Lori M. Lee

As civil war threatens Ninurta, Kai finds herself caught between Reev, who is siding with the rebels, and her friend Avan, who is still learning what it means to be an Infinite.

The Infinite

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I received a free copy of this book from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

For me, “The Infinite” is a pleasant surprise, especially after my dreadful experience with the first book of the series, “Gates of Thread and Stone”. With this wonderful sequel, Lori M. Lee proves that second books do not exist to be filler novels but to show improvement and development.


The Plot

“The Infinite” is a lot more intricate and dynamic than “Gates of Thread and Stone”. Everyone has their secrets and is playing their own game. In addition to the intrigues and lies that Kai has to uncover, there is plenty of action and physical battles - a lot of which she handles on her own and without the help of the threads of time.

Even though the plot tends to drag on from time to time - it is hard, after all, to get the right pacing - it is much better paced than its prequel. I could see all the twists and reveals from miles but this does not mean that they still don’t make the novel interesting and engaging.

Honestly, this is such an improvement since book one that I am almost willing to overlook its shortcomings. Almost. In addition to what I previously mentioned, there are a few more things that could have been done better. Some of the subplots which were supposed to be shocking and influential to the bigger picture get resolved quickly and without much consequence. The character development is also limited - for pretty much everyone, except for Kai; the novel is full of underdeveloped main and side characters which is a shame as all of them have so much potential.

There is also an attempt for a love triangle but that, thankfully, is quickly forgotten in favour of the actual plot (not that romantic plots cannot be important - but, to be fair, how many well written love triangles can you point out?).


The Setting

In “The Infinite”, Lori M. Lee expands the world of the series and not only introduces us to new places but leaves with the promise for more in the sequel. While I cannot say I found any of the new cities particularly interesting, I enjoyed hearing about the history of those places.

I am excited to see how their political relationships will develop (even further) now that Ninurta has gotten - and it seem it will even more get - in touch with other cities and that Kai and her friends have seen the world beyond the confines of the city.


The Characters

Kai must have taken a class in Kickass over winter break because she wasn’t so independant and strong last time. Not being able to rely on her abilities and the threads of time, she has to utilise her wit and her physical power to face the threats and challenges that her new life brings. The change in her is a pleasant surprise - she finally seems like a character who can navigate her own story and deserves the central spotlight.

Kai is a lot more interesting and less annoying in this book and part of the reason is all the time she spends away from Avan. As long he is in her proximity, all we hear about is how heartbroken and lovesick she is and how attractive Avan is… and you know where this is going. When she is away from him, however, we barely ever hear about him (though even that is too much) and Kai is able to build her own personality; she becomes much more appealing and I almost found myself cheering for her.

Unfortunately, as I previously mentioned, none of the other characters receive much attention or development. Taking Avan’s humanity away from him in this case seems to mean taking away any character traits that might have made him interesting (I am still here cheering for canonically queer!Avan); Reev, when he shows up, is mostly overprotective and secretive and that’s it. The other person that Kai interacts a lot with is Mason and he deserves a mention because he seems nice and charming - even though there is not much more to say about him.


The Verdict

Even if you did not like “Gates of Thread and Stone”, “The Infinite” is still worth a try. Once Kai gets outside the walls of Ninurta and begins exploring the world she lives in, the book becomes a pretty decent adventure novel. “The Infinite” is, in fact, a very pleasant surprise of a follow-up novel.

The Infinite

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