A huge thank you to the author, NetGalley, and Random House Ballantine/Del Rey for providing this e-ARC in exchange for an honest review.

Before I started reading Destiny, I re-read Prophecy - which, while a good idea, I do not believe is necessary to catch all the minor details. This second novel is great at re-introducing ideas we learned in Prophecy, without being over-explanatory to concepts we should “already” know. I do still think it’s a good idea to re-read the first book when reading a sequel, but that’s also in part because the first book was also great so it’s not a great loss to re-read it.

This book starts with a timeskip from the ending of The Art of Prophecy. The best way I can describe this series, and I mean this with admiration, is as if I’m watching a TV show. Prophecy ends with two of our main leads - Taishi and Jian (along with Zofi) escaping and with Taishi finally starting Jian’s training as a windwhisper. It’s very cinematic, a great ending to the book that makes you want to continue with the series. I could almost picture it as the season finale.

Destiny, then, starts with a timeskip. We still focus on the same four characters with their own POV chapters - Taishi, Jian, Qisami, and Salminde - but we see the effects of the end of the first book in their current lives.

- Jian is much more trained as a war artist, but he’s still struggling with mastering the art of windwhispering
- Taishi is aging and her body occasionally fails her, along with her worries of promoting Jian and leaving him without a master
- Qisami and her shadowkill cell are dealing with the aftermath of their failed capture of Jian, and are now struggling to make ends meet after having been demoted
- Salminde is struggling with the piece of her soul from the eternal Khan, and it is rotting her away as she searches for a way to remove it without sacrificing her life

I did catch something in Prophecy I somehow missed during my first read - the prophecy is not actually broken. The Zhuun believe the eternal Khan is an immortal being, but the Katuia know that it is an unbroken cycle of people being possessed and becoming the Khan. It’s also fascinating that this same cycle happens with the oracle who originally told the prophecy of the hero who would kill the eternal Khan. There’s definitely a connection here, and Destiny works to explain the larger picture about how everything connects.

I think it’s very interesting how the understanding of the belief systems in these novels change depending on whose POV we are following. This is something I really enjoyed in both novels - there are no outright villains in the conflict between the Zhuun and the Katuia, nor is there anyone directly in the right. We can sympathize with Jian being the prophesied hero of the Tiandi, but we also sympathize with Salminde and her people as well. We get a nuanced view of the conflict from both sides, and I always enjoy that within my fantasy novels.

The main character POVs in this novel are mostly separated from one-another, as opposed to in Prophecy when there were multiple times they directly interacted. Jian and Taishi have one plot, and then Qisami and Salminde each have their own plots. Other than a brief meeting in the book, none of these plots really interconnect. However, we (as the reader) can see the overarching plot that interconnects everything, even if it hasn’t technically occurred yet.

The way these POVs inform our understanding of the prophecy/religion, strongly remind me of Samantha Shannon’s “The Priory of the Orange Tree.” In both these series, there are almost separated plots happening with each of the named characters, and it’s not until significantly later that we can see how they interconnect to the larger plot. Each character having their own separate plots also allows us a deeper look into the world without being “stuck” in one place. Jian and Taishi are focusing on his training to (possibly) defeat the eternal Khan if the prophecy still exists. Salminde is exploring the birthplace of the Khan and through her we gain more understanding of the religions involving him. Qisami’s chapters are more focused on the Dukes and the politics surrounding the world, expanding our knowledge of the political conflicts that were only hinted at in Prophecy.

A big theme in Destiny is doing what you believe to be right, even if it’s against expectations or what everyone else expects you to do. That it’s more important to do the right thing in the moment, to help the people being directly affected, than doing some nebulous “right” thing that may or may not have a better impact in the future. Do what you know will help, not just what you hope will pay off in the future. Each character is given growth to learn and be their own person, and each one surprised me with their actions and how it related to their growth as a character.

While this book does feel like it’s the middle novel in a fantasy series, that’s not necessarily a bad thing in my opinion. Personally, I only find it an issue if I didn’t enjoy the first novel.
However, I enjoy how these books are set up to be extremely character driven with focus on the thoughts of the POV characters. I think Destiny is excellent at expanding each of the POV characters to give us both a better understanding of their character, while also allowing each of them to grow as a character. None of the four POV characters remain stagnant in Destiny, and each of them grows and changes in some way throughout the novel. Personally, I was really interested in the more in-depth character analysis of Qisami, and she really grew on me throughout Destiny as she became less and less of a single-note character.

I highly recommend The Art of Destiny, as it took everything I was hoping for in a sequel after I read The Art of Prophecy, and accomplished it and more. There were some plot twists that happened that I ABSOLUTELY did not see coming. It really allowed me to learn more about the characters and bond with them more (even Qisami, which surprised me).

And finally - The Art of Destiny - just like The Art of Prophecy - ends on a season finale decision that makes me excited to continue the series in the next book.