THE THREAD OF DESTINY

Chinese American middle schooler Evie Mei Huang seeks vengeance in this follow-up to 2024’s The Spindle of Fate.

Evie ventured into Dìyù, or the Ten Courts of Hell, to save her mother not long ago, but the outcome wasn’t what she’d hoped for. Upon her return, Evie follows through on her mother’s wishes and spins a thread of fate to save The Gambler—Aunt Kathie’s fiancé and the man who murdered Evie’s mother. But Evie can’t help but think about avenging her mom: She wants The Gambler out of her aunt’s life and sent to the torturous depths of Dìyù. As Evie adjusts to her new role as the leader of the Weavers and the keeper of the Spindle of Fate, new opportunities arise, including an avenue for serving up justice to The Gambler. But with an unsettling yellow fog blanketing Southern California, along with the arrival of demons, an escaped penitent, and the chaos god, things are getting complicated. Lim picks up the loose threads from the earlier book and satisfyingly ties them up. Evie continues to grieve and ruminate on her relationship with her mother, and the book focuses on her grappling with ethics and the gray areas surrounding circumstances and decisions. Teaming up with new and old allies alike, Evie satisfyingly begins to come into her own beliefs and determine who she wants to be as a daughter, sister, friend, and Weaver.

An action-packed and thoughtful duology closer.