I read this book for two reasons and two reasons only. A cute boy said it was his favorite book and Veronica Roth being the author of one of the greatest dystopian series of all time. It was also a bonus that I already had this book sitting on my bookshelf many years prior, just collecting dust. 

“Carve the Mark” in short terms, blew my mind away. I had no idea that Roth could deliver two amazing series. 

“Carve the Mark” takes place in a galaxy where everyone is supposed to develop a power that is influenced by the current – a force that flows through the universe. The novel follows a dual perspective of Cyra Noavek and Akos Kereseth. 

Cyra is the sister of a brutal man ruling the Shotet people. Her gift causes her to be in constant pain – making her a bitter person – but it also allows her to transfer pain to others. 

Akos and his brother, who are from Thuve, get kidnapped by the Shotet. Akos’ ability allows him to disrupt the current, which basically prevents other people from using their abilities.

I absolutely fell in love with this concept because Akos is the only one who can relieve Cyra’s pain.  He serves as a physical healer, but as their connection grows and they begin to have feelings for each other, he figuratively serves as an emotional healer. 

One aspect of the book I really enjoyed was fate. Everyone has fate, and it is recorded publicly. For instance, Akos’ fate is, “He will die in service to the family Noavek.” 

This caused me to spiral in my way of thinking. Is his love and kindness that he shows towards Cyra genuine or is it just “the way things are supposed to be?” If he wasn’t supposed to be there in the first place, would their paths have still crossed? Ultimately, did knowing their fate fabricate what they had between them? 

Cyra’s fate on the other hand was a bit less dark and gloomy and gave more hope. “She will cross the divide between nations,” meaning she will be the one who unites the Shotet and Thuve. 

As Cyra becomes closer to Akos, she realizes she is fighting on the wrong side of the war. Her brother, Ryzek, uses Cyra as a weapon to gain power over people rather than valuing her as his sister. 

It angers me that there was so many times Cyra listened to what Ryzek said instead of killing him or telling him no. She was far more powerful than him and deep down, Ryzek was the one who was truly terrified of Cyra. I think it was intended for me to feel angry at these moments because that was all a part of Cyra’s arch of growing stronger and realizing her worth.

I only planned to read the first book and not the second, because I was expecting it to not really be interesting. The whole space thing kind of threw me off and I was expecting it to be a little cheesy. I am so glad I was wrong, and I bought the sequel as soon as I put down the first.

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