Fates Hands by Lori Ameling Review

Fates Hands by Lori Ameling is a passionate and sensual romance novel that delves into the search for true love. Spare has always lived in the shadow of her sister Lily, until Duncan enters her life, claiming they are destined to be soulmates. Despite her inner desires for Duncan, Spare is determined to prioritize her studies and maintain her independence after graduation. However, as their connection deepens, Spare faces a heart-wrenching choice between following her own path or surrendering to the intertwined fate that binds her to Duncan.  Currently, the book has 14.5 million views. Prepare to be captivated by the irresistible forces at play in Fates Hands.

Genre: Werewolf Romance

Total length: 124 chapters

Writer: Lori Ameling

Update status: Completed

Synopsis: Spare is a forsaken pup who knows far too much to be allowed to leave. She's been drafting an elaborate "escape" plan that avoids raising any unwanted alarms, but this plan gets thwarted once she meets her fated mate in the most bizarre circumstances!

Author Introduction | Lori Ameling

Lori Ameling is a relative newcomer in the writing scene, having written three novels as of this date: "Never Again," "The Elixir," and "Fates Hands" (the one being reviewed). You can find her on Facebook as "Author Lori Ameling."

Theme: You Make Plans, God Laughs

Throughout "Fates Hands," you may notice a dialectic tension between "free will" and "determinism," as evinced by the events that unfold right from the beginning.

The main character is the typical "neglected pup" doomed from birth, being an unwanted child. However, she's not content with this situation, planning to escape from her hostile environment, only to confront a seemingly insurmountable obstacle (i.e., finding her "fated mate").

Nevertheless, this obstacle becomes an even greater blessing than what she initially heralded as her path to salvation. Hence, the aphorism "you make plans, God (or, in this case, the ??Moon Goddess') laughs" becomes another major theme.

While our distressed female lead is subjected to the worst treatments and loses confidence in humanity, she finds someone she can love and trust and who defends her against her abusers.

Characters: The Abused Fated Luna and Her Protector

The main protagonist in this Romance is aptly called "Spare Williams," with Duncan MacKenny posing as the male lead. Let's describe each in more detail:

Spare Williams (Adira MacPatton)

It is said that Spare was discarded from birth, hence her name. Naturally, she resents her own name, as evidenced by the attitude she assumes upon introducing herself to others. Her only true friend is her own wolf, Artemis.

Spare is slightly envious of her sister's undeserved privilege, considering she's the brighter of the two. Her aspiration is to become a doctor, but her plans to go to college would get severely delayed.

Duncan MacKenny

Duncan meets Spare in a hotel bedroom during one of her shifts. He's the Alpha of the Storm Crow Moon pack in search of his Luna. In terms of personality, he's overly passionate and protective of the people he cares the most about, which is evident in the way he treats Sare and his thoughts on her awful parents and sister.

Other Characters:

Maureen: Duncan's kind and warm-hearted sister.

Lily (or Lilly): Spare's spoiled and academically-challenged sister.

Eric: Spare's father and the brother of the Rising Moon pack's Alpha.

Alpha Micheal: The reckless Alpha of the Rising Moon pack.

Point of View in Fates Hands

"Fates Hands" is told entirely from the perspective of an unknown narrator who's aware of all the characters and events.

Plot: Funny How Fate Works!

The novel begins with the protagonist, Spare, outlining her own biography. She describes her chaotic relationship with her family nucleus and her pack, as well as how her very existence is ultimately seen as a mishap by her own parents, to the point of naming her "Spare," as in a spare auto part.

She had already devised a plan to enroll in college in order to escape from her toxic household. To save money for her studies, she began working in a hotel. However, in one of her shifts, she meets Duncan, naked and supposedly unconscious. She immediately feels he's her fated mate and starts getting extremely nervous.

After an intense back-and-forth, Duncan takes her under his protection, promising to avenge her for the mistreatment she has suffered. Additionally, he strongly encourages her to change her name to something less demeaning. Artemis (Spare's "wolf") suggests the name Adira, which she finds to her liking. Next thing, after all the paperwork is done, she officially becomes Adira Marie MacPatton.

Adira's relationship with Duncan will be quite the rollercoaster from there on. She's increasingly exasperated by her frustrated career plans. Moreover, her family would not stop persecuting and torturing her, going so far as to poison her with drugs and inflict physical damage.

Hottest Chapters in Fates Hands

Chapter 5 is peculiarly disturbing. In it, we learn just how sick Spare's pack (Rising Moon) truly is. It's not just a matter of her being ignored or marginalized, but, rather, actively abused and mistreated. Among other things, they had installed a tracker and inflicted several wounds on her body. Alpha Micheal had even envisioned selling Spare to the best bidder as if she was cattle!

In chapter 15, Duncan decides to finally "mark" Spare (now Adira) so as to take some of her pain in what's possibly one of the most heart-wrenching scenes in the entire novel.

Writing Style: Might Need a Hand in Editing

The writing in "Fates Hands" is a mixed bag and arguably the novel's weakest point. Some portions appear polished, while others exhibit an amateurish quality.

Generally speaking, the work is in serious need of editing, especially as it contains blatant spelling errors. Case in point, one recurrent mistake is the use of "waist" instead of "waste," among others.

The naming inconsistencies are also pretty hard to overlook. One prominent example is how Lily is styled "Lilly" during the novel's first few chapters.

Is Fates Hands Worth a Read?

"Fates Hands" is an exhilarating novel from a storytelling standpoint. Moreover, Spare's character arc is quite dramatic, and readers will quickly empathize with her and all the horrible pain she has gone through.

On the other hand, the novel's writing quality leaves a lot to be desired. Some ideas seem disjointed and poorly laid out, making the narrative a bit challenging to follow at times, not to mention all the grammatical glitches we uncovered earlier. To the author's credit, the publishing company reportedly utilized the first draft instead of the final one, so a lot of these errors might be sifted out in a new edition.

Despite all those negative notes, "Fates Hands" is still a net positive (albeit barely!)

FAQs

Q: Is "Fates Hands" available in physical copy?

A: You could buy a physical copy of Book 1 (subtitled "The Spare") at Amazon, though availability is not always guaranteed.

Q: How many books comprise "Fates Hands"?

A: "Fates Hands" is fashioned as a "trilogy," so the novel is divided into three books.