This review is for those who have read or are familiar with the previous book, Carve the Mark, or don't mind knowing major spoilers for it.
SPOILER ALERT
Fate brought them together. Now it will divide them.
The lives of Cyra Noavek and Akos Kereseth are ruled by their fates, spoken by the oracles at their births. The fates, once determined, are inescapable.
Akos is in love with Cyra, in spite of his fate: He will die in service to Cyra’s family. And when Cyra’s father, Lazmet Noavek—a soulless tyrant, thought to be dead—reclaims the Shotet throne, Akos believes his end is closer than ever.
As Lazmet ignites a barbaric war, Cyra and Akos are desperate to stop him at any cost. For Cyra, that could mean taking the life of the man who may—or may not—be her father. For Akos, it could mean giving his own. In a stunning twist, the two will discover how fate defines their lives in ways most unexpected.
It's refreshing to finish a series before you were necessarily expecting it, yet not feel cut off in the least. Sure, as is often the case in series (that still have characters alive at the end) there are still a lot of future things that could be covered, but each main character's story wrapped up nicely. (Have at it, fanfics!) I wouldn't be surprised - more like thrilled! - to see other stories take place in this galaxy. Perhaps novellas from non-main characters? Or not. Like I said, the ending is fine as it is. It's just such a great world...
More pronounced in the sequel than the first book, there are same-sex couples featured in these stories. And one of the members of the couples is even a narrator in this book! There's also a character who is "sema - a person who identifies as neither male nor female" who is given the they/them/their pronouns. It's both exciting to find these representations, and depressing to be excited to find these representations. But suffice it to say, that's why I've included it in my lgbt+ shelf.
Much like the first book, I loved this world/universe. It's strange to be able to classify it as primarily Science Fiction, due to space travel, diverse planets, etc., yet simultaneously have so many Fantasy elements like currentgifts, oracles and (seemingly) having no different (humanesque) species on those other planets. The book as a whole felt more like a Fantasy epic with the different cultures separated by ocean rather than space. That's not to say that the planets aren't diverse - as obviously having one continent be covered in darkness would not be viable on the same planet as one not - or explored. It was just that the particulars of science fiction that are often explored - i.e. differences in species as an allegory to race - were instead replaced with politics dealing with religion and culture. I guess what I'm saying is that I don't usually find SciFi and Fantasy to be all that similar or interchangeable (which has always perplexed me at bookstores), yet this series combines them in such a way that I hardly know how to label it for others.
I mentioned in my review of Carve the Mark that it contained dark (mature) themes. Well, those have only ramped up in the sequel. This story is very political, with all the main players having their own pain, their own agendas, their own motives for launching attacks or retreats. And yet these leaders are all still kids - I think maybe the oldest is 20, but most of the main cast are closer to 18 or so. But they're dealing with murder, planetary war, trade deals, patricide, starvation, torture, and still trying to balance relationships and find their place in the universe.
Which is why when people ask, "Why do you still read Young Adult?" I am happy to have this series to point them to. YA is typically regarded as fluff stories where teenagers act immaturely, have fantasy adventures, fall in love at first sight, and live happily ever after. Really, as a genre, it's about characters' coming of age stories, and if those characters are in American high school in 2017, then it's probably focused on romance, modern society, and maybe some Mean Girls tropes. However, if those characters are the heirs of empires on the brink of war, there's probably gonna be a lot more going on than popularity contests and getting a date for prom.
Given the general plot of this book/series, I could easily see older characters taking the main roles. After all, why would civilizations/empires/planets acknowledge teenagers as sovereign leaders? But the story as a whole works because the main actors are teens. Think about it: they're often easily overlooked or underestimated; they're still learning and more receptive to change; they haven't lived long enough to become hopeless from suffering or indoctrinated in their elders' worldview. In fact, teenagers have always been stereotyped as being rebels, so who better to lead a rebellion?
Neither Cyra nor Akos want to lead people in anything, they just want to have things change for the better. And when it comes to ruling, Isae and Cyra have much of the same convictions. They don't have a thirst for power in itself, but they're terrified of doing wrong by their people; they both yearn for approval, and in the absence of parental figures, they instead turn to their people. (And in today's climate, that premise sounds so refreshing.)
So, much like the characters within its pages, The Fates Divide seems to defy all conventionality. It's both SciFi and Fantasy, it's both YA and adult, it's both political and action-packed, and I can't recommend it enough. I definitely plan to put both books on my shelves and read them again (maybe borrow an audiobook to check the names), but until then I'll just have to wait for fate.
My rating: 5 of 5 stars
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