About the Books
Title: Division of the Marked
Author: March McCarron
Series: The Marked #1
Genre: YA Fantasy
Pages: 404
Edition Read: Kindle eBook
Dates Read: September 10 – 15, 2016, reread July 4 – 6, 2025
Blurb: As children, they meet.
Bray and Yarrow have little in common. She’s all fire. He’s all heart. But the same ancient symbol brands their skin, marking them as members of the Chisanta—a superhuman society of scholars and warriors. Together, they travel far to undergo a brutal initiation trial, and form a bond that neither can forget.
As young adults, they clash.
Years later these friends-turned-rivals reunite, and fond memories won’t stop them from crossing swords. She doesn’t trust him. He doesn’t understand her. But if they don’t learn to work together, a troubling string of deaths will remain unsolved. And the fate of their kind could hang in the balance.
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Title: Elevation of the Marked
Author: March McCarron
Series: The Marked #2
Genre: YA Fantasy
Pages: 365
Edition Read: Kindle eBook
Dates Read: July 7 – 10, 2025
Blurb: At the end of Division of the Marked, it seemed that Quade Asher and his Elevated planned to start a war. In Elevation, Bray, Yarrow, and Ko-Jin will learn the truth: Quade need not fight a single battle; he has already won.
With his ability to charm and persuade, Quade holds the entire nation enthralled. Those who resist are labeled defectors and are widely hunted. For these outlaws, no place is safe; no one can be trusted. The Elevated have eyes everywhere.
Desperate to counter Quade’s control, the group who could once barely coexist must now rely solely upon each other. Ko-Jin strives to protect those most in danger, Bray seeks weaknesses, and Yarrow discovers long-lost knowledge of the Chisanta; but when Quade threatens to commit his worst atrocity yet, they all must come out of hiding to defy their enemy face-to-face.
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Title: Lamentation of the Marked
Author: March McCarron
Series: The Marked #3
Genre: YA Fantasy
Pages: 382
Edition Read: Kindle eBook
Dates Read: July 11 – 13, 2025
Blurb: In the wake of Quade’s public failure, Accord becomes the lone safe haven in all of Trinitas. Ko-Jin, in his new capacity as general, works together with the royal siblings to safeguard and fortify the capital. But the citizens are afraid, and tensions between the Cosanta and the Chiona run high. Still, no one wishes to leave the refuge of those city walls.
No one save for Bray, who is determined to find Yarrow above all else. But the man she eventually tracks down does not know her—he does not know himself. Meanwhile, Arlow is drawn deeper into the fold of the Pauper’s Men, Peer is thrust into an unwanted leadership role, and Vendra plots revenge.
All the while, Quade Asher marshals his armies. War is coming. But long before his military forces arrive, he will make his enemies suffer for the humiliation of his defeat. He will sow fear, break spirits, and leave them bleeding. Quade will test the strength of those who oppose him: how much loss and suffering can they bear, and still fight on?
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Title: Resolution of the Marked
Author: March McCarron
Series: The Marked #4
Genre: YA Fantasy
Pages: 430
Edition Read: Kindle eBook
Dates Read: July 14 – 17, 2025
Blurb: The city of Accord has been under siege for seven months. Quade’s army is the largest the world has ever known, a force great enough to topple a kingdom. Yet it is held at bay. Thwarted, thanks to the cleverness of a heart-sore general, the dedication of a queen, the courage of a people, the gifts of the marked, and-above all else-the predictions of a mindless truth-sayer, a Fifth.
For over half a year this war has stood at an impasse. But on the other side of their protective city walls, Quade Asher has begun to alter his strategy. He’s finally identified a weakness in Accord’s defense. His desire for conquest is matched only by his rage, born of months seething in defeat and humiliation. Yes, by all the Spirits, he will take this city, and make his enemy bleed.
Review
I first found this series when book #1 was a freebie over on BookBub. It sat on my TBR for a while and, in 2016, I finally read it and absolutely loved it. At that point, there were only two books, and I meant to find the second one. Then, as often happens with me, something new and shiny came along and I completely forgot about it. THERE ARE TOO MANY BOOKS IN THE WORLD AND I AM ONLY ONE PERSON!!!
In any case, what I meant to say was that I am so glad that I revisited this now completed series for my “Complete the Series” challenge, because it’s awesome.
Let’s start with the characters. Bray and Yarrow have my HEART. Yarrow is the sweetest and Bray is such a badass. They compliment each other perfectly, not just as opposing factions of the Chisanta, but as fighters, revolutionaries, friends and eventually lovers. This series also had a lot of really captivating secondary characters, like Ko-Jin, who gained strength as part of his abilities after being mocked his entire childhood for being weak, and Arlow, born to priviledge and now learning the struggles of the common folk. Too many fantasy stories rely heavily on the world building or magic systems and give us characters that are two dimensional. Not this series. I loved all these characters so much. This story is about a war, but it’s also about strong ties of friendship.
Not to say that there’s anything wrong with the world building. This world is easy to sink into and immerse yourself in. The Chisanta are the magical ones, marked at birth and removed from their parents, but there are two factions that absolutely do not trust each other. So it’s not just about people with magical abilities, it’s also about how the Marked need to learn how to work together as their abilities intersect with each other.
Lastly, this series has one of the scariest villians I’ve read about in a while – Quade Asher. He can essentially take over your mind and body to make you do what he wants. He has no conscience, using perceived slights and abuse from his childhood to justify his actions. He doesn’t want to just rule the world, he wants to burn it to the ground and rebuild it in his image. The scariest part – there isn’t an easy way to stop him.
This series is a character driven, magical adventure. If you love fantasy, definitely check them out.
GoodReads rating: 5 stars on all four books
Categories: Books I've Read
Life With No Plot 
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