Hello, everyone! Today I’m reviewing The Fate of Us by Rachel Bowdler, a short sapphic romance with an interesting premise. I have to say thank you to the author for sending a physical ARC of the book along with an adorable thank you note and bookmark. The note made me smile as soon as I saw it, and I really appreciated it. Now on to the book!

Two lovers who have met across the centuries in different lives and different bodies find themselves meeting as two women unwilling to face the truth but even less willing to let each other go again in Rachel Bowdler’s The Fate of Us.
The rootless drummer in a struggling rock band, Drew has always felt adrift in life. So it comes as a shock when she meets a strange girl in a strange town and feels an immediate jolt of recognition. Drew knows her — but not from this life. And Amber — stubborn, solitary, and all too willing to shut everyone out after the loss of her mother — isn’t the easiest person to convince of this.
In their past lives, they’ve been doomed to meet only once a century, on the night before Halloween, before circumstances tear them apart. This time around, will they be able to break the cycle for good, or will their own fear and disbelief be the thing that keeps them apart?

I enjoyed this story quite a bit. It was quick, and the writing was easy to read and kept me engaged. I really liked the premise and had fun piecing together all of the flashbacks as everything unfolded. The relationship between the main characters had great chemistry, and their feelings for each other felt messy and authentic. The journeys of both the main characters were interesting and made the characters feel like real people with strengths and weaknesses. I felt particularly attached to Amber and her difficulty learning to open up to others again in the aftermath of her loss. The inclusion of the dynamic between her and her family really helped with getting to know this particular aspect of the character, which set up the ending of the romance storyline really well. My only real critique is that I wanted more of it. At times, the decisions of the characters and the growth felt a bit abrupt and constrained by the length of the book. I also would have loved to get more of Ethan because he seemed awesome. Overall, I really liked the book and recommend it to anyone who enjoys soul mate stories and sapphic romance.