Champion of Fate 

• Author: Kendare Blake
• Genre: YA Fantasy
• Publication Date: September 19, 2023
• Publisher: Quill Tree Books
• Series: Heromaker #1

Thank you to Quill Tree Books and Rylee Warner for sending me a copy of this ARC in exchange for an honest review.

Behind every great hero is an Aristene. 

Aristene are mythical female warriors, part of a legendary order. Though heroes might be immortalized in stories, it’s the Aristene who guide them to victory. They are the Heromakers.

Ever since she was an orphan taken in by the order, Reed has wanted to be an Aristene. Now, as an initiate, just one challenge stands in her way: she must shepherd her first hero to glory on the battlefield. Succeed, and Reed will take her place beside her sisters. Fail, and she’ll be cast from the only home she’s ever known. 

Nothing is going to stop Reed—until she meets her hero. Hestion is fiery and infuriating, but what begins as an alliance becomes more, and as secrets of the order come to light, Reed begins to understand what becoming an Aristene may truly cost. Battle looming, she must choose: the order and the life she had planned, or Hestion, and the one she never expected.

Let me preface this review by saying that I am a huge fan of Kendare Blake’s work in various genres. I’ve read a previous fantasy series of hers, as well as one of her horror books, and loved them. So when the opportunity to read this one came around, I was ecstatic, even though it took me a bit longer to get around to reading than I planned.

The thing that I loved most about this book, and it might sound strange but this is my personal opinion, is the fast pace. The entirety of the book is consistently fast-paced, but somehow manages to present all of the world-building and character information without losing the reader at any point. It’s never rushed, and Blake avoids the dreaded info-dumps. The story also never drags, which I especially appreciated. 

Just as importantly, she created a well-rounded and fully rendered cast of characters. We first meet our main character, Reed, as a child. After being orphaned, she’s taken in by the Aristene, a mysterious group of female warriors who usher heroes to victory. Readers get to see Reed arrive at their hidden home, but rather than focus on her development of skills, Blake skips over that to arrive at the tail end of training: the final trial to transition from initiate to full member of the sisterhood. The side characters didn’t feel like they were just in there as filler, and they had their own personalities, stories, and motivations as well. But the real strength in the characters is the way that they interact with each other. Each of the characters really helps Reed to grow and change, and become a better, stronger, and tougher warrior and person as she comes of age. Aster and Meridian are the first Aristene that she comes into contact with and transition into mentor roles, helping to mold her into an Aristene; Lyonene and Gretchen are her friends, training partners, and cohort, and offer support, challenges, and a little friendly ribbing; and her first hero, Hestion, teaches and challenges her, as well as helps her to determine the path that she wants her life to take.

I loved the way this story flowed. The plot twists kept taking me by surprise, and watching Reed learn more about the Aristene and the organization that she was associating herself with was fascinating. Living with them from such a young age made it easy for her to view them with rose-colored glasses, but as she got older and gained more life experience, she started seeing things differently. There is an angsty friends to lovers romance plot that takes up such a small amount of page space, but plays such a big role in Reed’s personal growth. Overall, this is an outstanding book featuring battle scenes, female friendships featuring badass warriors, and a surprising Mists of Avalon vibe, in that the women with the magic work behind the scenes to keep the heroes hero-ing, and it’s a great start to a new duology.

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