Veronica Roth's new book Carve the Mark takes a dive into the sci-fi realm. Personally I love the genre, and often read books from it. I was so excited to read her new book, despite the mix reviews I've seen on Goodreads. I will do my best to discuss what others have criticized and why I believe those criticisms are very narrow-minded. Roth completely hit this one out the park for me and I have quite the book hangover.
Carve the Mark is set in outer space in a world that is unique and dark. Our main characters Cyra and Akos are from opposing groups of people; Cyra is Shotet, a tyrannical nation that seeks to conquer the rest of the planets in the galaxy. Akos is from Thuvhe, a community of morally straight and narrow people, who are gentle and hate violence. In Cyra's and Akos' world, a magical current flows through the galaxy which contributes to every individuals "current gift". Cyra's current gift is dealing out pain with just a touch, a pain she also has to endure every minute of her life. Akos' current gift is his ability to negate other's current gifts. While others would see their current gifts as useful, Cyra and Akos believe theirs to be a great burden. Others seek to use them for their own gain. Cyra in particular is used as her brother's torturer and executioner to any who go against his tyranny.
What I found most refreshing was the gender role switch between Cyra and Akos. Cyra is the strong and fierce one of the two. Her current gift has turned her into a fierce individual, one who has no qualms with taking matters into her own hands, even if it means a fight to the death. As the title Carve the Mark suggest, Cyra's people, Shotets, "carve a mark" into their arms for each life they take. While some do it as a show of strength and pride like Cyra's brother, others like Cyra do it as a reminder of the evil deeds they have done.
Akos is the opposite of Cyra because he's gentle and cringes at the thought of violence. Thrust into Cyra's world, Akos is forced to betray those beliefs and turns to violence to survive. You see, in their world certain people are born with "fates" that oracles like Akos' younger brother can see. Not everyone has a fate, but those who do can't escape them. It's due to Akos' fate that is forced into Cyra's Shotet world. Both characters struggle to deal with their fates and their own personal demons. I found Cyra and Akos to be authentic and raw. Their budding romance has not come easy and I loved that it didn't. It was real and honest. Each found something in the other that they benefitted from, and they ultimately changed each other. Cyra learned that she could be more than just a weapon that's used by her brother. Akos taught her that she could rise above her gift and that her gift does not define her. Akos learned that the Shotet people he's grown to despise all of his life are not as black and white when it comes to their brutal nature as he thought.
Veronica Roth has received some harsh criticisms in two areas of her book. Many believe that her story is racist in terms of the portrayal of the Shotet and Thuvhe people. In some areas she describes the Shotet's as bronzer skin and their language sounds "harsh". Thuvhesit's are painted to be of fairer skin and their language is more softer and graceful. People feel this is a depiction of Blacks and Whites, and due to the language of Shotets being described as harsh, they feel it has racist undertones. I will speak out against this claim because if people read more closely, Cyra's brother is described to be of lighter skin with lighter eyes and he's Shotet. Here's a case where people are reading too much into it and blowing smoke when there's no fire.
Another major critique Roth has received has to deal with Cyra's current gift. Although she can dish out pain, she lives with that same pain every day. Roth has spoken about knowing people in her immediate social circle who live with chronic pain in their daily lives, and wrote about a character that deals with the same issues. However, some people feel like she's an ableist because they feel she makes Cyra's pain define her. Veronica Roth did an interview with NPR and discussed how her character was inspired by people having chronic pain. The interviewer says that pain could be a gift, and Roth agrees. The transcript can be found HERE . Again, people are not understanding Roth's intention with Cyra as a character and the message she is sending. Veronica blatantly states how chronic pain is underestimated often by doctors, statistically more so in women. Cyra has to find ways to act and react despite the constant pain she endures. That pain has made her into a stronger individual, therefore able to withstand every curveball that has been thrown at her. Cyra goes through some traumatic things at the hands of her brother, and I believe Veronica Roth intended to portray Cyra as someone who can handle it because of her endurance of daily chronic pain. Once again, I feel that people were critiquing something and forming assumptions based on a misconception of Roth's ideas and intentions. Cyra is indeed tough, even admirable, and while her chronic pain has shaped her into this fierce individual, no way does it define her. Roth clearly makes a point of this when she has Akos tell Cyra she can be more than just her pain. I don't understand how people could totally misread these two elements of Roth's book and furthermore rate it 1-2 stars, but now that I have debunked these "critiques", let's move on.
Roth's characters were dynamic, diverse, and intense. Each one had a distinct voice and none of her characters were cookie cutter. I loved the balance between the build up and the climax of the story. We get a perfect blend of character and world building, and also some very great action scenes. Roth did an amazing job at describing the cultures of her world, and while some people have also critiqued that her world isn't realistic and that some of it doesn't follow the laws of science (i.e. a planet full of mainly water yet inhabitable), at the end of the day it's fiction.
Carve the Mark is gritty, dark, and encompasses all the elements that make a book fantastic. Characters that deal with issues that are relatable to the reader, a romance that is organic and stays true to characters involved, and a spell-binding story about a galaxy of people that are divided and on the brink of war. If you love Science fiction with some dystopian elements sprinkled on top, this book is DEFINITELY for you.
Happy Reading!!!!!
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Popular Highlights in this book
And when I finally named it, I found it was something very simple: the desire to live.Highlighted by 440 Kindle readers- But Akos wasn’t “nice”; that was just what people said about quiet people.Highlighted by 380 Kindle readers
- “Find another reason to go on,” I said. “It doesn’t have to be a good one, or a noble one. It just has to be a reason.”Highlighted by 351 Kindle readers
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I didn’t love it. By any means
I didn’t love it. By any means. The very beginning, ok maybe the first 1/4 of the book was HARD to get into. It was what felt like a never ending bore. Halfway through it picked up enough to actually make me want to finish.However, you could foresee a little after halfway through, how the book was going to end. Subtle hints had been placed, more than likely unintentionally to give away the ending. It was disappointing.Cyra & Akos I felt went from master & servant to lovers rather quickly. As soon as Akos was assigned to Cyra, it was clear what was going to happen.This book lacked enough emotion for me to not connect to it. It didn’t delve into my heartstrings to make me yearn to continue. I could have stopped halfway through and been completely fine with that. Maybe there wasn’t enough dimension to the story as a whole to be utterly captivating. It was blood, war, love, back to brutal war, more blood, a bit of story, and repeat.I won’t be purchasing book 2.
Top reviews from other countries
L. Salter
Rich Universe, Rich Families, Rich Possibilities
Reviewed in the United Kingdom on December 6, 2023
