Our Infinite Fates

Beautiful! Haven’t read it yet but got here in perfect condition.

Oh the angst and mystery! Such gorgeous, poetic writing. Evelyn and Arden are cursed to kill each other before they turn 18. Arden remembers everything and Evelyn only pieces.The mystery is a good one. Their love (and sometimes hate) is powerfully rendered.

A great YA fantasy read with devastating love sprinkled throughout. This book felt like poetry at times and the love story(ies) were so so so good. The ending felt a bit rushed but the last few pages actually made me cry. I really enjoyed it. The writing was also spectacular and I really felt the emotions of the characters.

📚 Book 52/100 (2025 Reading Goal)📖 𝙊𝙪𝙧 𝙄𝙣𝙛𝙞𝙣𝙞𝙩𝙚 𝙁𝙖𝙩𝙚𝙨 by Laura Steven✍️ Fantastical queer reincarnation romance with poetic prose and emotional weight🎧 Narrated by Sofia Oxenham⭐️ 4.75/5 stars🌶️ 1.5/5 chilis (light spice, more emotional than steamy)⸻𝗪𝗵𝗮𝘁 𝗜 𝗟𝗼𝘃𝗲𝗱 + 𝗩𝗶𝗯𝗲𝘀:🌀 Soulmates through centuries⚔️ Enemies to lovers (with a haunting twist)🌈 Queer and gender-diverse representation🔮 Reincarnation, curses, fate💔 Grief, loss, and healing🩷 Sibling love and found family📜 Poetic, reflective prose💡 Holding on to hope in the dark⸻⚠️ 𝗧𝗪𝘀:MurderGrief and death of a loved oneViolenceHospital scenesCancer (teen character)⸻𝗙𝗮𝘃𝗼𝗿𝗶𝘁𝗲 𝗤𝘂𝗼𝘁𝗲𝘀:✨ “Almost everyone I had ever loved was dead, and the hurt never went away; I just learned to exist alongside it.”✨ “In truth, a part of me believed that everyone I’d ever loved would come back to me again in another life, in another form.”✨ “How does the candle of hope in your chest never burn down to the wick?”✨ “I don’t feel, in my heart, that I’m a boy. But neither do I feel like I am inherently a girl. My soul isn’t rooted to any of them. I’m just me. No particular body feels more ‘right’ than the other, nor more wrong.”⸻𝗥𝗲𝘃𝗶𝗲𝘄:Our Infinite Fates is a story about connection across lifetimes, about how love and loss can echo through centuries, and about what it means to reclaim your story when fate has written it for you time and time again.Evelyn has lived countless lives, and in each one, she remembers everything—including the moment she’s murdered before her eighteenth birthday by Arden, a soul bound to hers. But this time is different. She wants to live. Her little sister needs her, and Evelyn is determined to break the cycle, uncover the truth, and finally make her own choices—even if it means facing the person who has destroyed her over and over again.Laura Steven’s writing is elegant and haunting. There’s a quiet intensity in her storytelling—poetic without being overly flowery, and emotionally layered without losing clarity. This book explores difficult topics like death, grief, identity, and destiny with grace and depth.The queer representation throughout is strong and affirming. Characters are given space to exist as their full selves, and conversations about gender identity are handled with care and insight. One character’s expression of being nonbinary stood out as especially moving and honest.Sofia Oxenham’s narration is steady and engaging, with a warm tone that fits the lyrical style of the writing. A few mispronunciations were noticeable, but overall, the performance enhanced the immersive feel of the story.This wasn’t an easy read, especially given my own recent loss, and there were moments that felt emotionally sharp. But I’m glad I read it. The themes of love—across time, across bodies, across pain—felt honest and important. For me, the greatest takeaway was that love, no matter its form or ending, still matters. It endures.⸻Book Content: grief, death, murder, violence, reincarnation, LGBTQIA+ characters, nonbinary identity, sibling relationships, found family, enemies to lovers, soulmates, poetic prose, supernatural elements, hospital scenes, cancer (teen)

The way Steven’s was able to cross centuries and storylines so detailed was incredible. The book kept me captivated for the answers. The ending was pure perfection.

Evelyn & Arden have a love story literally for the ages, and I was so moved seeing their building blocks create such a beautiful foundation. The prose felt magical and well-structured. I loved looking back little by little while also moving forward toward the final culmination of their existence. There was angst, there was pain, there was love and friendship and the truest of soulmates. This was simply wonderful.

⭐️4.4 Stars⭐️Thank you to NetGalley for the opportunity to read Our Infinite Fates. I really enjoyed reading this book so much, it was starting to become the highlight of my day getting to read it! I loved how this book started and how it kept switching between past and present. I enjoyed the authors writing style. I wasn’t the biggest fan of the ending of the book, I wish there was more explanation about the shock surprise on why they kept being reborn again and how things were left off with her family. If you loved the book The Invisible Life Of Addie LaRue then I think you’ll love this one! Thank you again to NetGalley!💕📚

This was one of the best books I've read so far this year. I am beyond blessed to have received an ARC and I look forward to reading all of Steven's work moving forward.This book is a love letter to romance lovers. It felt like I was reading poetry or an extended sonnet. The writing is beyond stunning, full of exquisite prose and heartwrenching romance. It follows two individuals whose love transcends time, gender, and sexuality. They have lived countless lives, reborn over and over again throughout the centuries, and yet they never make it to 18. In every life, they are forced to kill each other.We spend most of the story learning about their infinite romance while also trying to piece together their origin and why they can never live to turn 18. If you are someone who needs a strong, linear plot to remain engaged, then you might struggle with this book. We are constantly going back and forth in time, slowly piecing together their story through the ages. Personally, I loved it, but I can understand why others might not.If you love love, appreciate a poetic romance, and don't mind a non-linear character-driven plot, then you will appreciate Our Infinite Fates.

I read this book after being strongly recommended it in my book club. It’s beautifully written and so emotionally evocative. I love this book and highly recommend it. I will say there is a tiny little bit of spice so be warned in case you’re recommending it to someone you wouldn’t want to recommend spicy scenes to.

The story bounces around different periods of time in this reincarnation journey. Evelyn is chased through every life by her soulmate, only except to find each other and fall deeply in love and live happily ever after; he finds her and murders her before she can turn 18. She’s torn between her feelings of longing for him to arrive but also desperately wants to live beyond age 18. He guards an ancient truth of why they continue this vicious cycle, but refuses to tell her so she has to spend each life unraveling their past to try and save her future....Slight spoilers ahead:This kept me hooked the whole time. I spent so much time trying to guess the reason for their fate; a deal made with a god, a deal they renegaded with a sorceress that is chasing them through time?? But when it finally was revealed I did not see that coming!! In a way the last 20-25% of the book felt disjointed from the first part because it was such drastic change. So I’m on the fence if I like that I didn’t guess the twist and therefore it changed the whole dynamic, or if it’s feels too far fetched and removed from the story as two different books. Overall I really enjoyed the story, some parts were a little intense and gory. I would say it’s almost a cross between The Invisible Life of Addie Larue and Stranger Things.

3.5⭐️"Even when we are but bones in the earth my eternal heart will love you still, for even when a star does perish its light burns on for millennia."I loved the idea of this book. I loved how it traveled through places and times with their many lives. This was beautifully written and loved the poetry in this book. Also that plot twist had me gasping. But it was also just missing something for me. I think I just wanted more from the main characters.But there were beautiful quotes:"Suffering is in itself a pyramid scheme.Hurt people hurt people. One soul feels pain, so they inflict the same upon three more, in a bid to rid themselves of it.Those three pass it on to more still, and it spirals beyond all control. The human condition, so it seems."“No matter how twisted and broken, we were the one true constant, our love like a river wending its way through the earth year after year, century after century, growing deeper and wider with every twist and bend.”"Though, without you, there would be no poetry. I would have only the harsh lens of my own worldview. I wouldn't be able to see the beauty of life, because I only see it through your eyes. Muse is too simple a word for what you are to me."

This is my first experience reading a Laura Steven book. Ultimately, Our Infinite Fates fell very short of my expectations for it, which is why it gets a 3 star rating. This may be someone’s cup of tea, but it wasn’t mine. If I finish a book, no matter the struggle, I will never give lower than a 3 because the author has worked hard to put this work out there and deserves to be acknowledged for that, at the very least. The story was good, but I really struggled with understanding the plot, or even following it at times, and the jumping back and forth between timelines did not lend to anything more than more confusion. I battled against DNF-ing this book several times because I just wasn’t getting enough information or feel good from it. I’m the type of reader that simply cannot DNF a book, no matter how good or bad because I’m always looking for it to get better, believing it will get better, or missing a part that will provide all the answers and delight me. I finally got the reprieve I was looking for around chapter 36 or 37 (the Lundenburg chapter… More specifically the Wales chapter right before the Lundenburg). I also feel that the portion of the story where we finally get the answers and the results was very rushed. I didn’t get a chance to understand, commiserate, or feel anything for any part of the reveal before the book’s end. Evelyn and Arden’s characters are so intristically intertwined and I wanted so bad to FEEL something… anything. There were a good amount of moments where my heart was pierced and quotes that will forever remain with me, especially “I love you, I have loved you, and I will love you”. The premise of the story is intriguing, the intricacy of love that spans infinite lives has an intrinsic pull and power, the Underrealm and mythology has potential and power… I wanted to love this story, I wanted to bask in the pain, sorrow, hope and happiness, but ultimately this one fell short for me.

I have thoughts.Mostly about toxic dominance and weaponized amnesia, but it has direction and it is impeccably written. There is some overuse of a thesaurus and maybe some creative license taken with words that might not have existed, but it's in line with the characters.I had been warned about a lack of development for the love story, and the prose is so masterfully crafted I can see how the subtle use of atmosphere might be missed, but I didn't think the love was necessarily the point. It's a mystery, amnesia trope, fated star-crossed lovers, and also pieces of a puzzle. It borders on literary fiction with both subtle and obvious commentary about our modern societal circumstances.I liked it. I'm glad I have a physical copy since it will carry my notes and annotations in it always.Until Next Time,MC

I have not given a book a 5 star since 2023. I loved this book so much I got it for my March read from Book of the Month and it has become one of my favorite reads all together. So much so I have ordered the this cover and I want to order the German edition as well.This book takes place in multiple different timelines and is a story about never ending love. With poetry aspects it is one of the best books I’ve read so far this year.

This one was a top recommendation of “Book of the month” and I picked it from the options because it intrigued me that it was compared with the invisible life of Addie LaRue (which I loved).After reading it, I don’t think you will really draw the comparison until much later in the book. However, I did find myself comparing it to Cloud Atlas a bit.This one is a fairly easy read though, and was able to read a lot quicker than the 2 books I compared.I found myself getting a little bored in the beginning / middle as each story line is fairly shallow and you don’t seem to get any answers or feel a whole lot of connection with the characters for a while.I did love the twist and ending though- it was a little slow for me throughout but really, really enjoyed it in the end.I loved passages from the journal that frequently is mentioned through the book— my favorites:“I love you, and I have loved you, and I will love you”“Life gives us grief like mounds of wet clay,Ripe and heavy beneath our reluctant hands,And with it we can do one of three things.We can carry it with us wherever we go,Stooped beneath its awful weight,We can shove it to the back of a wardrobe,Buried beneath an old waxed coat,Or we can make something beautiful,And let live in beyond us. “— our infinite fates, Laura StevenLoved this book!

I loved every part of this story! But I really feel the great evil at the end should have been more an entity and less of a character because it felt rushed. I was crying then got to that part and just thought wth then got to the next chapter after and started bawling again.

Beautifully written. I had so many tears. So many feelings and emotions."I love you, I have loved you, and I will love you"Who could ever think a YA book could be this good and grip your heart in vise this tight? I finished it and wanted to read it again.A curse to love and for her die in every lifetime by the hand of her love??!! What is there not to love about that storyline??Arden-so much to love about him. Once you get to know him...his words and the things he says, you fall in love with himAnd Evelyn. The poor girl, killed in every lifetime and then finds herself needing to save her little sister in this lifetime.I loved this book SO MUCH....as you can tell by my 12 different versions that Ive collected on my shelf! Laura created a very unique story and beautifullly wrote it. It really pulls you in and makes you feel it so deeply that it hurts.

This book had so. much. potential. It just didn’t live up to what it could have been in my opinion. The idea is so incredible, I wanted so badly for this book to be twice as long and have the author really go into details about all their lives and really fall in love with them as a couple and individuals. I would still suggest the read, but man do I wish the author put in way more time and effort cuz the idea was so beautiful. I just needed more.

It was good. I do feel like there was an agenda with the LGBT aspect almost to the point of it feeling super forced, not a straight person in the book 😅. That got tedious after the 3rd or 4th mentioning. All around an enjoyable read just a tad preachy. I’d give it 3.5 for that aspect and 4 stars for over all story. Not bad but I’ll assume future books will likewise be heavily saturated and avoid further books from the author.

Mixed feelings on this book. It was beautiful and heart-wrenching. It was also super slow paced and so cyclical that I got a bit exhausted by the cycles themselves because nothing ever changed. Another cycle, another back to the starting point with little to no character development or plot changes. I learned pretty early to skim the first halves of the flash-backs to get the pertinent information without any loss of story or character. The flashbacks were nice, but not super engrossing. (I skimmed parts of the Wales tale too though. So. Much. Introspection. And most of it repetitive.)More than anything though, I really disliked the last 20% of the book. The reveal of what was going on didn't feel natural to the story. Honestly, it felt kind of cartoonish. And the last 15%, I predicted almost exactly what would happen. With all the build up, this was disappointing and felt like it lacked creativity. Part of this may be me though as there were some clues (the characters names...) that made me think the reveal would go a different direction than it did. To be honest, the direction I had built up in my head both felt more meaningful, more connected to the Wales tale, and less out-there. So disappointing that it didn't happen.The theme also ended up being repeated so many times that it both felt heavy handed and made the ending dead obvious.It would have been a better book if it'd been cut by 25%, but skimming solved that problem.I also never really felt like I got to know the characters as people. I never quite put my finger on who they were, although perhaps this was intentional based on the nature of the book. The side characters had way more personality for me than the FMC/MMC.All of that said, I'm glad I read it and tentatively recommend.