I put off reading this for two years, and I'm a little pissed at myself for that. This was everything I wanted Hunger Games to be. 
 The Good: 
 The world is fairly laid out in the first hundred pages of the book. Brown demonstrates the oppressive and necessity for change very early on, which works well for Darrow's transformation into a Gold and the catalyst for revolution. The pacing is excellent; instead of cramming everything into a short time frame, this book tackles years without feeling overwrought or drawn out. Though the beginning is a little slower, the action doesn't stop once it starts. 
 Darrow is brutal and ruthless; he's a master manipulator and surprisingly brilliant. I found myself constantly shaking my head or exclaiming out loud when he managed to turn situations on their heads or through the countless betrayals and deaths. 
 Brown also consistently fleshes out his minor characters in a short time frame, and that made Eo and Darrow's ending unexpectedly heartbreaking. That emotion was captured for me, and I still feel it into Golden Son. Maybe it's because I'm binge reading the series in three days, but the side characters feel like tangible characters. I adore Mustang, Sevro, and Pax (MY HEART). Those three in particular had these funny moments of comic relief that lessened the intensity in most of the scenes throughout the book. 
 I also appreciated how rape is handled. It was always handled as a perverse action. The main group of characters never once treated it as something that wasn't supposed to be abhorred and ignored. Most of the reactions were horror and shock and then met with swift punishment. Darrow makes one comment to Mustang where he asks her if she would react the same if said rapist had raped a young Red girl. Her silence speaks volumes, and I loved how that can apply to this particular society and our own. 
 Overall, I loved the political nature of this book (and series in general). It's such a political beast; most dystopian series today ignore that aspect or handle it with kid gloves when in reality, revolutions are almost completely political in nature. This was a brutal upheaval of the natural order of society, complete with bloodshed, betrayals, and strategy. 
 Not to mention the writing is gorgeous. Love, love, love. 
 The Bad: 
 I only have a couple of complaints, and they were all resolved in Golden Son. 
 Darrow is kind of a faultless character in this first book. He's angry and impulsive, but it almost always works in his favor. While I love how ruthless and cunning he is, it seemed like he could do no wrong here. But I guess that's the point: build him up to this highest so the fall is devastating. 
 While I appreciated how rape is handled, it felt like the women here take a backseat to Darrow's heroics. Women are raped, manipulated, or saved. They are the comforters of the broken men or the tools they use to get what they want. I think it's overshadowed by the overall force of the plot, but it still bugged me a little bit. Nevertheless, it's still a 5 star read, and because it's resolved in Golden Son, I can forgive it here. 
 HIGHLY RECOMMEND.