Carve the Mark by Veronica Roth

A science fiction story brought to you by the author of the incredibly popular Divergent series, Carve the Mark may feel a bit unfamiliar to Veroncia Roth's fans. To start off with, it is set in space, in a different galaxy, on a planet named Thuvhe by half its inhbitants, and Shotet by the other half. On this warring planet everyone receives a ‘currentgift’ as they grow, meaning that everyone has their own power. For some it can be as small as giving off a feeling of ease and trust to all those who meet you, for others it can be as powerful as bringing unbearable pain to anyone who touches your skin.

Cyra, daughter of the Tyrant ruler of Shotet, has not been able to touch anyone without bringing them (and herself) pain since she was small. She is feared all over the planet, and is used as a weapon by her evil father and brother. Then she meets Akos, a young Thuvhe who was kidnapped by Cyra's family at a young age. His power is to be able to stop the ‘current’ (rendering the powers of anyone he is touching useless) meaning that he can touch Cyra (and trust me, they do a lot of touching). The more time they spend together, the more they learn about each other, and themselves.

Carve the Mark is a really interesting book, and I am definitely looking forward to the second part that comes out next year, but be warned, parts of it do drag. Being set in another galaxy means that Roth has to spend a lot of time describing this alien world to us, and at times it can slow down the story. I did however really enjoy the book. Possibly even more so than Divergent.

However, this will no doubt be turned into a movie at some point soon, so read the book now and brag to your friends about how you read it before it was a film franchise.

Posted by Sas

Catalogue link: Carve the Mark