Tess of the Road

Tess of the Road dances on the fine line of what makes a book adult and young adult. That is if you can forgive Tess' age. It is, by and large, a coming of age story that is ripe with adult situations (Tess is 16 at the start of this story). The book launches where Shadow Scale left off - with Seraphina living with the Royal family, but focuses on a new strong female MC, Tess Dombegh, Seraphina's half sister.

Tess reminds me a bit of Tess Of d'Ubervilles although the author has said that this wasn't her intention. Both protagonists were vilified for having premarital sex and getting pregnant. Both are born into societies where the woman is at fault and the man has zero responsibility. Although headstrong Tess Dombegh makes the most of her situation and tries to absolve her guilt by giving her soul and happiness to see her sister successfully married. Tess is flawed and sometimes impetuous but this makes her even more relatable. Tess hits a breaking point at the wedding and this launches us into story.

Told through flashbacks and through Tess' experience on the road south, Hartman unravels Tess past while also helping her find herself. Through nature, hard work and with the help of an old friend, Tess forgives herself and finds strength, compassion and courage to face the future on her own. For anyone who hasn't read the Seraphina duo logy you will love Hartman's world building, prose and humor - Tess in spite of losing everything has not lost her sense of humor.

All your failures and hope, your suffering and striving, the great coils seemed to say, are inconsequential, compared with this. They are nothing. You are nothing.

It was a relief to be nothing; it felt deep and beautiful and true.

Hartman uses something of colossal beauty to ground Tess. I compare this to hiking up a mountain and feeling catharsis after for having conquered not only the height but your owns troubles.

Tess of the Road will connect with anyone who has felt overwhelmed by circumstances. As a daughter of Russian immigrants, my family puts family obligations above all else. You are considered selfish if you put personal needs ahead of family. My mother is far more forward-thinking than my grandparents and has helped me with my feelings but I can relate with Tess' guilt. Although I never quite had to sacrifice my future for my family, I have felt overwhelmed by family obligations, career and personal happiness. As I've gotten older I have learned to say "no" but it took years and still takes time to not feel guilty.

5/5 stars. I cannot wait for the next book!

Hartman has at last continued the intricate world she had crafted in SERAPHINA by composing a duology on Seraphina’s half-sister, Tess. Seraphina pops up for a glimpse once in a while, as is expected considering her position in life and her connection to Tess, but this is not her story. In fact it was incredibly interesting to read about Seraphina from such a different point of view.

TESS OF THE ROAD is a story about grief and feeling like we’ve messed up so bad and so often that there’s no going back, but more importantly it is a story about finding your way back and knowing that no matter how you may feel, you are not alone and there is always forwards even if the road is painful and long. Roiling with a surprising spectrum of vivid emotion this is a journey filled with sacrifice, heartbreak, loyalty, and disappointment. A path paved with courage, anger, healing, painful truths, and an unleashed ferocity for freedom. Overflowing with dragons, mystery, and adventure, but ignited by a girl long beaten and broken until only her hatred could bare to face the world locking all hope and softness deep within…until the day she left her prison to take a chance on the road and with each step her life forever changed.

This may be categorized as a YA Fantasy tale, but the story goes soul-deep, excavating and exploring the depth and complexity of human emotion, in particular self-destruction, guilt, sorrow, bitterness, shame, love, and heartbreak. There may be dragons in this world but Tess’ story is as poignant as any YA book written to reach out to those struggling with the burden of feeling like a mistake in the world. Absolutely riveting, heart-wrenching, inspiring, and beautifully written.
-pooled ink Reviews

Having read only the blurb of the book and never having read any books by Rachel Hartman before, when I began reading Tess of the Road, I expected somewhat of a lighthearted, possibly action-packed, young adult, fantasy book, very much like others I had read in the past.

If that is the kind of book you're looking for, a book similar to Tamora Pierce or Mercedes Lackey's writings - then this book may not be for you.

To be perfectly honest, Tess of the Road is quite unlike any other fantasy book (young adult or otherwise) that I have read before.

This is a book that will have you contemplating the nature of religion and sin, good and evil/bad, the nature of morality and whether a person's destiny is predetermined as it takes you on a philosophical adventure filled journey.

With unexpected twists and turns that I did not see coming, I highly recommend giving this book a read and eagerly await the next installment in this surprising series - because it has to be a series! I want more Tess! I want to the rest of her journey! I want more! MORE! MORE! MORE!

An arc of this book was generously provided to me by Netgalley and Random House Books for Young Readers in exchange for a fair and honest review.