The Kindred
Alechia Dow
Inkyard Press
Published January 4, 2022

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About The Kindred

To save a galactic kingdom from revolution, Kindred mind-pairings were created to ensure each and every person would be seen and heard, no matter how rich or poor…

Joy Abara knows her place. A commoner from the lowly planet Hali, she lives a simple life—apart from the notoriety that being Kindred to the nobility’s most infamous playboy brings.

Duke Felix Hamdi has a plan. He will exasperate his noble family to the point that they agree to let him choose his own future and finally meet his Kindred face-to-face.

Then the royal family is assassinated, putting Felix next in line for the throne…and accused of the murders. Someone will stop at nothing until he’s dead, which means they’ll target Joy, too. Meeting in person for the first time as they steal a spacecraft and flee amid chaos might not be ideal…and neither is crash-landing on the strange backward planet called Earth. But hiding might just be the perfect way to discover the true strength of the Kindred bond and expose a scandal—and a love—that may decide the future of a galaxy.

My Review

I really enjoyed Alechia Dow’s debut, THE SOUND OF STARS, so I was really excited about reading this book. The first chapter was a bit rough for me. I felt like there was a LOT of worldbuilding that kind of got squeezed into a busy scene, and I didn’t always feel like I understood the connections. Like, it outlined Felix’s connection with the ruling Qadin family, but at that point, I wasn’t sure what exactly that meant. By the end of the first chapter, I wasn’t sure about the book.

In the second chapter, we meet Joy, who is joined to Felix as his Kindred, and shares a connection to him through her mind. I immediately adored her. She’s a bright, determined girl raised on a planet where women’s primary worth comes from their ability to bear children. More than anything, Joy wanted to be seen and valued. I couldn’t help but identify with that.

The storytelling smoothed out a lot from there, too. Felix learns about the assassination just before realizing he’s the number one suspect. Immediately, he sets out to find Joy (whom the authorities will target for her ability to communicate with and locate him) and escape to a place he can set about proving his innocence.

Once that happened, I felt like the story picked up pace and the characters became all the more compelling. I liked their encounters on earth and the way those relationships shaped their decisions going forward.

All in all, I thought this was a super fun read, and I’m glad I had the chance to review it. I think readers who enjoyed WE LIGHT UP THE SKY by Lilliam Rivera will enjoy this one.

Content Notes

Recommended for Ages 14 up.

Representation
Both Joy and Felix have brown skin. Joy identifies as demi-ace. Felix is pansexual. One minor character is gay. Another is nonbinary.

Profanity/Crude Language Content
Extreme profanity used infrequently.

Romance/Sexual Content
Kissing between boy and girl. Brief references to other things.

Spiritual Content
Most people in Felix and Joy’s worlds worship Indigo, a creator god, or Ozvios, a god of chaos.

Violent Content
Battle scenes and some brief descriptions of torture.

Drug Content
Felix drinks a lot of alcohol to numb his feelings. Later, at a party with a lot of teenagers, a girl announces that there’s beer.

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