Review: Fated by Sarah Fine

Fated by Sarah Fine
Published September 2015 by 47 North
Source: eGalley ARC from NetGalley

Aislin Ferry and Jason Moros have only days until they will be called to account before the Keepers of the Afterlife. Yet as they race to restore order and make their case, their worlds fall into total disarray.

Mutiny within the fractured Ferry family threatens Aislin’s hold on power and role as Charon. Meanwhile, the fearsome Lord of the Kere has family trouble of his own. Someone is unraveling the fabric of fate, and Moros suspects one of his supernatural siblings is behind the terrible bid to unleash Chaos.

Now unlikely allies, Aislin and Moros each need the other to escape the wrath of the Keepers. As the stakes rise, it becomes clear that protecting their respective empires is not the endgame. With the fate of all humanity dangling by a thread, Aislin and Moros must surrender completely to one another if they are to fight their common enemy. And as time runs out, someone must make the ultimate sacrifice.

My Thoughts

Aislin Ferry is the Charon, head of the family who have the responsibility of ferrying departed souls to Heaven or Hell. Jason Moros is Death itself, Lord of the Kere who mark those who will die. Moros' sisters are the immortals: Clotho the spinner who brings souls to life, Lachesis who measures the thread of their lives and weaves them into the tapestry of fate, and Atropos who snips the thread at life's end.

In this final chapter of the Servants of Fate trilogy, Aislin and Moros must combine forces to salvage humanity. The tapestry is fraying because someone has been working against Fate—taking lives before their time and destroying order. Aislin and Moros have been called to stand before the Keepers of Heaven and Hell and account for themselves, arguing why their responsibilities should not be taken away from them. And, the rebellious faction is actively working to free Chaos, enemy of Moros and all order.

I really enjoyed reading Fated. Servants of Fate draws from Greek mythology and I enjoyed researching and reading the original myths and seeing how Fine's interpretation draws from the the ancient tales and combines them with romance and adventure in an alternate future setting.

Yes, Fated is a Paranormal Romance. Aisling and Moros are attracted to each other, but it wasn't until they were thrown together to deal with the raveling of Fate that they give in to that attraction. One criticism I had of the first two books of the series is that the love-making scenes were too explicit. So, I knew this was coming in Fated, but yet it didn't intrude as much as in the earlier novels. I don't know if this is due to a change in the writing or a change in me.

Ms. Fine delivered a totally engaging story, full of action. So many romance novels simply use the plot and action to bridge from one sexy scene to another. That wasn't the case here. The story itself—throughout all three novels—simply drew me in. The romance was supportive of the story instead of the other way around. In fact, the main part of the story could be told without the romantic elements and you'd have an exciting adventure tale. The romance serves to make the reader care about the characters. And this was skillfully done.

Fated is by far my favorite of the trilogy. I was fully invested in the characters, the plot, and the outcome, and I was not disappointed. The only criticism I have is that one really needs to read the preceding installments before reading Fated so that you understand the world in which the action takes place. But that's a minor complaint.

Those of you who read Paranormal and Urban Fantasy, take a look at the Servants of Fate series by Sarah Fine: Marked, Claimed, and Fated. You're forewarned about the sex scenes. If you enjoy them, they're well written. If you're like me and don't care to read quite as much detail, skim them. At the end of the day, the STORY was just so very good.

★★★★☆

Disclosure: I received a free copy of Fated from the publisher via NetGalley in return for an honest review.