Thank you NetGalley and G.P. Putnam's Sons Books for Young Readers for an eARC in exchange for an honest review!

I was drawn in by the author’s Naruto comp, and honestly I’m glad I picked this up because it was very fun and well crafted. The world building was very thought out and, in combination with the characters and philosophical tensions, made for an extremely compelling read. I will admit that it did require more brain power than I had been expecting, but that’s fine. Vora has written a wonderfully complex story and it was a delight to read. I do think I could’ve gone for more information on the magical beasts, but I’ll just hope that that aspect of the world gets developed in the next book. Regardless, I’m eager to continue the series and I definitely think I’ll have a blast rereading this one.

Incredible world building and a truly unique YA fantasy! I bounced off a little at first, but once I hit my reading stride I was really impressed with the complexity of the characters and the questions the story poses. A real standout in the current tropey YA scene.

Equal parts ‘Avatar: The Last Airbender’ and the world building of a Sanderson novel, the alchemical mix known as ‘Spin the Fate’ was a knockout success in my books.

A must read for those who enjoy chunky, hard magic fantasies. The world building was seriously great and conceptually quite fascinating. I do think once upon a time I would've enjoyed this far more than I did reading this now, but this I think this might be a subgenre that I've fallen out of love for.

The concept of a word divided inspired by Hinduism with the magic of Avatar the Last Airbender made for quite an interesting world. I enjoyed the layers of spiritual paths, philosophical discussions, and all the magical creatures.

I do think this would've done a lot better if written and marketed for an adult audience instead of made to be read by young adults. At the end of it all, I felt just a little detached by the characters and the way they interacted with each other. Mixed with the hard fantasy elements, it was just an ok read for me.

I received an ARC of this book from Netgalley and Penguin Group Penguin Young Readers Group in exchange for an honest review.

Intricate world building, a unique magic system, characters that both frustrate you and make you root for them - this book has it all. The first book in what is sure to be an epic fantasy series. I cannot wait for the next one. Also, a peacock snake is such a fantastic created creature - I am hoping another of the mythical creatures graces the cover of the second book.

It did take me awhile to understand the chitronic system, the realms, and all the different groups of people. It's A LOT which is why this was 4 stars for me, but I have high hopes that the rest will be 5 stars reads now that I "get" this fantasy world.

This is absolutely the best book of 2024 for me. Not only because the exceptional well done world building, but also the characters that stand out, who come out of a page and are as real as they come. I wish for this book get a hype it deserves. Every turn in a story was a surprise for me. It was a wild ride and yet we had time to get to know main players, get to love them, get to hate them. It was exceptionally well executed. This is how you write books.

I really wanted to like this novel more. By the description, I should have plowed through it, but it just didn't hold my interest. The world-building is well done, and I liked the writing, but it's the characters I couldn't connect with and the pacing moved a little slowly for my taste. I also got a little confused with the names since nearly everything started with one of three letters. This still won't prevent me from checking out future releases by this author. Thanks for approving me to read Spin of Fate!

I liked what I understood of this book, but that being said, I thought that the writing was unnecessarily confusing.

Something unusual for a YA fantasy novel- Spin of Fate has a complicated magic system with complex world-building and focuses heavily on philosophical ideas about morality. Based loosely on the law of karma, the world is separated into four segments based on the "spin" of a person's soul and morals. We spend most of the book in the two middle spaces with a cast of morally gray, well-developed characters. There are rebels, corruption, mythical beasts, and a girl trying to reverse the spin of her soul to get back to her mother. I love the whole concept of the karma-based magic system, where your actions can spin your soul into another realm. It is pretty harsh. For a debut novel, I was pleasantly surprised by how in-depth the characters are, and each has their unique voice and the ability to have you flip your loyalty like a switch on who you should be cheering on. I highly recommend this book to fans of Brandon Sanderson and Christopher Paolini.
Audiobook Review: the narrator did a fantastic job distinguishing between characters, which can be hard to do with one narrator. I was never distracted by the story's pacing and thoroughly enjoyed it on audiobook.

This was a wonderful story bringing young adults from different realms together to fight for a common cause. I liked Aina's love and dedication to her mother and wanting to do what was right for everyone. The conversations between people on either side of the toranas was also really interesting to think about and how they communicated.

I really loved this book and I’m so grateful for the ARC!

The world and magic system were so easy to understand but not simplistic. I cannot wait for more from this series

Thank you NetGalley, PENGUIN GROUP Penguin Young Readers Group, and the author for this ARC of Spin of Fate by A.A. Vora!.

This is a great epic fantasy inspired by karma. With incredible world-building, fantastical beasts, beautiful prose, and a propulsive plot, this book will take your breath away!

A world where magic is governed, it’s separated by realms that house people with their morals.

This was definitely a fantasy that made their magic and systems easy to understand, although it is complex. The characters are always well developed.. with some morally gray characters I love!!! There also magical beasts. But o won’t go too into detail, because I hate when people spoil.

All in all, I love the banter and character development. And I loved the magic!

3.5 stars rounded up.

This was a great start to a new YA fantasy series!

I would've loved to bump this up to 4 stars, but the really long training sequence lost me. As an RPG player, I wasn't really blown away by the hard magic system. (Maybe it's a lot more impressive for casual fantasy readers and non-gamers?)

But I did appreciate how much thought was put into the magic system. Unlike your typical fantasy books, the characters did have limits to their powers and they felt human (or as realistic as you can portray magic) without being overpowered to all hell. Which is definitely a thing I hate with Chosen One tropes in YA fantasy.

I really liked the concept of realms/worlds, the magic/religion and the how each realm had their ideas of being a "good" person vs. "bad" person. I'm interested to see how the author plays this out.

This was one of those novels where I ended up liking all three MCs. They all brought different viewpoints and personalities to their shared quest. Strangely, I didn't outright hate Aranel. And I usually dislike poor little rich kid characters.

I'll be sure to keep an eye on this author's journey!

Thank you to G.P. Putnam's Sons Books for Young Readers and NetGalley for this arc.

Thank you to the publisher and netgalley for the arc of this book. all opinions are my own.

This was fantastic. I really enjoyed it! I'd recommend it. Another great fantasy to check out!

Spin of Fate
by A.A. Vora
The Fifth Realm #1
YA Fantasy
NetGalley eARC
Penguin Group
Pub Date: May 7, 2024
Ages: 16+

Toranic Law decides who lives in which realm, who suffers war and pain, and who lives in luxury, but if one commits a sin they can fall down to the next realm and even down to the last, but those who are sinful, but begin to do good deeds can, but rarely, ascend to one of the upper realms.

Aina, who lives in the lower realm ascends but she wants to go back to find her mother and commits petty crimes hoping one of them will send her back down. Finding the Balancers, rebels who are trying to make the lives of those in the lower realms better, she descends with them.

Aranel, who lives in the shadow of his perfect older brother has crossed paths with Aina and is puzzled why she wants to descend. But in his attempt to ascend to the high realm after his brother ascends to be with their parents, Aranel accepts a mission to spy on the lower realm.

And there's Meizan, a young man of the lower realm, second of his clan who he is trying to save.


This book started off decent, but I got bored. There's a lot of 'religion/rich vs poor' in this book, heaven, hell, and the in between, and how the struggles of the lower realms reflect the real world. And while the book was good, I don't feel as if there was enough about the magic, which I thought was an interesting take, but lacked detail.

What made the book disappointing was a mix between the blurb and the book cover. The magnificent beasts were only mentioned, and those that were centered were similar to monkeys and/or lacked the description needed to make them grab my attention. The buried gods were also only mentioned, and the magic needs more depth. Yes, there were battles but they were hidden under the teenage drama of the three MCs.

More world/magic/creature building is needed as is some maturity to these characters except for Aranel, he's spoiled upper so his characterization fits.

Doubtful I'll continue the series.

2 Stars

As someone who grew up in a strict religious environment, "Spin of Fate" by A. A. Vora resonated with me deeply. This high fantasy debut, inspired by the law of karma, expertly weaves intricate world-building with thought-provoking themes that challenge rigid religious ideals.
Following Aina, a lower who ascended to the upper realms, and her fellow Balancers, Aranel and Meizan, the story delves into the complexities of faith, morality, and the consequences of defying the status quo. Vora's portrayal of the characters' struggles and their questioning of the Toranic Law felt authentic and relatable, especially for those grappling with their own religious doubts.
"Spin of Fate" is an engaging and thought-provoking read that left me eager for more in the series. Its unique blend of fantasy elements and philosophical themes makes it a standout debut that will appeal to fans of Avatar: The Last Airbender and Naruto, as well as anyone who appreciates stories that challenge societal norms and explore the depths of personal belief.

**Thank you to the author and Penguin Teen for the ARC of this title. This in no way changed my rating. I also want to thank ReadsWithRachel because she recommended I try this one out**

This book needs more hype and I will not shut up about it. The book follows three characters who are from different realms that are separated by how "good" or "sinful" you are: Paramos, the top realm for the best of the best; Mayana, the middle "good" realm; Malin, the middle "bad" realm; and Narakh, the bottom realm for the worst of the worst. The characters are named Aina, a Malini girl who ascends to Mayana, but wants to go back to Malin to save her mother; Aranel, a Mayana boy who ends up in Malin as a spy; and Meizan, a Malini boy who is separated from his clan. They all end up in a group called the Balancers, who want to equalize all the realms. But who can be trusted and who is telling the truth?

I LOVED this book. The book asks a lot of questions about whether people are born or made "good" or "sinful", what truly is "equal", and what's best for society vs. the individual. The characters are complex and have ever-shifting alliances. There's an implied polyamorous love triangle, as well. The Fantasy elements are well done and thought out. I can't wait for book 2! I am so excited to share this book with my library patrons.

5/5 stars

So obviously, I’m a cover snob, and this bad boy is a piece of art. A peacock snake mix, who would’ve ever thought that would be as awesome as it is. The magical beasts were my favorite part of this book.

This was a high fantasy, complex hard magic, and wild world building. A. A. Vora also brings in the influence of Indian philosophy and Japanese manga.

Aina, Meizan and Aranel are the 3 teenage MCs. I absolutely love the family and enemies to friends in this one. The growth of the characters was fun to watch.

If you are a lover, a fantasy, high fantasy, magic, and incredible magic beasts… You’ll definitely want to check this one out!

Be sure to check out the “Of Language and Nomenclature” and the Authors note at the end.