The Fall by Tracy Townsend is the second book in her Thieves of Fate trilogy, following up on The Nine, which was one of my favorite reads of 2018. Thieves of Fate is a unique fantasy series about a found family of criminals and misfits set in a world where science and religion are inextricably tied. There’s a ton packed into these books: numerous POV characters, complex worldbuilding, strange magic, and three sentient races cohabiting and conflicting. In The Fall I loved learning more about Townsend’s take on the lanyani (mobile tree people) and aigamuxa (like ogres but with the eyes on the bottoms of their feet, see the image on the cover), and their history, culture, and ambitions. The Fall feels extra sprawling, even compared to The Nine, but I’m liable to blame my lacking memory of The Nine’s finer details on the two and a half years since reading it rather than them being insufficiently foreshadowed. The complex worldbuilding in the series has some fantastic payoffs in The Fall’s climax and I absolutely loved how all the details came together. I recommend this series to fans of think-y fantasy, adventure and intrigue, and a cast of characters ready to steal your heart.