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3.82 AVERAGE
3.82 AVERAGE
I have been so excited to read this sequel to Carve the Mark, which was such an amazing work of world building. This book didn't disappoint but it didn't exceed expectations. All of the world building done in Carve the Mark was scrunched down into a couple chapters in The Fates Divide. The only new society/planet we learn about it Ogra, and with its hostile environment and humble, stubborn people, it was very well done. I just wish there had been more. And as for the plot, I saw the whole Noavek/Kereseth child switcharow coming from Book 1. I don't know if Roth thought she was being subtle... The characters and the planets and the culture were incredible. I loved the Cyra and Akos love story, and their ties to family and their peoples. The switcharow just made those more tied and interwoven. I like the way the book was concluded, with Akos killing the evil tyrant who was his birth father and Cyra's adopted father, and Cyra using her hated gift to safe the people she loved with all her heart but who hated, scorned, and feared her. One plot hole for me was the big ax hanging over Cyra's head in book 1 was that she accidentally killed her mother as a child and didn't want anyone to know because the populace loved and revered her. But in this book when it was revealed, no one said anything about it even though it was phrased as "she murdered her mother".
I enjoyed this book, I couldn't read it fast enough and almost got it all done in one sitting like I did with the first! I'm very sad that it appears to have been an only 2 book series. I will miss Cyra and Akos.
I enjoyed this book, I couldn't read it fast enough and almost got it all done in one sitting like I did with the first! I'm very sad that it appears to have been an only 2 book series. I will miss Cyra and Akos.
In typical Roth fashion, the first book was much better than its sequel. It's like she had all these great ideas at beginning, and then forgot how to keep her audience engaged long-term (JJ Abrams energy).
One of the things I didn’t like about Allegiant that gets rehashed in this book is the plurality of first-person POVs. Two voices is ample; beyond that, things start to feel a bit crowded.
Roth also seems to make her mission to break away from the normal hero story arc by ignoring the basic tenets of good story telling. Prime example (spoiler alert): the big bad from book 1 gets killed off immediately at the beginning of book 2 by an unlikable, secondary character.
As a reader, this plot point is aggravating on multiple levels:
(1) The 2 main leads are deprived of agency in their respective, though linked, revenge arcs.
(2) This completely undermines the entire climax and resolution of the first book, making that whole end plot feel like a waste of time.
(3) We are now forced to reckon with a lesser-known villain, with whom we as the reader have had no prior first-hand experience, so we have no vested interest in this supposed "new enemy" existing in the ether.
(4) Finally, the intriguing dichotomy introduced in the prologue gets completely squashed, so that is very disappointing. (Again, what is the point of a prologue if it serves no relevance later?)
Now maybe this does get brought up and explored later, but after 100 pages there seemed to be more emphasis on interplanetary politics than anything else (George Lucas energy). ALSO, I realized very early on that I was going to have to skip entire chapters in order to avoid the minefield of lesbian inner monologue and behavior. So at that point, if I'm missing an entire fifth of the book's content, what even is the point?
It's a shame Roth didn't devout more time to delving more into what she hints at in the prologue, instead of wasting my time on boring plot progression and derivative side characters. I might have stuck it out if Roth had actually utilized the character development opportunities she gave herself, instead of squandering them
One of the things I didn’t like about Allegiant that gets rehashed in this book is the plurality of first-person POVs. Two voices is ample; beyond that, things start to feel a bit crowded.
Roth also seems to make her mission to break away from the normal hero story arc by ignoring the basic tenets of good story telling. Prime example (spoiler alert): the big bad from book 1 gets killed off immediately at the beginning of book 2 by an unlikable, secondary character.
As a reader, this plot point is aggravating on multiple levels:
(1) The 2 main leads are deprived of agency in their respective, though linked, revenge arcs.
(2) This completely undermines the entire climax and resolution of the first book, making that whole end plot feel like a waste of time.
(3) We are now forced to reckon with a lesser-known villain, with whom we as the reader have had no prior first-hand experience, so we have no vested interest in this supposed "new enemy" existing in the ether.
(4) Finally, the intriguing dichotomy introduced in the prologue gets completely squashed, so that is very disappointing. (Again, what is the point of a prologue if it serves no relevance later?)
Now maybe this does get brought up and explored later, but after 100 pages there seemed to be more emphasis on interplanetary politics than anything else (George Lucas energy). ALSO, I realized very early on that I was going to have to skip entire chapters in order to avoid the minefield of lesbian inner monologue and behavior. So at that point, if I'm missing an entire fifth of the book's content, what even is the point?
It's a shame Roth didn't devout more time to delving more into what she hints at in the prologue, instead of wasting my time on boring plot progression and derivative side characters. I might have stuck it out if Roth had actually utilized the character development opportunities she gave herself, instead of squandering them
adventurous
challenging
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Plot
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
adventurous
fast-paced
adventurous
challenging
dark
emotional
mysterious
sad
tense
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
challenging
tense
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
hopeful
sad
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Plot
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
The book felt slow in some places, but the ending and relationship building made up for it. The first one was definitely better.
"Het heelal was geen begrensde ruimte, maar dat wilde niet zeggen dat het leeg was. Asteroïden, sterren, planeten, de stroomvloed, ruimteschroot, schepen, maanbrokken, onontdekte werelden: dit was een plek van eindeloze mogelijkheden en onvoorstelbare vrijheid. Het was niet niets, het was álles".
Wat Carve The Mark niet helemaal lukte deed The Fates Divide wel, ik werd helemaal in het verhaal gezogen. Het verhaal bleef me boeien van de eerste tot de laatste bladzijde en met pijn in mijn hart moest ik afscheid nemen van deze boeiende planetaire wereld. Wanneer ik ooit wat tijd over heb, lees ik ze opnieuw en achter elkaar. The Fates Divide overstijgt het eerste deel, zet alles op zijn kop, geeft antwoorden op vragen opgeworpen in Carve The Mark en leest gewoon fantastisch. Ik was en blijf fan van de schrijfstijl van Veronica Roth.
Mijn recensie kun je nalezen op mijn blog: http://www.deboekenfabriek.eu/2018/05/recensie-veronica-roth-fates-divide.html#more
Wat Carve The Mark niet helemaal lukte deed The Fates Divide wel, ik werd helemaal in het verhaal gezogen. Het verhaal bleef me boeien van de eerste tot de laatste bladzijde en met pijn in mijn hart moest ik afscheid nemen van deze boeiende planetaire wereld. Wanneer ik ooit wat tijd over heb, lees ik ze opnieuw en achter elkaar. The Fates Divide overstijgt het eerste deel, zet alles op zijn kop, geeft antwoorden op vragen opgeworpen in Carve The Mark en leest gewoon fantastisch. Ik was en blijf fan van de schrijfstijl van Veronica Roth.
Mijn recensie kun je nalezen op mijn blog: http://www.deboekenfabriek.eu/2018/05/recensie-veronica-roth-fates-divide.html#more