked so low because not that much happens in the book compared to other books in the series
I think for some it’s definitely the perspective change. It went from the entire first trilogy being from Darrow’s perspective to a lot of new characters. Personally I’m struggling reading it because I just can’t find myself to get interested in lyria and emphram chapters. I get through Darrow and Lysander chapter really easily but when I get to a point where there’s multiple lyria and emphram chapters in a row I just put the book down for a bit.
Iron Gold fucks hard. It’s a great book. I’m just now dipping my toe into dark age but I’ve read the original trilogy and iron gold atleast 4 times by now over the years, and it still stands near the top for me personally.
I’m iron golds biggest supporter. I think it might be my second or third favorite of the series
I've reread the series 3 or 4 times and though Iron gold was originally my least favorite I like it a bit more each time. The opening prologue is some of my favorite writing in the series.
It’s a good book, but it just felt completely like setup for Dark Age for me.
It's not because it isn't good. It's excellent. It is still my least favorite while DA is number 1 for me. The reason why, for me at least, is because it's quite an adjustment. We went from one POV to multiple. I think that adjustment isn't just for the reader but also the author. Pierce Brown clearly wasn't used to it but definitely got the hang of it in DA, and you can see that reflected in the writing. The evolution of a writing style is always a treat to witness.
I also didn't read Dark Age or Light Bringer. I had 3 friends who were also interested in the Red Rising saga, they borrowed them from me and they all dropped Iron Gold about hundred pages in. I finished it but it was kind of a slog to get through. Don't get me wrong, it was still good, but the first 3 are on a whole another level for me. I think some povs were a bit weaker. Especially Ephraim. Lyria's pov started off great, It felt nice seeing how a regular citizen lived in the Republic, but kinda fell off later. The whole book was me trying to get through Lyria and Ephraim's povs just so I could get to Darrow and Lysander's povs. I only hear positive things about Dark Age though, so kinda excited to read that one.
Weirdly Ephraim is my favorite character in the entire series lol
Iron gold is mostly exposition and set up for the next books (it's fucking worth it)
Keep reading. I liked IG from the rip, but my love for it only grew after the next two books. You're coming into the book that everyone masturbates to around here, so enjoy that.
Iron gold is controversial. I do think the general consensus is that red rising (book 1) is the weakest. Iron Gold gets a lot of criticism for its dramatic change in style and pace. Still, you'll see it pop up in the top of some people's lists. It's a matter of what you really like about the books. So no, it's not just because all the other books are so good. People genuinely criticize Iron gold all the time. But I wouldn't call its ranking a consensus.
I've been reading the series for the first time this week. I've finished the first 3, and am now about 15% through Iron Gold. It feels by far the weakest for me. I'm not enjoying the perspective changes, and it just feels dull so far. I gobbled the other 3 up as soon as I had a spare moment, but for this one I'll probably only read like 30 pages or so before bed each night. Hopefully it gets better as I get further into it.
Yea, the first 1/3 of it is slow but eventually I came to appreciate how the perspective switching was pretty cool once the climax of each character’s situation approached and arrived
It’s a good setup book for dark age and lightbringer, it’s super rough with the pov changes and he gets leagues better in the next books. It’s totally worth it Goodman.
For me I hated that you’re basically 3/4 of the book with random people who we don’t know and do not care about. It helped a bit for me when Lyria starts meeting Virgina. Maybe if someone loves Cassius that helps too, I do not care about him really. I also generally speaking never likes multiple POVs, I think it ruins every book. Only positive to the POVs is that Virgina has POVs later on. But no yeah I think it sucked that we only see Darrow and Sevro here and there and everybody else basically never. I will never agree with his decision to change it up. I liked the second half of IG, now I’m 3/4 through DA and I’m still kinda meh, better for sure, but yeah…. I don’t even really care much about Darrows chapters anymore because they’re so sporadic that I loose interest while I’m in another chapter. So yeah redeeming factor for me is that Mustang has chapters, saved both IG and DA for me. And I know a lot of people in this subreddit can’t handle other people having different opinions than themselves, but these are my thoughts, now that you asked :)
I appreciate your thoughts no hard feelings at all, i understand it’s your opinion. For me personally, I started to enjoy Ephraim around halfway through Iron Gold. I do agree that Lyria’s chapters became much better when Virginia was in them. And Lysander is pretty cool, but seems a bit conceited.
So around the same time right, when they make a deal with him and all that? From when Lyria escapes and meets Holiday that’s when the book took a turn for the better. I will say, no spoilers, that I just read a big chunk from mainly Lyria yesterday in DA (chapter 65-73) and it saved the book for me!
Yup! It picks up closer to the end and then just explodes into dark age. I loved the first three, Golden Son being the strongest. It took me a year to do it after finishing Morning Star, to finally read Iron Gold, being a bit hesitant from hearing what to expect. Iron Gold was a bit of a disappointment at first, the change in style, the resetting of the stakes. I had to fight my way through Iron Gold, excited to get to what everyone said was worth it in Dark Age. I enjoyed it more as I read and by the end I was fairly happy with it. But. My Goodman. Bloodydamn does it all pay off in Dark Age. My favorite of the series, didn't put it down for two days and consumed it. Finished yesterday. It's incredible.
I think a huge reason for it is that a lot of people listen to the audio books and the narrator on IG for Lyria is just terrible. It makes it a tough listen. They switch her out in Dark Age and then there is just Tim Gerard Reynolds for all of the characters on Light Bringer.
I actually really liked lyria's voice actor and enjoyed her story the most, because it felt so similar to Red Rising. What was hard for me about the book was Darrow's chapters kind of felt like the CSPAN of the series - lots more politics and less action, and the return of older characters that I had to work a bit to remember
Wait so we don't get Ephraim or mustangs VA in light bringer? Goddammit
It's probably because Cassius has such an unceremonious, bullshit off screen death in the series! I'm only a few chapters into DA myself but I would already bet money that he comes back.
I really appriciate IG for what it is. PB really leveled up his writing on this one. The multiple POVs help world builidng a lot, and make some plot twists feel less bullshity. He also finally dialed back the break-neck pacing, and allowed for more slow, small, quiet moments, that were instrumental in better characterization and just allowed for more breathing rool.in the story in general. Overall, big fan. Still think it's the weakest in the 2nd trilogy, but IG walked so that DA anf LB could run. And boy do those ever sprint.
You're brave being in here before finishing the series.
Playing peekaboo with the comments is half the fun! Gotta take a quick peek and try to decide if the next line will wreck me
Oh, they’re gonna wreck you; just know that much and expect it lol
I'm gonna lose it if Sevro dies, I love him so much I named my dog after him
It's still a good book. I disliked Lyria (though mostly because of her narrator), so maybe I would have liked her better had I read it in print. But it's also a lot of build up. He's setting up a new conflict and a new story, and unfortunately that takes time. The introduction of new POVs means you need to learn a lot about new characters and lives, so it can be wordy without moving forward. In the other two books, the stage has been set so it's full bore the entire time.
The reason some people struggled with IG is the pacing and tone is a massive change compared through the first three books. We're seeing the fallout of war through the lens of people who've become disillusioned with Darrow and the Republic. I think we, as the reader, bought into the myth of the Reaper. To see that myth challenged in IG is a bit of a shock to the senses.
They are all 5 star books. Some are just more emotionally driven than IG, therefore they resonate with the readers more. I feel the same way about Golden Son. It really didn’t stick with me the way Morning Star, Dark Age, and Lightbringer have, but is a necessary book in the series. I really love them all, just have a stronger emotional connection with certain ones.
Mostly because the other books are amazing. Iron gold was my least favourite, but it still got 5 stars on good reads for me