Morning Star (Brown novel)

Morning Star

First edition cover
Author Pierce Brown
Country United States
Language English
Genre Science fiction
Publisher Del Rey Books (US)
Publication date
 February 9, 2016
Media type
Pages 518
ISBN 0-345-53984-2
Preceded by Golden Son

Morning Star is a 2016 science fiction novel by American author Pierce Brown, the third in his Red Rising trilogy. Morning Star picks up as lowborn Darrow escapes capture and resumes his campaign against the tyrannical Sovereign of the Society. Betrayed by his old friend Roque au Fabii, Darrow has witnessed the murders of his friends and suffered a year of torture and imprisonment. Now a shadow of his former self, he rejoins the rebellion he ignited, which has faltered since his presumed death. Darrow's secret origin as a Red is now widely known, which has emboldened the lowColors but also galvanized the Golds against him. Pragmatic as ever, he begins to amass the resources and allies he needs to defeat the forces of the Sovereign.

Preceded by Red Rising (2014) and Golden Son (2015), Morning Star was published on February 9, 2016, and debuted at #1 on The New York Times Best Seller list.[1]

Plot

Darrow is a shadow of his former self after a year of torture and imprisonment at the hands of Adrius au Augustus, the ArchGovernor of Mars, better known as the Jackal. Across the worlds, he is believed dead, thanks to a public execution faked by the Jackal and Octavia au Lune, the Sovereign. Sevro au Barca, now leader of the Sons of Ares, sends his deputy Holiday ti Nakamura to rescue Darrow, who discovers that Victra au Julii is also still alive and frees her as well. Reconciling and recovering at a hidden rebel stronghold, Darrow and Victra join Sevro's gang of Howlers. Their first mission is to kidnap Quicksilver, the richest man in the Society, who they believe is the Jackal's silent partner. Darrow and his men stumble into a peace negotiation between some of the Sovereign's underlings — Cassius au Bellona, Moira au Grimmus and the Death Knight — on one side, and Darrow's old friends — Virginia "Mustang" au Augustus, Kavax au Telemanus and Daxo au Telemanus — on the other. The room erupts in conflict and destruction; Moira and the Death Knight are killed. Mustang is shocked to find Darrow alive, and the Howlers manage to escape with Quicksilver and Kavax as prisoners. Quicksilver reveals that he had secretly co-founded the Sons of Ares with Sevro's late father Fitchner au Barca, and offers his considerable resources to Darrow. Kavax also makes peace with Darrow and offers him allegiance.

The Sons seize control of the moon Phobos as a distraction, allowing Darrow, Ragnar and Holiday to slip away to seek an alliance with Ragnar's mother Alia Snowsparrow, an Obsidian queen. They are intercepted and then joined by Mustang, who renews her dedication to Darrow and his cause. They learn too late that they have been followed by an enemy ship, and both ships crash into the frozen wasteland of Obsidian territory after a firefight in the air. Plagued by cannibalistic tribes of Obsidian outcasts, Darrow and his companions ambush their Gold pursuers, Aja au Grimmus and Cassius. Darrow and Mustang neutralize Cassius, but Ragnar is mortally wounded by Aja before she escapes. Ragnar's sister Sefi arrives in time to be reunited with him, only to watch him die. Hoping that the fierce Obsidian warriors will join his rebellion when they see that their "gods" are just men who have subjugated them, Darrow and Mustang lead Sefi and her Valkyrie to overtake the Golds who style themselves as Norse gods for the superstitious Obsidians. Alia still refuses to follow Darrow's cause and denounces his group as heretics, so Sefi kills her mother and then the former "gods". Sefi becomes queen and manages to rally all of the Obsidian tribes to join Darrow's crusade, leaving the polar region for the Sons of Ares' stronghold with a wounded Cassius in tow. Cassius reveals that the Sovereign's secret stockpile of nuclear weapons has been stolen, likely by the Jackal.

Darrow and Mustang seek an alliance with the Moon Lords of Jupiter, who are led by the self-declared Sovereign of the Outer Rim, Romulus au Raa. Darrow's former friend Roque au Fabii is also there, in his position as the Imperator of Octavia au Lune's Sword Armada, to negotiate a truce with the Moon Lords. Darrow secures their support against Octavia when he manipulates Roque into confirming that she possesses planet-destroying atomic weapons to use against them if necessary. Darrow's forces are joined by those of the Moon Lords against Roque's Sword Armada and the fleet of Victra's brutal sister, Antonia au Severus-Julii. Darrow and Mustang head directly at the center of Roque's formation and do some damage, but suffer heavy losses. With Darrow's flagship The Pax nearly destroyed, Roque brings his own ship close to have his commandos board the ship and capture Darrow. Darrow's true plan then takes off: he and a squad of Reds in clawdrills jump across and burrow into the hull of Roque's ship, chewing through deck after deck toward the bridge. They are followed by shuttles filled with Sefi's Obsidians. They overtake the ship, and the proud Roque, refusing to surrender, commits suicide. Antonia flees, but is soon captured by Victra. After the battle, Sefi and her Obsidians instigate a riot among the Sons of Ares to execute their Gold prisoners, having been enraged by the savagery of the Jackal. Sevro proves their hypocrisy in dramatic fashion by first hanging Cassius for killing Fitchner, and then hanging himself for his own multiple murders. Astonished, Sefi cuts them both down before they die, and Sevro makes peace with the Obsidians. Sevro and Victra are married in the week thereafter.

Darrow's Red Armada arrives at Luna to attack the Sovereign. Darrow, Sevro and Mustang release Cassius, who swears to distance himself from the war — until he suddenly grabs Sevro's scorcher and shoots him to death. Cassius stuns Darrow and Mustang, sets Antonia free, and the duo take Darrow, Mustang and Sevro's body with them to deliver to Aja and the Sovereign. They meet the Jackal, who coerces Cassius to sever Darrow's razor hand to render him less of a threat. Octavia orders Aja to execute Antonia for her dishonorable behavior during the battle with the Moon Lords, and sentences Darrow to death for his crimes in a live telecast. The Jackal puts Sevro's scorcher to Darrow's head and fires, but it is filled with blanks. His treachery exposed, Cassius kills the Sovereign's Praetorian guards and traps the Jackal outside the Sovereign's chamber, while Darrow and Mustang step out of their shackles. Cassius and Mustang face Aja as Darrow fatally stabs Octavia and revives a sedated Sevro. Aja is slain under their combined efforts. Before she dies, Octavia warns Darrow of a leaderless state, as well as the Jackal's threat to the Society. The Jackal instructs Darrow to commit suicide, under threat of detonating the nuclear bombs he has placed across Luna. Darrow tears out the Jackal's tongue to prevent him from giving orders, but twelve bombs are set off on Luna and millions are killed before the Jackal's flagship is destroyed.

With the support of Octavia's young grandson Lysander, Mustang takes control as Sovereign. She disbands the Senate and begins dismantling the Color system and the tyrannical social infrastructure of the Golds. The Jackal is publicly executed. Cassius, having made peace with Darrow and himself, takes off with Lysander to raise the boy in exile. Mustang reveals to Darrow the existence of their son, Pax, who was born while Darrow was presumed dead, and had been secretly in the care of Kavax's wife. Darrow vows to himself to create a better world for his son to live in.

Characters

Publication

Morning Star is the third and final novel in Brown's Red Rising trilogy, preceded by Red Rising (2014) and Golden Son (2015).[2] In August 2015, Brown said of the novel:

I'm working on the second draft [of Morning Star] as we speak. It's a more ambitious book than either Red Rising or Golden Son, so I've got my work cut out for me, but I couldn't be more pleased with how things are going so far. It's my last baby in the Red Rising Trilogy, so I want to make it the best.[3]

It was published on February 9, 2016, and debuted at #1 on The New York Times Best Seller list.[1]

Reception

Kirkus Reviews called Morning Star an "ambitious and satisfying conclusion to a monumental saga", noting that "Brown creates an alternative universe that is multilayered and seething with characters who exist in a shadow world between history and myth, much as in Frank Herbert’s Dune."[4] Marc Snetiker of Entertainment Weekly referred to Brown as "science fiction's best-kept secret", calling the novel "devastating and inspiring" and writing that "the violence here is grimmer, its humor more unsettling, its forgiveness rarer, its casualties more sickening."[5] Publishers Weekly called the Morning Star "excellent", adding that "Brown's vivid, first-person prose puts the reader right at the forefront of impassioned speeches, broken families, and engaging battle scenes that don't shy away from the gore as this intrastellar civil war comes to a most satisfying conclusion."[6] Kristine Huntley of Booklist described the novel as "simply stellar", calling it "a page-turning epic filled with twists and turns, heartbreaks and daring gambles" and praising Brown's "fabulously imagined universe".[7] Comparing the series to Star Wars and calling Morning Star "this trilogy's Return of the Jedi", Niall Alexander wrote in Tor.com that "as an ending, it absolutely satisfies" while noting some flaws in pacing, character development and accessibility for new readers.[8] Jason Sheehan of NPR praised Brown's vivid action scenes but wrote that this third installment is heavy on exposition.[9]

References

  1. 1 2 "Best Sellers for the week of February 28, 2016". The New York Times. February 21, 2016. Retrieved February 21, 2016.
  2. ↑ "Red Rising Trilogy Book 3: Morning Star". RedRisingBook.com (Official website). Retrieved January 30, 2015.
  3. ↑ Liang, Adrian (August 2, 2015). "Q&A with Red Rising and Golden Son Author Pierce Brown". Omnivoracious. Retrieved August 11, 2015.
  4. ↑ "Morning Star by Pierce Brown". Kirkus Reviews. December 9, 2015. Retrieved February 21, 2016.
  5. ↑ Snetiker, Marc (February 4, 2016). "Morning Star: EW review". Entertainment Weekly. Retrieved February 20, 2016.
  6. ↑ "Fiction Book Review: Morning Star: Red Rising, Book 3". Publishers Weekly. February 2016. Retrieved March 1, 2016.
  7. ↑ Huntley, Kristine (February 1, 2016). "Morning Star by Pierce Brown (Starred Review)". Booklist. Retrieved March 1, 2016.
  8. ↑ Alexander, Niall (February 8, 2016). "Return of the Reaper: Morning Star by Pierce Brown". Tor.com. Retrieved March 1, 2016.
  9. ↑ Sheehan, Jason (February 9, 2016). "Morning Star Brings Red Rising Trilogy To An End ... Eventually". NPR. Retrieved March 1, 2016.

External links

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