The Red Threads of Fortune ( Tensorate # 2) by JY Yang

The Red Threads of Fortune is the companion novel to The Black Tides of Heaven, that introduces us to the world of Tensorate - and the lives of Mokoya and Akheya, the twins born to the Supreme Protector of this world. 

A different story set four years ago after the events of Red Threads, this one has Mokoya as the chief protagonist and is a book that focuses on how she deals with grief. While Black tides happens over a course of several years and is a coming-of-age story mainly focused on Akheya, the twin and his tight bond with his sister - this story is shorter, more direct and is fairly propulsive in its pacing. 

The Mokoya's deal with grief is a story that's tightly wound around a Naga hunt. Mokoya, unable to deal with the loss of her daughter, has fled from the protection of the Monastery into the deserts on the fringes of the Protectorate. Here, she has taken up a suicidal mission - to help hunt down dangerous animals, like the Nagas. And the latest one that is out in the wilds, set to destroy cities like Batanaar, is the biggest one yet, and there's something strange about the beast, that draws Mokoya in. Her pursuit leads her deeper into the desert, where she meets up with the enigmatic 'rider' - drawn to her physically and also, later into the murky depths of the Royal Palace in Batanaar, where the conspiracies and plots thicken. 

It's a very different story compared to the first book ( that was released simultaneously). Red Threads is about Mokoya's grief and hence, it feels a lot more personal. We are inside Mokoya's head and dealing with her insecurities, guilt and lots more. And at times, it was a bit too much. But the one thing that Book II has gotten right, is the pacing. The process of grief is actually coupled with this exciting Naga Hunt that resolves into a mystery. And unpacking this, while dealing with the emotional and physical attraction she feels for Rider, kept things on the boil. 

JJ Yang persists with her excellent craft, giving us some very memorable lyrical lines. The possibility that loss, when not handled well, can spill out into unchecked violence, is what she explores with both Mokoya ( on her ghost-hunt suicidal runs ) and later on, another character who is a minor, coming to terms with the loss of her own mother. Yang's fascinating world, a bit chaotic and muddled but with so much potential, takes on more shape with us getting introduced to some other unexplored parts of the protectorate. (Quarterlands and more) We also get insights into working of the Slackcraft, the magic system of this world. All in all, an excellent addition to this series and Yang lays down enough groundwork to help build on in this world. 

Recommended, if you enjoy excellent in-depth character-led magic-infused fantasy stories that are queer-friendly, non-binary and packs an emotional punch.  ( Will read the next one in the series, Descent of Monsters) 

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