'The Red Threads Of Fortune' is the second book in JY Yang's 'Tensorate' fantasy series and continues four years after the events of the first novella, 'The Black Tides Of Heaven' (my review here).
Previously where the first book covered around the first 40 years in the life of twins Akeha and Mokoya, focusing mainly on Akeha in the latter part, here the spotlight is on Mokoya, still in rebellious grief over the events in 'Black Tides'.
Her focus is now on a monster hunt, chasing down a huge Naga, a kind of dragon, through the desert with her pack of giant velociraptors, which is where we join the story. This quest keeps her from truly letting go of her grief, but when she first meets Rider, a mysterious Naga rider also in search of the same Naga as Mokoya, they seem to connect instantly, changing Mokoya's outlook for the better and helping her through her grief.
Much like 'Black Tides', there are themes of gender in society. Mokoya's new companion, Rider, is non binary, although they are also referred to by another character as female, and some of the relationships spoken of in the novella are gender fluid too, all adding extra depth and development to the well written world building.
'Red Threads' also goes into a bit more detail into the magic system in use in this Alt-Asian world, giving more exposition as Rider teaches Mokoya how to manipulate the Slack, allowing her to instantaneously appear anywhere, which certainly becomes useful later on.
It's a more faster paced story, as Mokoya and Rider, as well as Akeha and Thennjay, fight to save the city from the giant Naga, all leading towards an intense finale.
The cover art by Yuko Shimizu is simply gorgeous and it's a great read that benefits from more character development, adding a bit more emotion and depth to this fantasy world. I look forward to reading more in JY Yang's 'Tensorate' series.
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