Review: Map of Fates (The Conspiracy of Us #2) by Maggie Hall
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Series: The Conspiracy of Us #2
Author: Maggie Hall
Published March 8th 2016 by Putnam Juvenile
Goodreads Synopsis
Two weeks.
That’s how long it took for Avery West’s ordinary life to change forever: In two weeks, she discovered she was heiress to a powerful secret society known as the Circle, learned her mother was taken hostage by the Circle’s enemies, and fell for a boy she’s not allowed to love, just as she found out another was her unwelcome destiny.
Now, Avery crosses oceans in private jets to hunt for clues that will uncover the truth about the Circle, setting her mom and herself free before it’s too late. By her side are both the boys: Jack—steady, loyal, and determined to help her even at the expense of his own duty—and Stellan, whose connection to Avery grows stronger by the day despite her best intentions, making her question what she believes at every turn.
But at the end of a desperate hunt from the islands of Greece to the red carpet at Cannes comes a discovery that not only changes everything, but could bring the whole world to its knees. And now Avery is forced to face the truth: in the world of the Circle, no one is what they seem.
Goodreads
Review
See my review of book 1, The Conspiracy of Us.
As you can see in my review of book 1, I adored the story that Maggie wove. It ended on such a strong point, that I was dying to get my hands on the sequel, and finally bought it when I was in America in March. The events of Map of Fates take place not long after The Conspiracy of Us ended. Avery, Jack, and Stellan are searching for more clues to the lost tomb of Alexander, and know that the Order are bearing down on them at every turn. They've been given a two week reprieve from the Order, but if they haven't got the location in that time, Avery's mam will be killed. Avery feels her only option is to turn to her newly discovered family, the Saxons, and hope that with their help, it'll allow them the chance to visit more places and hurry the whole search along.
I'd expected there to be many twists and turns in the book, but I couldn't believe just how intricate the plot was. Maggie has created a wonderful underground world, in which the Circle rule the world, unbeknownst to the masses. Everything and anything happens with the say so of the Circle members, and the Order have stepped up their game. With the prophecy stating that when the girl with the purple eyes (Avery), unites with the One true heir, all the heirs of the Circle families are at risk. Many of them are assassinated, just to try to stop the prophecy coming true. Only Avery, Jack, and Stellan know Stellan is the one, and they need to keep that a secret as long as possible, else it'll interrupt the search for Alexander's tomb.
One thing I wasn't too keen on in this book is the love triangle. It had been brewing from the very first meeting, but I'd always preferred Jack, as, it seems, did Avery. Now, we find Jack to be annoying, and very pushy with Avery - he tries to stop her from doing anything. And yes, it's because he cares about her, and wants her to be safe, but wrapping her up in cotton wool is not the way to go. At least Stellan understood that any situation Avery was in would be dangerous, and she needed to at least learn how to defend herself, and stand up for herself, or she'd be a liability to them all. By the end of the book, I was a lot more keen on Stellan, especially when more and more revelations came out.
On the subject of revelations, so many things were revealed towards the end of the book, I could hardly get my head around it all. At every turn, there was a new twist, and each was more significant than the last. I was on the edge of my seat until the final page, and even when I was finished, I was dying for more. Like with book 1, the ending is going to have so many consequences for all of the characters, and the final book is going to be a killer, I just know it.
I originally picked up this series because I'd heard so many glowing reviews, and if anything has a mention of Alexander the Great in it, I'm bound to want it. I'm in the middle of a module on Alexander, and should be writing my assignment right now, but instead I'm doing this (priorities ;p). Even though the whole situation with the Circle, and the true heir isn't factually correct, the way Maggie has constructed the whole plot makes you forget about it all. Honestly, I'd recommend this series to anyone, even if they have no interest in ancient history, because, by being set in the modern world, it only needs a hint of history to make it interesting. I think this may be one of my favourite series, and I'm dying to read book 3 when it comes out.
Dates Read:
April 14-18, 2016
Rating
5 Stars
Rating
5 Stars
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