Gates of Thread and Stone

Gates of Thread and Stone by debut author Lori M. Lee is the first of the series of the same name.

In the Labyrinth, we had a saying: keep silent, keep still, keep safe.

In a city of walls and secrets, where only one man is supposed to possess magic, seventeen-year-old Kai struggles to keep hidden her own secret- she can manipulate the threads of time.  When Kai was eight, she was found by Reeve on the riverbank, and her "brother" has taken care of her ever since.  Kai doesn't know where her ability comes from- or where she came from.  All that matters is that she and Reeve stay together, and maybe one day move out of the freight container they call home, away from the metal walls of the Labyrinth.  Kai's only friend is Avan, the shopkeeper's son with the scandalous reputation that both frightens and intrigues her.

The Reeve disappears.  When keeping silent and safe means losing him forever, Kai vows to do whatever it takes to find him.  She will leave the only home she's ever known and risk getting caught up in a revolution centuries in the making.  But to save Reev, Kai must unravel the threads of her past and face the shocking truths about her brother, her friendship with Avan, and her unique power.

The Breakdown:
1. I absolutely loved this book.  The setting, characters, and the story all came together so perfectly.  I did not want to put this book down. The post-apocalyptic world, which I love post-apocalypse settings, worked so wonderfully, and the way Lee describes the setting makes it easy to picture the world she has created.

2. I really liked the loved and loyalty between Kai and Reev.  The way they made their own little family and lookout for each other in this world was great.  Kai never gives up on Reev, even when it would have been the easy way.

3. The relationship between Kai and Avan was so adorably awkward.  They were both attracted to each other, but each had trouble expressing their feelings.  I love that their relationship keeps growing and that they remain loyal to each other through all challenges they face.

4. Lee might be a budding master of secrets and subplots.  There are things that happen that I did not even realize were important until much later.  Plus so much is not what it seems, and there were quite a few shocks in the end. I cannot wait to see where Lee will take this series.

5. My only complaint is the use of the word mahjo during the book. I felt like the definition of the word changed several times during the story, whether it was magic, magic users, the gods or the descendants of the gods.  I felt like it was until the end that I got a grasp of what the word really meant.

To Read or Not to Read:
Must Read

Currently Reading:
Fairest
by Chanda Hahn