Fates Aflame

This science fiction fantasy mashup by Anastasia (Dark Diary) falls short on multiple fronts. Lt. Valhara Hawksford is reassigned from the Celestial Galaxy Academy to the Silver Diamond Academy back on Earth in order to resolve ongoing squabbles between the two. There she is befriended by Cmdr. Mattheia Draven, second in command of Silver Diamond. Strangely, the pair do not work together to resolve the issues that separate the schools and, in fact, what those issues might be is never revealed. In general, there is little worldbuilding to speak of, so the reader never learns even basic things such as the location of Celestial Galaxy in relation to Earth or why the students of Silver Diamond are forced to use pens and paper in this spacefaring society. Logic is weak throughout, and word choices occasionally miss the mark completely (when Mattheia thinks “My injury would be less instigated that way,” readers can only guess what that might mean). After very little happens for a long while, Valhara and Mattheia begin a series of adventures in which magic appears, too late to save this poorly written work. (BookLife)