Fateful - Claudia Gray
Grade: YA
Rating: 4.5/5 stars
The RMS Titanic might be the most luxurious ship in the world, but all passenger Tess Davies wants to do is escape her dreary existence as a maid.
Trapped in a web of painful memories and twisted family secrets, Tess vows to make a run for it as soon as the ship reaches New York. A new world awaits... and a new life!
Her single-minded obsession shatters when she meets Alec. Handsome and mysterious, he captivates her immediately - but Alec has secrets of his own. As she uncovers the darkness lurking beneath his sophisticated surface, Tess discovers a horrifying truth. Werewolves, once only the stuff of nightmares, are real - and they are stalking Alec. Tess's love for Alec puts her in mortal peril, but an even greater danger lies in front of her before their journey on the Titanic is over...(Description from Goodreads)
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There is something sort of depressing about reading a love story set on the Titanic, knowing that the future of most passengers is not favourable. There’s nothing we can do to prevent the characters from boarding or pushing them to be the first on lifeboats days later. You can’t help feeling sorry for them or becoming concerned when Tess notices patches of white in the water. We readers know the disaster that is about to happen and we can’t save them. And to top it all off, there’s a Werewolf war of wills being played out below deck. To say ‘Fateful’ lacks action and excitement would be a massive lie.
Tess Davis is a lucky girl. A maid in a high born family, she is given a chance to travel on the Titanic with her employers to spend the Season in America. Unfortunately her luck stops there. Forced into Third Class because of a lack of money on her boss’s side, Tess faces hardship after hardship to meet the demands of being a maid upon a fancy ship. I really liked Tess and definitely pitied her for having to put up with most of the Lisle family day after day. I would have wanted to slap Regina many times, or at least give her a piece of my mind. Tess shows she had a lot more patience than I could ever have, probably because of the lifestyle she’s been living for many years.
I found the beginning to be sort of slow for my liking. As a stand-alone book, I know it is extremely necessary for the book to have solid foundations at the start, and Claudia didn’t disappoint, setting up who Tess was from the get-go; introducing our main characters and then moving onto the main plot. Despite knowing what lay ahead in the novel, I guess I was a little impatient to reach the romance and action.
I love the supernatural elements of this story. The werewolf side had me desperate for more. I wanted to know everything about the Brotherhood and the pain felt by changing every night. I loved how there was so much we didn’t know about them, because we were only seeing it through Tess’s eyes, and I wish we’d been given the chance to explore more than the surface of the werewolf world, but unfortunately that wasn’t the main focus in the end.
And Alec, the source my fluttering heart throughout the book. Brave, tortured, dangerous and selfless Alec. Who wouldn’t want to be near him? I’ll just say this: days later and I’m still swooning when I think about him.
An amazing, romantic, supernatural tragedy. ‘Fateful’ should definitely be on your to-be-read list.
4.5/5 stars
Kim
(Originally posted on Goodreads)
Lovely review, Kim! This sounds like a really interesting idea for a book, I might have to buy it before Claudia's tour here!
ReplyDeleteYou definitely should, or if not before, get it when you meet her. It was a really good book.
DeleteKim
Aaah! Kim! Wonderful revieeeww! I'm so SO curious to read it--I have it sitting at home! Err... when you say tragedy... do we get an HEA?
ReplyDeleteI'd had my copy sitting on my shelf for ages too. So glad I picked it up.
DeleteOh, way to ask a hard question Sarah. Hm...what to say without giving too much away? Well, the Titantic has a pretty tragic story as it is. But, this is one of those Drink Deep/Shadowfever “Trust Me” moments. How’s that for an in-the-know, cryptic answer?
Kim
I LOVE FATED SO MUCH! <3 I loved Claudia Gray's Evernight series and I remember that it was one of my earliest YA series I fell in love with. I'm so glad Claudia Gray decided to write a stand-alone for Fated and a story based on the Titanic. LOVE LOVE It! <3
ReplyDeleteWhat an awesome review, Kim! <3 So glad you enjoyed it! :)
I bought Evernight in one of those I'm-looking-for-something-new-oh-um-this-looks-good moments. I'm glad I did, it's a pretty cool series. I know! I love that she wrote a stand-alone story too. Sometimes, they're just what you need. Everything gets wrapped up and there's no waiting for the next part. It's all there right in front of you.
DeleteAw, I'm so glad you liked it. Thanks for stopping by!
Kim
I loved Fateful. I love all of Claudia's writing. Awesome review!!! BEcause I am so used to Claudia having series, this book almost felt like it was begging for another, even though it is stand alone.Pretty cool it being on the Titanic, and it's 100 year anniversary of the poor Titanic in April.
ReplyDeleteMichelle
I definitely wanted more, but it was sort of nice where it ended. No waiting for the next one, loose ends were pretty much tied up. There was just enough of an end to wonder about the future, but not enough to drive you mental with need.
DeleteKim
another great review, i read hex hall before this. I love claudia gray's writing. her descriptions of the tiantic were spot on. I enjoyed this book but felt it was a little repetitive. still i loved all the characters. I found the ending perfect. it definitely was an exciting story.
ReplyDeleteI can understand how it could be slightly repetitive, it's a little tricky for there to be too much change on a ship or with Tess being in service, her job is repetitive in itself. But like you said, perfect ending.
DeleteKim