If I loved Red Rising, I don't even know how to describe what I'm feeling at the end of Golden Son. It was a cluserfuck in the best way possible. 
 The Good: 
 One of my complaints about Red Rising (one of two) was that while I really enjoy Darrow as a character, he was infallible in RR. There was nothing he couldn't do, and his few flaws always managed to work in his favor somehow. That was not the case here. This is a roller coaster of rising and falling. GS opens up with Darrow failing hard, something that puts his whole mission in jeopardy. That sets off a chain reaction of events that was just insane. He rises from it, brushing off the ashes as he does, only to fall again and again before the end. He's not the God he's built himself to be, and I loved seeing that tension work throughout the book as he faces his own limitations only to push past them. Sometimes I wanted to hit him but out of love (usually). 
 All my favorite characters are back (Except Pax - MY HEART - but at least we get his hilarious family), and it was EVERYTHING I WANTED. One of the themes I love about this series is relationships, and how friendships transcend hardship and blood. Oh, how many times this was put to the test. You see the crux of it at the end. My heart broke. TOO MUCH. 
 Once again, the pacing was excellent. Golden Son hits the ground running and does not stop until the end. We get slower chapters here and there only to be pushed right back into the insanity of the rest of it. I swear, my heart rate didn't slow down from 25% in until the end. There's so much at stake, and I felt every bit of that tension and intensity. 
 I have to give a nod to my lady characters. Mustang, Vitra, Aja, and the Sovereign are fierce AF, crushing that patriarchy left and right. They are so badass, and I loved the moments where they dashed male expectations in favor of their own agendas and self-worth. Even that tender moment with Darrow's mother at the end pointed to how women carry society in a world that was built to crush them. LOVE. 
 The elements from RR that I enjoyed are still there: the consistent action, the political focus, the ruthlessness and unflinching violence that comes with revolutions. It was just SO GOOD. I finished it an hour ago, and I still can't believe how well done this second installment is. I applaud you, Pierce Brown. I am floored. 
 The Bad: 
 NOTHING. That's right. NOTHING. When has that ever happened? 
 (Though given time, I'm sure I'll come up with something) 
 Morning Star, you better not disappoint me. I don't think my heart will take it.