June 12, 2024sarahylockwood

Light Bringer by Pierce Brown

Rate: 5/5

Medium: Audiobook

Overview (No Spoilers):

Picking up the pieces in the aftermath of Dark Age, Light Bringer finds Darrow at his darkest and full of doom. Honestly, as excited as I was for another installment of this series, I found I was as full of dread as Darrow with where the story might go. Hope was in short supply to say the least. Despite this gloomy start where Darrow shows signs of cracking, it is from this low that Darrow arguably evolves more than he has in any book yet in this series. Instead of rushing in with brute force, he embraces a philosophical approach. It is refreshing and makes a familiar character delightfully unpredictable again. Additionally, Sevro also experiences growth or at least introspection that is long overdue. Sevro finally addresses the long shadow of father. Moreover, Sevro and Darrow finally confront the role that the Goblin has been forced to play to keep Darrow ‘clean’. The healing made my Howler heart happy. 

Speaking of unpredictability, I have continually praised Brown for keeping me on my toes as I almost never see his plot twists coming. Unfortunately, that changes in Light Bringer as Brown lapses into a pattern where emotional breakthroughs and heart to hearts will signal  a character’s looming demise waiting. It happened not once, but at least three times throughout this novel. Rest assured, there are a couple of false alarms, but the big deaths are bright beacons. That said, as there are a ton of untimely deaths in Light Bringer, it feels as though Brown is purposefully pruning the ranks to prepare for Red God. 

So much happens throughout Light Bringer that it is a positively delightful whirlwind. This was my first time I’ve read one of Brown’s books with audio as the primary medium before physical text and I missed his fun and extensive vocabulary, though the eloquence did resonate. One of my favorite quotes was: 

“You’re acting like you share a secret language all of a sudden.” 

“Isn’t that always the case with those who read the same books?”

As always, Brown’s characters are bursting with personality, though I find it intriguing and rather alarming how much I like his villains. Sure they’re horrid and do absolutely despicable things, but they are such complex and unique characters that I can’t help but sit up straight whenever they enter a scene, especially Applonius and Atlas. With pivoting from villains to heroes, I can’t express enough how much I enjoy Cassius in the Light Bringer. He is the ray of light that Darrow needs as he continues his own soul healing redemption. 

While Brown has packed in many heartbreaking deaths in this series as a whole, there is one death in particular in Light Bringer that might be the most gut wrenching. I just finished a reread of Light Bringer and it is just as devastating the second time around. I read this book before it was released, but I had to sit on the review for a year before bringing myself to finalize the review with the aid of a reread because I found this death so upsetting. Again, a testament to how much I enjoyed and was impacted by this read.

Overall, Light Bringer is everything and more a Howler could have wished for in the penultimate installation, death, evolutions, betrayals, shocking twists, and the healing of souls. Bloodydamn brilliant.

Additional Insight (Spoilers Abound): 

  • Ajax’s death seemed so pointless.
  • I loved that Severo escaped Apollonius. It was a perfect twist, and so very fitting for Severo who wrecked havoc while in hiding.
  • Atlas deserved a better death. He was such a perfect ‘bad guy’. One of the best I’ve read in literature. Actually, it felt like the readers were robbed of what was likely the best battle of the whole series between Cassius and Atlas.
  • I did not expect Quicksilver and Matteo to be leaving the solar system with a bunch of children set to start the next civilization.
  • Where is the pseudo Jackal?
  • Pax at the academy becoming essentially a blue is so interesting. In a way he is Gold, Red, and now Blue. I want to know more about his journey!
  • I loved that Lyria joined Darrow. I felt conflicted about getting the figment removed from her head. Is it actually gone? I thought for sure she would be the Red God.
  • Where is Darrow’s niece and Lyria’s brother’s. Did they die on Mercury?
  • We keep getting fooled by our desire for a redemption arc for Lysander despite Brown never wavering from having Lysander on his current brutal path. There’s no hope for him at this point. There’s no coming back from killing Cassius and Alexander without any honor.
  • While the Battle for Phobos dragged, it was worth it to seeing Mustang stand on her own beyond Darrow’s shadow and show her brilliance.
  • How did Diomedes get his teeth back?
  • One of my favorite parts of this series as a whole has to be Sevro, Cassius, Diimedes, and Darrow all on the same ship.
  • The biggest shocker was Atlas carving his own body with pieces of Helios and fooling Diomedes into giving over the commands.
  • Faa’s death was pitiful by the end. Though the crazy war lord had so many layers by the end as you discover that he is actually one of Atlas’ gorgons and has a completely different name. 
  • Another shocking betrayal was Roan actually being one of Atlas’ minions and betraying Lysander.
  • There’s another figment!!
  • Severo and his ham. It was an amazing detail!
  • Leaving Pytha go doesn’t make any sense with how brutal Lysander has become.
  • What has Atlantia been up to? How has Mustang fared?
  • As the Rim tries to intercept their people, what about the disease infected ones?
  • The Faa fight is pure perfection! Also felt like a nod to Martin with the “Confess” chant.
  • What will happen to the ultimate weapon?

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