Carve The Mark
Carve The Mark - Veronica Roth (Carve The Mark #1)
Blurb: In a galaxy powered by the current, everyone has a gift.
Cyra is the sister of the brutal tyrant who rules the Shotet people. Cyra’s currentgift gives her pain and power — something her brother exploits, using her to torture his enemies. But Cyra is much more than just a blade in her brother’s hand: she is resilient, quick on her feet, and smarter than he knows.
Akos is the son of a farmer and an oracle from the frozen nation-planet of Thuvhe. Protected by his unusual currentgift, Akos is generous in spirit, and his loyalty to his family is limitless. Once Akos and his brother are captured by enemy Shotet soldiers, Akos is desperate to get this brother out alive — no matter what the cost.
Then Akos is thrust into Cyra's world, and the enmity between their countries and families seems insurmountable. Will they help each other to survive, or will they destroy one another?
Carve the Mark is Veronica Roth's stunning portrayal of the power of friendship — and love — in a galaxy filled with unexpected gifts.
Rating: 3/5 stars
My Review:
Alright, let’s clear the air for a minute. I know some people hate this book because of the present racism and other things like the chronic pain Cyra is going through. If we get past this for a moment and focus on the world building and how the characters develop, it’s a pretty decent book!
I also dislike how Veronica is romanticising the pain Cyra is going through and I know some people suffer with it and it must be terrible! However, Cyra character (if you forget about the shadows and pain) does go through a lot and I love how she finally stands up to her brother! It shows that even when something is bringing you down, or that something/someone defines you, you can get past it and be the better person.
Akos was also a strong character in the novel. I felt sorry for him due to his circumstances and he also lost his brother! Some of the actions he did in the book, I completely understood! On the other hand, I thought his “gift” was also sort of weird but special at the same time. He could stop the pain Cyra was feeling, but at the same time, it was basically saying that a person can stop chronic pain.. which annoyed me to an extent. Another way of seeing it would be that being around a person can make you feel better and that your pain does not define you? (Not literally in this context due to the actual existing chronic pain!)
I actually really did hate Cyra's brother because he actually really was a bad person and meh… I mean I got Game of Throne vibes for some reason. Fighting over being in charge and ruling over everyone.
Okay if we ignore the characters, the world building was pretty amazing. It started out slow at the start but it eventually got better and I felt more involved in their life and their environment. However, some of it felt forced and out of place? I don’t know, maybe that’s just me?
Another thing I saw floating around reviews was that this book was slooowwwwww paced. I liked it! Maybe it is because I’ve been reading a lot of fast paced books that chuck you a bunch of information in the first few chapters but I liked the pace of the book. Yes, it was slow but again I liked it because I felt like I was experiencing it like I was in their position. Maybe I’m just weird?
So to conclude, the story was decent, the characters were alright and the world building was also good. I gave it a 3.5/5 for these reasons! Let me know in the comments below, why you liked or disliked this book. It’s an interesting book to talk about.
