Carve the Mark by Veronica Roth

Carve the Mark by Veronica Roth

Reviewer: Mikayla P.

Star Rating: 4 stars

Carve the Mark takes place in a futuristic society in which humans have left Earth in search of more space to expand their race. On their journey to other galaxies, they discovered the current, a force that flows through everything and everyone, granting everyone a “currentgift,” or a “power” given to them by the current. Those gifted with the ability to tell the future become oracles and, in addition to predicting the immediate future, they declare fates, futures that belong to certain people that cannot be changed no matter what. Cyra and her brother, both the children of the leaders of the Shotet, a society on the planet Thuvhe, both have fates. Akos, the son of the oracle in the Thuvhesit society, the rival society to the Shotet on Thuvhe, and his siblings are also fated. Due to their unique fates, Cyra and Akos are brought together in an unlikely pairing, filled with passionate rage and a spark of something more. I loved that, despite being a science fiction novel by the author of Divergent, it was not set in a futuristic, dystopian society that can only be saved by the teenagers. The novel explores societal conflicts stemming from different religious and cultural practices, as well as a generational hatred for the “others” that turns out to be less fact-based than the characters originally believed. Despite enjoying the world however, it is important to note that, like Divergent, there is no scientific backing to the premise of this story. As long as you go into it expecting something between a fantasy novel and a science fiction, however, it doesn’t interfere with the story. It was a fast and entertaining read, though it did lack some substance and the characters were not as developed as they could have been. The plot was exciting, so I found certain major plot points to be beyond the realm of believability. Overall, however, Carve the Mark is the perfect read for anyone looking for a fast-paced, entertaining adventure!