INEVITABLE FATE

Andrew Bates narrates a clever story about a young artist who is confronting destiny while breaking free of the shackles of the past. Evan skips senior year to attend an elite art program at New York University. There he crosses paths with the spitting image of a girl he painted from his imagination. Bates imbues Evan with youthful brightness; he's brimming with optimism tinged with immaturity. When the story pulls Evan through time, Bates maintains the sense of a sweeping adventure. A blossoming relationship with the mysterious girl, Mara, injects heart and a heady romance, with Bates smoothly shifting between youthful joy and rapid-fire banter. Bates enhances this engrossing young adult fantasy-romance, which questions the importance of the past and the ambiguity of the future. J.J.M. © AudioFile 2024, Portland, Maine [Published: OCTOBER 2024]