Episode 3 | Is Red Rising Good? Our Introduction into books

In this episode, we review the very popular Red Rising Series and discuss about some of the books which got us into reading. Enjoy ;)

Transcript

SPEAKER_01 0:11

Welcome back to the media shelf. I'm your host, Connor, here with my

Red Rising Review

SPEAKER_01 0:15

co-host Dylan. How are you doing, Dylan?

SPEAKER_00 0:17

Yeah, not bad, mate. Um about two, three weeks ago I finished Red Rising, which is Red Rising.

SPEAKER_01 0:25

It's a book. We actually read books. We read books one of those. Let me just get something.

SPEAKER_00 0:31

Let me just better say to improv just do it, just do really show that I read books. Okay.

SPEAKER_01 0:40

Oh, okay. Now we're talking. He just put his glasses on.

SPEAKER_00 0:48

I've I've got glasses because I read. These are reading glasses. I've got I've got glasses, which I need to read. You need everything. I can't see shit about them. You can't see anything. And then we've got Red Ryzen sitting right here. We're gonna delve into. I know a couple of our fans, especially Lewis, loves this franchise.

SPEAKER_01 1:11

Yeah, I think Lewis is gonna be really hyped for this. He's been waiting for this episode to come out for a while now. So waiting for months. Let's let's give him let's give him the meat and potatoes of the Red Ryzen review.

SPEAKER_00 1:21

Let's give the fans what they want. Do you know what I mean?

SPEAKER_01 1:24

Yeah, let's give the fan what he wants.

SPEAKER_00 1:27

But it's been about like since we started this, every comment on the podcast is when did Red Ryzen review coming out?

SPEAKER_01 1:34

Yeah, I don't even know the guy as well. Um I read Ryzen, I read it I think earlier this year, and I loved the book. Uh I'm on I loved it so much I'm on book five of the whole series. Um but I I've been begging you to read it for quite a while now. So I want I really want you to tell me what your thoughts are on the book.

SPEAKER_00 1:57

Yeah, I think initially, without going into any spoilers, I think it's exactly what you want for for an action, sci-fi, even elements of fantasy in there. It's literally what you want from that type of genre.

SPEAKER_01 2:15

It's got really good character building, it's got um great action elements, it's it's got really good like fantasy elements, even though it's not really a fantasy book, but it I know I was it's it's sci-fi, but it also like it doesn't really feel like it in a way, especially elements, yeah, yeah, especially that.

SPEAKER_00 2:38

But I think you know it it it's written really well in the sense that it's just what you want, it's not it's not deep in any way, like it's not very like philosophical or it doesn't make you question things, but it's it's like a really good movie where it's just the plot, and you've got that plot, and that plot carries the pace moving, yeah. The plot carries the whole way through the book. Um, yeah. I mean I think with Darrow as a character, it's very the first book we should probably add is probably best compared to Hunger Games.

SPEAKER_01 3:23

100%. A lot of people say it's like a Hunger Games, Game of Thrones S kind of um that that definitely have those elements in them. I actually think I don't know, it might have just been me, but I think it's better than Hunger Games. But I haven't read the books. I haven't read the book.

SPEAKER_00 3:41

I've only seen the films, but it is I probably would say the same, but my girlfriend's like a massive fan of Hunger Games, so yeah, don't say too much, yeah. Um but it it it kind of it follows that element with like whether Hunger Games got the districts, Red Horizons got the colours. Um I think sometimes in the book the colours can get a bit convoluted because there's subcolours within the colours, and there's um like factions as well. When you get later into the book, you you find out these factions that are within the university, yeah. Um but from uh start to finish, I think uh this book doesn't have uh really any downfalls. I think I would say uh you get to a part of the book and it stays in one uh environment for a lot of the book, which I would say I don't think it's bad, but I think it kind of lingered a bit too long.

SPEAKER_01 4:44

Yeah, let's let's go into the spoiler-free view, yeah. Um spoiler warnings for anyone that's listening now. Um a lot of the place, a lot of the book takes place in the institute. That is like the whole chunk of the book, really, isn't it? What are some of your favourite characters from the book?

SPEAKER_00 5:04

Oh there's so many. I think obviously Darrow, Sevro, um, Pax, Mustang, I think they're all the fucking the strong, yeah, the strong characters um within the book than that correct that carry out the main themes of the book and kind of shape what the book is. Um I think Darrow and his uncle, which in the book is portrayed as quite cowardly and weak and not very strong, where Darrow's this young kid that's a hell diver, got a lot of drive, is strong, and them comparisons get brought up quite a lot. Yeah, and I find that really interesting. I like how he keeps bringing that back into the book, um, and even when he is a gold, um he still thinks back to his uncle because his uncle kind of raised him. So obviously, his dad dies quite early on, and yeah, um, his uncle taught teaches him how to dance, how to like cope within the Red Society, and he teaches him a lot, but he's also looked down upon from Darrow, which I think I like his uncle, and I think his uncle was a really important part for Darrow in the book.

SPEAKER_01 6:39

Yeah, he's like the only kind of father figure that he has, doesn't he?

SPEAKER_00 6:44

I mean, characters aside, shit goes down within the last 80 episodes. Episodes, I mean episodes, uh pages. We find well, Pax dies, we find out Sevros Finch's dad, yeah, yeah, yeah. Finch's Finch's yeah, Sevros. No, no, no, yeah. Sevros uh Fincher's son. Yeah, that's it. Um what I thought the whole way through that Mustang was Eo, and I thought somehow that was my theory. Um but you find out she isn't, and she's actually the son of the do you remember the name of the Nero? Nero, he's like the president of some yeah, he's like I think he's the arch governor, which is like the I think the ruler of the of the of the planet, pretty much.

SPEAKER_01 7:44

Yeah, he's like he's just like the the king there, and the sister to the jackal, yeah, that's true.

SPEAKER_00 7:51

Um the jackal. Which I want to get out of the way as well. The jackal was underwhelming. I think the jackal and how long they kept the story in the like siege battle university thing were my only two flaws of the book. I think the jackal just gets captured, and it's kind of like, oh Darrow's tricked him into this position. But I think it also shows how smart Darrow is, yeah, and the whole time in this book that he's like he's not really an underdog, but he's he's he's he he's seen for how good he is, but I think he still sees himself as a red throughout the book.

SPEAKER_01 8:40

One thing I love about like films and movies is like when they introduce a villain, they kind of talk about him, they don't really show him at all. They really what I love that when they like introduce villains, a bit like Sephiroth in Final Fantasy VII, but you don't see him at all. Um and they print it's similar kind of concept here when the jackals kind of they they only show you the name and they just kind of give you rumours of what's happening throughout the whole book until like yeah, probably like the third act is when they kind of meet him. Yeah, it's not it's really late in, yeah, and he's not like this big fucking big guy that's like you know killing and killing everyone in like this alpha, he's just like a little skinny kid that is just a bit of a a weasel, just a little bit of a fucking freak, just a bit of a rat, really. Yeah, I actually did quite like the encounter where Darren the Jackal kind of met and they sat down and had drinks and whatnot, and then bang straight through the fucking hand, and then he's cut his own arm off. Yeah, I I quite I did quite like that, but I do agree that like there wasn't really like I didn't hate the jackal.

SPEAKER_00 9:56

Yeah, because you I feel like throughout the book there's other bits about him, and then yeah, you get introduced to him, and then I feel like you you don't it doesn't get built up enough. Yeah, well it does get built up, but it it there's not many interactions with Darrow and the Jackal to it almost kind of hate him and get that like reaction.

SPEAKER_01 10:16

There was just like there wasn't really like a like a rivalry that I kind of like cared about too much when it came to the Jackal and Darrow. Uh it would that I felt that more with Cassius and Darrow. Yeah, I was gonna say so much of a bigger rivalry and like tension between those two than Jackal and Darrow.

SPEAKER_00 10:36

Um yeah, definitely.

SPEAKER_01 10:38

But oh, I think probably one of my favourite parts of the book is when um like earlier on when Darrow like meets Finchner and then Darrow kind of knocks him out, and you're like, what the fuck's he done that for? It's so random that, and then later on that you find out that he stole his like his boots and whatnot to like fuck up with Apollo. I thought that's such a cool scene, and it's really just came out of nowhere as well. I was like, shit, yeah, yeah, shit is really going down.

SPEAKER_00 11:07

But obviously, all golds are like these beautiful specimens of people, and like if you're not beautiful, then well, for Sevro example, he's like called the goblin because he's he's small, he's ugly. But I think what makes the book kind of interesting as well is the fact that these gods are like so beautiful, but they're so dangerous, they they're almost like gods, and that there is a lot of comparisons, and Darrow says a lot of the time that they look like gods and stuff like that, yeah. But I think kind of looping back to the jackal because he isn't this big menacing figure, uh, rather than he's this like beautiful gold. I think we're so used to seeing just absolute oblinations of people like just yeah, disgusting big monsters, where these golds are so look so harmless and so beautiful that you couldn't imagine them doing anything wrong. Yeah, definitely. These are like the most heinous people, most like yeah, awful people you could be around. I like the fact that Darrow constantly refers back to um his uncle and like Eo as well. Is it no is it the same thing? Is like he constantly has to ground himself on why he's doing it, and I think yeah, your girlfriend said that he he comes off quite immature. But I like that. I would he's he's like 16 in the book, yeah. And I think it would be weird if he was just this like grown intelligent, kind of yeah, like knows everything that he's doing, he like couldn't doesn't make a mistake, so like he's got like an ego that like kind of overtakes him sometimes, and he had he makes a lot of mistakes as well, which I think is it's definitely good great character development as well.

SPEAKER_01 13:07

Yeah, especially when the but the first half of the book before he obviously Cassius 1v1s him and almost kills Darrow. Darrow was kind of like this he wants to get primers, he wants this like power, he wants to be alpha to kind of like take over the the like the institute, and that's that's kind of his plan. And then afterwards he was like, Okay, I kind of need to have a step back. I've got a humble big time by Cassius.

SPEAKER_00 13:34

It's it's not when he it's not until he meets Mustang where he kind of changes his outlook on yeah, yeah, uh the institute and how it's played because the whole time he he comes off like oh he's he's one step ahead of the institute. This is how they want they want him to play the game, and he knows that when but it's then not until he gets stabbed by Cassius, and then Mustang saves him and tells him that like the slaves aren't gonna be there for you or help you if you're just gonna kick them aside or treat them like shit, yeah, exactly.

SPEAKER_01 14:12

Yeah, um it's it's good unity as well that they bring. That was kind of like his whole reason uh in the second half of the book.

SPEAKER_00 14:21

Um so for like someone that is like obviously dominating the game, he's still learning things, yeah. Which which I think is really good character development. I think shows that he's he's still quite young, even though he's like fucking murdered people and done all this awful stuff.

SPEAKER_01 14:41

It's quite um it's quite fucked up some of the stuff that happens in there. Yeah, yeah. Obviously, in the hunger games, like, oh yeah, you do kill people, and the same thing here. But I do really like how dark it it gets. I mean it gets really it there's definitely like really dark elements as well, in it.

SPEAKER_00 14:59

I mean, even our last episode we were talking about Odyssey and we wished it was an 18. I know it's a movie compared to a but but I think that is a good example of how Red Rising kind of shows the gruesomeness of being a bit more mature, yeah.

SPEAKER_01 15:16

Yeah, yeah. Gruesomeness? Is that a word? Yeah, uh probably gruesome, gruesome, yeah. Um I think that's the that's the I thought I find it really hard to imagine stuff when it's kind of just man kills man, yeah. Man kills man and it man kills man, he lies dead on the floor, uh eyes in the sky, and just looking up in the sky. I I don't really feel nothing towards that because you've seen it done million times. That's what most of the films and movies are nowadays, and and books as well. It's about conflict and killing people. Um showing gruesome parts where so obviously some people hate that, I think does add a layer of um imagination as well. I found this on the website. I think so, yeah.

SPEAKER_00 16:09

Um no, I I know what you mean, and I think it I think it plays around where these these kids that these golds that are like presented in such a like elegant way, yeah, and and they get put into these things where they've got nothing, and they just become these like barbaric peoples, yeah, where they just don't know what to do, and they just thrive off either killing people, or I mean there's some other shit as well that goes it's I'm trying to think of the guy um that Darrow kills that they that they capture um Titus the one that was also a goal, uh also a red, yeah.

SPEAKER_01 16:57

That's Titus. Titus, yeah, he Darrow lets Cassius kill him because um with a Titus that kind of pissed on him as well, yeah. Yeah, yeah, they all like pissed on him. Um yeah, I love Cassius, I think he's such a great character. Um, I think you'll find that out as well in the later books as well. He's I think he's probably one of the most the better written uh characters in the whole series, Cassius. Really? I think he's great, yeah. I really do, even though he is a bit of a prick. He's kind of like this, like I'm just trying to think of an actor that can kind of compare compare to he's like this very good-looking blonde that is like Brad Pitt, probably when he's younger, maybe Oceans 11 Brad Pitt, Ryan Goslin, Ryan Goslin, yeah, yeah, that's true, or like Titanic DiCaprio, that kind of stuff. Like, yeah, he's just I quite I don't know, yeah. I quite like that man, but obviously Severo as well, I think he's just amazing. He's kind of like the Rothand man that several never leaves.

SPEAKER_00 18:03

He like he several doesn't even really need to do much, but he's just he's he is the real underdog, really. He's like he's he's the lone wolf, even though he sticks by Darrow's side, but he's just he survived by himself like the whole time.

SPEAKER_01 18:21

Oh, do you know what? Like, is I just it just came to my mind. I think as when there's so many cool moments about Sevro, but I think one of the coolest moments was like I think they were all having a chat with Apollo, he came down to like say say some shit, and he's like, Sevro, where the fuck are you going, mate? And he's like, I'm going for a piss, and then you just like you don't hear about that, and and then he's like, Oh shit, where's Sevro? I think like and he's like actually conquering like the whole of um yeah, what it of the castle.

SPEAKER_00 18:50

Was it uh I'm trying to think what one it was, was it Duke? It was House Apollo. Oh what? Oh yeah, oh yeah, of course.

SPEAKER_01 18:57

It was Apollo, yeah, and he was just fucking shit up. It was he's just so cool like that, yeah.

SPEAKER_00 19:03

Um but um I think Casio, even now, is really well written because obviously he comes off as this really arrogant person, very full of himself. But when he's in the institute and when he's got nothing else left, he's kind of he he sticks by Darrow's side, and he is he's kind of vulnerable, especially about his brother as well. And I think you don't really expect this arrogant god of a man to be like this, yeah. Um, and I am excited to see where he goes in the next books.

SPEAKER_01 19:43

Oh man, you need to read the next book. I'm so excited for it. I think a lot of people do say the second book is like so much better, but you just need to get through the first book. I mean, I love the first book, so it doesn't really bother me too much. But the second book is just like it blows out of the water, I think.

SPEAKER_00 20:02

I'm trying to think where it's gonna go, and you've got it because I'm I've got it, I've yeah, I've got it ready. I've got I'm just trying to think because I've I'm keep I keep comparing it to Hunger Games, yeah.

SPEAKER_01 20:14

Um Hunger Games, like she goes into the the games and then she kind of breaks out, doesn't she?

SPEAKER_00 20:21

And like she has a rebellion um across like the yeah, and then she has like she has she has like a sub well there's like a group like Ares that she gets captured by and stuff. But I'm trying to think because obviously at the end of the first book, he goes with Darrow goes with the governor, yeah, yeah.

SPEAKER_01 20:46

He kneels before and becomes his sword, doesn't he?

SPEAKER_00 20:49

Yeah, and then everyone's like what the fuck's going on? Like this is yeah, this is nuts. Because I think that was the point for Darrow as well, where it was like, Okay, I've made it out of this, I still need to make sure I'm gonna do my mission.

SPEAKER_01 21:04

Yeah, so I'm gonna fuck it up. Yeah, what were your thoughts about the ending?

SPEAKER_00 21:08

I thought it was good, but I didn't think it was like yeah, yeah, yeah. But but uh you can tell they're obviously lining it up for the next book. Yeah, yeah, yeah. So I can't. I'm not really mad at it either because I know what they're trying to do and I know where they're trying to lead you um with the next book, but it wasn't like crazy, it wasn't it wasn't no um it's just yeah, it just sets it up, doesn't it?

SPEAKER_01 21:34

Really? It just it just sets it up. That's what it really does. That's a good way of setting it all up. Are you like not mad that Darrell just didn't clart Nero just there?

SPEAKER_00 21:44

And then I am, but I also get it as well. I he should he should have. He should have clotted. He should have clouded Neo. Yeah.

SPEAKER_01 21:55

Clarted in what way?

SPEAKER_00 22:00

Depends which way you want the book to go. For all I know, the next book could be a gay romance. It could be. It could be. What what I'm trying to figure out is how Darrow stays connected with all the other people like Cassius, Pat, oh yeah, yeah, yeah. Sevro, Mustang. Yeah, I'm trying to I'm trying I'm trying to see how they piece together. I I imagine the the second book will be like okay, he's he's done the next step. They're strategizing on how like to kind of turn over the gold, and then the third book will be the big war or whatever it is. Yeah, I know they change. I don't know. I this is I haven't read them, so I'll not make sure you have no idea what you're getting yourself into.

SPEAKER_01 22:56

I'll be real with you. You have no fucking idea. Um the second book is honest. After reading the the five books, I don't know, because the third book I think is just as good as the second book, if not better. Um but yeah, no, you need to start reading them. And the thing is, like these Red Rising books, Piers Brown is so good at just keeping momentum in front of the whole book, like it is just a fast pace, just bang, bang, bang, bang, bang. There's not really like any downtime, really. Um there is obviously some downtime. I think it's important to have downtime in in stories as well. I really wish I think they were planning to like adapt it into like a TV series. I think it got cancelled. Uh, I'm not too not really too sure why.

SPEAKER_00 23:49

Well, I'd I mean, this the first book only came out in like 2015, didn't it? Yeah, 2016. 2015.

SPEAKER_01 23:56

Um, I think like the last couple of years it kind of got a resurgence.

SPEAKER_00 24:00

Yeah, it's like big on TikTok and stuff now, and yeah, a lot of booktubers are but I yeah, I honestly I couldn't think of like a better book to be adapted into movie or yeah, kind of just imagine it already, couldn't you?

SPEAKER_01 24:15

I just I think it would just be a 15 though. I don't think they would go full out.

SPEAKER_00 24:22

I don't know, because the Hunger

Blade Runner 2099

SPEAKER_00 24:24

Games is a young adult's book, so whereas this is obviously a lot more mature, so I don't know, and they might I don't know, but there's a lot of like gory stuff in it there as well.

SPEAKER_01 24:37

Not a lot of people make 18 films anymore, except horror films. Like his directory, except Tarantino. I think he's like that. All of his films are pretty much 18 plus.

SPEAKER_00 24:50

Yeah, I think it's hard, it's hard for them to like commercialise it. Yeah, it is. But I don't know. This I think if they made an adaptation, they would have to like stick with it, and it would have to be an 18, or it just didn't it wouldn't come across as good.

SPEAKER_01 25:08

I'll be scared to kind of watch it. That's what I'll be.

SPEAKER_00 25:13

Well, talking about book I don't adapt adaptation. Um Blade Runner is getting a TV series. Really? Have you seen the trailer? Should we get a live reaction of the trailer? Um by the people that made the Halo series. That's the only problem though, because I don't think that was that good. The Halo series. Oh shit, okay. Have you did you I'm like a massive fan of Blade Runner?

SPEAKER_01 25:45

Did you watch it? I love Blade Runner. I the thing is I can't actually remember the first film too much because I watched it when I was quite young with my dad. So I kind of need to have a rerun of that. But um, is it 2049?

SPEAKER_00 25:58

Yeah.

SPEAKER_01 26:00

That yeah, that film's amazing. Blade Runner 2099.

SPEAKER_00 26:04

Yeah, I don't know where it carries on from. Well, obviously it must it must be after the second film.

SPEAKER_01 26:11

But I was really scott reducing it. Production, yeah.

SPEAKER_00 26:21

Shit. It's intense.

SPEAKER_01 26:27

I've got this so loud in my earphones like I'm hearing everything. Jesus Christ.

SPEAKER_00 26:33

Well Odyssey always got the um forever if I need to come back.

SPEAKER_01 27:02

From the trailer alone, it looks pretty good. That looks r that actually does look really good. That looks really good.

SPEAKER_00 27:10

I think the world the what the world that they made looks exactly like 2049.

SPEAKER_01 27:16

I love the like the cyberpunk setting. It's so cool. And you you haven't played Cyberpunk 27 2077, have you? Well, that is a bit of a that is just blade one, pretty much. Yeah, it's so cool, it is so cool. It kind of reminds me of like I'm just trying to think what other kind of stuff that has that this dystopian kind of future. You ever watched Judge Dred?

SPEAKER_00 27:44

I have, yes, yeah.

SPEAKER_01 27:45

Remember that? Yeah, it was like so gory, it is really gory. It's just him just going around fucking about. You've read the Blade Runner book.

SPEAKER_00 27:57

I have read the Blade Runner book. I would say the Blade Runner book is the Blade Runner book, it was like since I've got into reading, it was like the first book I read, and it was really good, it was really, really good. I think the first film doesn't really represent the book that well, it only represents like the first portion of the book, and then the second one I think represents it a lot better. Um, because the whole point of the Blade Runner series is like what's the main characters constantly battling and to be like to understand what it's like to be human and the fact that he realizes that he's not human, he he kind of spirals from there and stuff, and killing his own type of people, it it goes back and forth with that. But I think the book represents that a lot better than especially the first film, yeah. And then the second film kind of shows more of that, but books really good.

SPEAKER_01 28:55

Okay, I won't say much because obviously, if you want to read it, what is like the first book that kind of got you into like reading? Because we've we've only kind of started reading I think I guess properly last year.

SPEAKER_00 29:11

Yeah, yeah.

SPEAKER_01 29:12

I we're kind of still new to the to the scene.

SPEAKER_00 29:16

What I kept trying to read is like before I probably got back into it, I catch was trying to read like books from films that I've like watched, and I think I kept getting stuck because I was like, oh what like I I know what's gonna happen, this, that, and the other and I think that's not true at all. Like, if you read a book compared to the film, that the some of them can be completely different. Yeah, um, but I think I was reading Once Upon a Time in Hollywood ages ago. It was such a shit bug, such a shit bug. Is that what the film was based off of? No, but so um Quindon Taratino, I think, wrote the book after the film came out, right? Um, but I just remember there's this section where the main character's talking about movies, and it's probably about five male, like he's in like an interview, and he's he's like the he's an actor, obviously, and he's speaking to like some director, and they're talking about movies that they liked. And honestly, it just felt like I was reading

What got us into books

SPEAKER_00 30:25

a passage from Quinton's like journal where he was just writing, like, oh, these films are amazing, like, yeah, you've got to watch these films, and it was it was honestly like four or five pages long, and I was like, This is so this is so draining, yeah. So I I mean Blade Runner was probably the first book that I read for like through fully and enjoyed it in that kind of segment. Yeah, it got the ball rolling, and I think it was a good first book to read, to be honest. Yeah, I think it had like elements of everything that I liked.

SPEAKER_01 31:05

I I I guess it helps as well that you kind of know what's gonna happen because you've obviously watched the film, but there's also like missing pieces that don't get included in the film that you can kind of just yeah, yeah, that's cool. I was kind of similar. I I I watched June, June in the cinema part two, and it was so good. I was like, I've got to get the book and just read this because I've got to know like what else happens because obviously there's a part later this year. Um June was a it's not a small part though. That's not no, and it's also a hard book to to read. There's a whole different language to it, there's a whole like glossary in the back page. Um I would say it's probably maybe just as confusing as the film, but I loved Dune. I thought June was so good, and I need to read the third one, Messiah, before the part three comes out. That's what I do need to do.

SPEAKER_00 32:06

Yeah, yeah. I need I would like to read the Dune books at some point. I can't really get that much into the movies, I don't know why. I think they are like amazing, but like I don't I don't know. I think I find I can't actually I feel I I struggle to get through them.

SPEAKER_01 32:22

It's like part one is like really focused on world building and just character development, like not actually much happens in the first film. I remember watching the first film, I was like, oh, this is cool, but like what is this? Because like it's obviously leading up to the part two, and part I watched part two, then you kind of get everything from part one, and you're like, oh shit, this is actually insane. Part two is I think amazing, it's probably one of the best films I've watched in a cinema ever. Yeah, maybe apart from the Odyssey as well.

SPEAKER_00 32:54

Um, I've actually just told a lie as well. My first book didn't get me back into reading at all because it was honestly the worst experience I've ever had reading a book with Clockwork Orange.

SPEAKER_01 33:10

Oh, damn, yeah. I remember that. Remember you telling me about this.

SPEAKER_00 33:14

Honestly, if if anyone's trying to get back into reading, literally don't touch that. Like you've got to be reading for like 20 years, just to like it's it's honestly like 150 pages or something, maybe even shorter, but it doesn't make any sense, and I'm not even saying that in the sense of like, oh, it's it's in depth and it's confusing. No, there is a whole different language within the book that you need to know. Well, it's like slang pretty much, but you need to know that slang for any of the book to make sense, yeah.

SPEAKER_01 33:46

Um, did it have like a like a translator at the back as well?

SPEAKER_00 33:50

I don't think it did. I made a bookmark that had all the different translations on, so I could just look at it, and it was such a drag to read. Honestly, I think if you've got the time and you like stuff like that, then go ahead. But it is it is just so awful to read. I think books like those I need to like level up before I I read unlimited, you just need a limited amount of patience, yeah, and XP as well, and XP, and maybe maybe like a TikTok on the on the left hand side so you can get distracted out now and then.

SPEAKER_01 34:39

I I had the similar experience of fucking Blood Meridian. Have you still got that? I do still have that, yeah. God, Blood Meridian. So for some reason, I watched one B on Blood Meridian, and like he was everywhere in my feed, and like they were speaking about Judge Holden now, he's like this awful character. I was like, Alright, I'm gonna bite the bullet, get Blood Meridian. I don't think I can tell you now. I'm probably about three-quarters for the book. I couldn't tell you what happened to that book. I've read three quarters of that book. I just know it's a it's a it's a kid that goes with a gang and um goes off with a gang, and then there's just so much violence where you're kind of just numb to it about halfway through. Like it is like so gory for no reason at all. Like, no reason. This should be if this was ever like a film, it'd be like a fucking 30 plus age film. It's on there's so much fucked up stuff in it, and you're like, oh shit, like this is messed up stuff at the start of the book, and then you're like when this has been done like 10, 15, 20 times, you're like, okay, where is this going? Where is you're just telling me this shit now, but just because it's like there. Um no plot, and I've got and that is unfinished. That is like so. I I think I'm gonna get some more experience, get a few skill points here and there before I read Blood Meridian.

SPEAKER_00 36:04

Well, I was I went to Waterstones and I spoke so I wanted to read All the Pretty Horses by McCarthy.

SPEAKER_01 36:12

Oh, yeah.

SPEAKER_00 36:14

And when you read in Blood Meridian, you said that he barely uses punctuation, so it's just so hard to follow.

SPEAKER_01 36:20

No, it's like he describes the sky in about 50 words with no punctuation at all. Maybe later on down the line, where I'm kind of like, I've read all the books that I've kind of wanted to read, then I really want to experiment on expanding my my kind of reading skill. I will go back to it. Um, but right now I don't that book is definitely not for me.

SPEAKER_00 36:45

No, and they don't blame you. And when I went to Water Stones, I was speaking to one of the workers there, and I was like, you know, I want to read this book, but I know it's quite hard to read. And he was explaining in a way was like, I was trying to get out of him that like he doesn't use punctuation, his books are like quite hard to read, and he was like, Yeah, I wouldn't I wouldn't read Blood Meridian for your first McCarthy book. However, like you've got to you've got to spend the time on this book. Like if you he said he said like if you've got like sometimes it'll take you like four or five rereads to read one page to kind of understand it, and I was like, I just I just don't I don't want I don't I don't have the time for that and I don't want to maybe like down the line when we do get a better better reading and whatever, yeah.

SPEAKER_01 37:35

Yeah, maybe, but like yeah, no, I just can't. I've got the road, I can't McCarthy. Um I don't know why I'm gonna read that because I can imagine it's gonna be the same kind of thing, yeah. Very slow, very like, but he's meant to be one of the best writers of all time.

SPEAKER_00 37:51

Yeah, he is and he probably is really good, but I think I just don't I don't have the patience for

Red Rising Ratings

SPEAKER_00 37:58

us young'uns.

SPEAKER_01 37:59

We'll stick to Piers Brown for now.

SPEAKER_00 38:01

Yeah, we just got Piers Brown, we'll stick to that straightforward storytelling, nothing wrong. Can't go wrong with Red Ryzen.

SPEAKER_01 38:10

No, no, Red Rising's I think probably a great first book if you ever wanted to read something.

SPEAKER_00 38:17

Uh honestly, yeah. I wouldn't disagree. I think it's simple enough where you can follow through like the whole time. Yeah. And the characters are built perfectly to where you are involved, invested. Sorry. Do you want to speak about anything else, or do you want uh yeah?

SPEAKER_01 38:34

I've pretty I kind of wanted to know you what your thoughts were on Red Rise and they're pretty positive, which I'm happy about. You just need to get onto reading the second book now because the second book is crazy.

SPEAKER_00 38:46

Should I give it a overall rec? Should I give it a like four uh five out um way out of five?

SPEAKER_01 38:53

Sorry. I'm drawing. No, let's do one out of ten because we did the Odyssey one out of ten as well.

SPEAKER_00 38:59

Oh, yeah, true. Um I don't like one out of ten.

SPEAKER_01 39:05

Um I don't like one out of five to be honest.

SPEAKER_00 39:08

Really? Yeah, I think you have to rate one out of five.

SPEAKER_01 39:13

I think maybe, but like if you think if you kind of like look at a like something and you see, oh, it's a 3.5 out of 5, that's actually like really good. Yeah, but like I think that is that's what that looks like. Oh, that looks kind of just like shit.

SPEAKER_00 39:30

But then when you when when you rate something out of ten, like what does six mean? Yeah, like six is like above average, yeah, but then like I can't even like I couldn't even think of something that's a six.

SPEAKER_01 39:47

You do your one out of five, and I'll do my one out of ten.

SPEAKER_00 39:53

I would say on between a three point nine and a four, I think I think I rated it a four on Goodreads, yeah.

SPEAKER_01 40:03

Um why can't you like do half stars on Goodreads?

SPEAKER_00 40:07

Oh, I don't know, it's much so annoying. It's so clunky as well when you're trying to rate something, yeah. Um, but I'll say a three three point nine four. I think for the first book into the trilogy, it's everything that you want as a solid book, yeah.

SPEAKER_01 40:24

I think it's four star out of ten.

SPEAKER_00 40:28

I'll give it oh, actually, this is hard now because then with ten as well, you can give like yeah eight point like two but I can give like three point eight or one out of five, yeah. But yeah, but I guess that feels it means more though, as well. It doesn't fucking matter.

SPEAKER_01 40:51

I don't know why I'm just give me a uh read out of ten, actually I'm gonna give it out of five because it follows a good reads um order. Um I think oh because now knowing obviously the other books, I'm gonna give Red Rising I'll give it a 3.8 3.8, I think 3.8, yeah.

SPEAKER_00 41:19

Yeah, to be fair, I thought I thought you would have rated it higher.

SPEAKER_01 41:22

I thought I think I would have I I would have, but like I was thinking of how good these other books are compared to the first book, and I think that is kind of like taking off some points of it. Yeah, yeah. Cool. Well hopefully next time we do a book review, we do the Golden Sun review. I'll be very excited about it. Yeah, Lewis will be ecstatic. Lewis would be so excited for that. He loves the second book, he's been telling me all about it.

SPEAKER_00 41:54

I can't believe he's got posters everywhere, all around his room.

SPEAKER_01 41:59

Yeah, and he's got about 10 books as well in different covers. Thank you all for listening to the media shop. I think we've covered everything that we want to talk about here. Um yeah, any final remarks then? Stay red, stay red, stay red, and stay rising. I think the my favorite bit of that book was when Darrow said, We are the reds, and we are rising.

SPEAKER_00 42:29

No, it was it was when it was when Mars were marching um to Tekonka somewhere, and they started chanting, we are the reds, we are the reds, we are rising, and we are the reds.

SPEAKER_01 42:45

I think that's like my favorite joke of like saying the title of something and putting it in context with like something else. I think it's actually and dingus does it all the time. Okay, thank you all for listening, guys, and we'll see you next week.