Red Rising characters

Appears from the start

A young Helldiver in the mining colony of Lykos, deep beneath the surface of Mars. He belongs to the Reds, the lowest caste in a rigid, color-coded society ruled by the golden-eyed elite. Proud, quick, and reckless, he is one of the best drillers of hazardous tunnels, and he believes, as all his people are taught, that Reds are noble pioneers making Mars livable for future generations. Married young to Eo, he mostly wants to survive and be left in peace, until grief and betrayal push him toward a far larger fight.

Appears from the start

Darrow's young wife, a Red of Lykos. Spirited, clever, and restless, she chafes at the cramped, dangerous life the mines allow her people and dreams of a freer world beyond them. Where Darrow is content to endure, Eo believes the Reds are being lied to and used, and she is willing to take great risks to wake others to that truth and to plant the seed of hope.

First appears in chapter 8

A Red agent of the Sons of Ares, a secret rebel network that fights the ruling Golds. Missing an eye and moving with a limp, he is patient, warm, and persuasive. He shows Darrow how thoroughly the Golds have deceived the Reds about the true state of Mars and the wider Society, and recruits him for a dangerous long game.

First appears in chapter 9

A Violet Carver, a surgeon and body-sculptor for hire. Vain and theatrical about his craft, he painstakingly remakes Darrow's bones, muscles, senses, and biology so he can pass as a member of the Gold ruling caste. The transformation is agonizing and irreversible.

First appears in chapter 19

A gruff, cynical Gold who serves as a Proctor, one of the adults overseeing the deadly competition Darrow enters. Blunt and unsentimental, he seems more clear-eyed than the other Proctors about the cruelty of the contest and the students caught in it.

First appears in chapter 20

A large, domineering Gold placed with Darrow at the start of the contest. He rules the early camp through brute force and fear, indulging in cruelty toward the weaker students, until his misrule provokes a challenge to his authority.

First appears in chapter 20

One of the sharpest and most charismatic Gold students in the contest. Witty, principled, and a gifted tactician, she first stands as a rival to Darrow before circumstances make her a crucial ally. Where many of the young Golds prize dominance for its own sake, she seems to want something better from the people around her.

First appears in chapter 21

A small, feral, unnervingly capable Gold student the others underestimate and mock. Comfortable in filth and darkness and afraid of almost nothing, he attaches himself to Darrow and becomes his fiercest and most loyal follower, leading a band of raiders who strike from the shadows.

First appears in chapter 22

A handsome, generous young Gold of the powerful Bellona family. Charming and openly honorable in a place that rewards ruthlessness, he becomes Darrow's closest friend and confidant during the contest. He carries the pride of a great house and a deep love for his family.

First appears in chapter 23

A gentle, bookish Gold with a poet's temperament, out of place among the brutal contenders. Thoughtful and loyal, he becomes one of Darrow's trusted friends and offers counsel and calm where others offer only violence.

First appears in chapter 30

A rival commander in the contest, known at first only through a growing reputation for cunning and calculated cruelty. He maims and terrorizes to break his enemies' will, and he plays a longer, colder game than the other students. His true name and origins remain a mystery for much of the story.

First appears in chapter 42

The ArchGovernor of Mars, one of the most powerful Golds in the Society and a cold, imperious ruler. He takes a keen personal interest in the outcome of the contest and in the young Golds who prove themselves within it, weighing them as instruments for his own ambitions.