Series
Collection
Publication
47North, Kindle Edition, 321 pages
Description
On Transition Day, the second child in every family is taken by the government and forced into servitude. Roselle St. Sismode's eighteenth birthday arrives with harsh realizations: she's to become a soldier for the Fate of Swords military arm of the Republic during the bloodiest rebellion in history, and her elite firstborn mother is happy to see her go. Televised since her early childhood, Roselle's privileged upbringing has earned her the resentment of her secondborn peers. Now her decision to spare an enemy on the battlefield marks her as a traitor to the state. But Roselle finds an ally--and more--in fellow secondborn conscript Hawthorne Trugrave. As the consequences of her actions ripple throughout the Fates Republic, can Roselle create a destiny of her own? Or will her Fate override everything she fights for--even love?… (more)
User reviews
LibraryThing member mtlkch
I am impatiently waiting for book 2. I love this story. It has a lot of similarities to other novels I've read - dystopian society, fights to the death, badass female main character - but it's different enough to shine.
LibraryThing member Tabatha014
This is a story about secondborn children serving the firstborn and surviving in a world where the rank of your birth could be a death sentence. When I first started I was confused by the world building and trying to figure out who was who ( fates, virtues, swords, etc). But once I figured it out I
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was completely drawn in and I flew through it. I can't wait for the next book to find out what happens! Show Less
LibraryThing member AVoraciousReader
Book source ~ Kindle First
Roselle St. Sismode is the secondborn child of the Fate of Swords. Firstborns, depending on their family, may rule their Fate. Secondborns have to go into military service. Forget thirdborns – they’re killed if found. Fourth thou shalt not count and fifth are right
The book begins with Roselle’s Transition Day. Most secondborns are taken younger, but Roselle is 18 when her mother sends her to do her military duty. Even though Roselle is basically royalty and the whole Republic has pretty much watched her grow up on some kind of Truman Show-like program, her life in the military will be brutal and most likely short. Everyone knows her face and secondborns from privileged families are hated by the other less fortunate secondborns. And there lies the danger to her. But others are manipulating her life behind the scenes and Roselle must stay alive long enough to change the Republic. Whether she wants to or not.
The beginning of this story is confusing as the world gets laid out for the reader. It took me awhile to grasp all the families, structure, terminology, and relationships. About the time I got all that down the story started to take off down the tracks and I was belted firmly in and definitely along for the ride. The characters are well-developed, the plot intriguing and Roselle is no slouch though she may have a touch of Mary Sue-ness about her. Just a touch though. There’s intrigue and danger and even some romance in this intricate tale of rebellion. The ending is a bit of a cliffhanger. Well, more of a transitional slope than an actual dive off a cliff. Roselle’s journey is far from over and it’ll be interesting to see what happens next.
Roselle St. Sismode is the secondborn child of the Fate of Swords. Firstborns, depending on their family, may rule their Fate. Secondborns have to go into military service. Forget thirdborns – they’re killed if found. Fourth thou shalt not count and fifth are right
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out. Hehe I paraphrased a Monty Python and the Quest for the Holy Grail tidbit there. I couldn’t help it. Ok, moving on…The book begins with Roselle’s Transition Day. Most secondborns are taken younger, but Roselle is 18 when her mother sends her to do her military duty. Even though Roselle is basically royalty and the whole Republic has pretty much watched her grow up on some kind of Truman Show-like program, her life in the military will be brutal and most likely short. Everyone knows her face and secondborns from privileged families are hated by the other less fortunate secondborns. And there lies the danger to her. But others are manipulating her life behind the scenes and Roselle must stay alive long enough to change the Republic. Whether she wants to or not.
The beginning of this story is confusing as the world gets laid out for the reader. It took me awhile to grasp all the families, structure, terminology, and relationships. About the time I got all that down the story started to take off down the tracks and I was belted firmly in and definitely along for the ride. The characters are well-developed, the plot intriguing and Roselle is no slouch though she may have a touch of Mary Sue-ness about her. Just a touch though. There’s intrigue and danger and even some romance in this intricate tale of rebellion. The ending is a bit of a cliffhanger. Well, more of a transitional slope than an actual dive off a cliff. Roselle’s journey is far from over and it’ll be interesting to see what happens next.
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LibraryThing member TiffanyAK
This book is GRIPPING. Like, seriously, I read/listened all night, and then after passing out came back and read the rest. I definitely would consider it one of the better series of the type I've found thus far. I know that a lot of YA/NA books tend to have the same general story ideas these days,
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which makes it largely about the execution. Here, the concept is executed exceptionally well. The only real question is if that level of quality continues through the rest of the trilogy. Will find out soon. Show Less
LibraryThing member yonitdm
interesting idea, world building was sparse enough I'm still unsure of the political arena.
Original publication date
2017-08-01
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Pages
321