The Ascended by Bree Grenwich and Parker Lennox

Here is a summary with spoilers for The Ascended by Bree Grenwich and Parker Lennox

Thais has been working as an oyster farmer for years. Alongside her is her twin brother, Thatcher, and their foster father, Sulien, who truly loves them and has treated them like his own children ever since their mother died right after they were born. On the outside, everything seems normal in Thais’s life, but she has a secret she has been keeping for years: she has some of the gods’ powers.

This has been happening for generations. Mortals have started manifesting powers that belong to the gods as the veil between the divine and mortal realms thins. When mortals began showing signs, the gods noticed and created the Trials of Ascension. Every decade, those with gifts are gathered, tested, broken, and rebuilt however the gods want. The few who make it join the pantheon as Legends, while the rest die.

Thais has been keeping her powers under wraps because Sulien does not want to lose her. He believes that if she were taken, she would not survive. Also, since she has hidden them for this long, Sulien could be tried as well for hiding her powers. Both Thatcher and Sulien beg Thais not to use her powers, as the Trials are getting closer and the priests are arriving to collect those chosen for the Trials. This means that Thais needs to be extra careful.

Since the priests are looking everywhere for powers, Thais decides to work on the fishing boats to avoid them during the day. It works well, though one evening she has a fight with Sulien about staying away from the priests, and she needs a breath of fresh air. She decides to go to her spot where she knows her kind-of boyfriend, Marel, will be. She wants a distraction, and Marel is there to help with that. Thais feels a bit bad about using him like that, as she just needs the release, and she knows Marel wants to marry her, but she does not want that. Marel realizes she is living in her head and tells her to live in the moment, so she does. When she finally releases with him, her power, Starpower, explodes into the night sky. Marel doesn’t see it, but Thais panics and runs back home, hoping no one else saw it.

Weeks go by, and Thais believes she is safe. The Trials are almost here, and the priests should be gone. She and Thatcher decide to go to a dance that night along with many others. She has a moment with Marel, where she chickens out and does not tell him that she can’t be with him anymore. But then their night is interrupted when the priests arrive. They know that someone there has powers because they saw it, and they ask for that person to come forward. No one does, so they grab Marel, saying they saw the Starpower on the cliff, and he was the only one who came down from the hill. Thais feels terrible as they are taking him, so she comes forward and says it was her who has the power. They ask who her family is, and when they learn she has a twin, they grab Thatcher, even though he is powerless, and plan to put him in the Trials as well.

As the siblings are being tied up in front of the town to see, Sulien comes up and tries to talk to the priests. In return, the priests chop off his head, claiming that he harbored two children with powers, which is breaking the law. Thais and Thatcher are knocked out.

Thais wakes up in a cold cell, worried; she and Thatcher have always had a bond, and right now she can’t feel it. Eventually, a group of people comes in to make her look presentable, then takes her to the Legends for her first trial. She shows her power and manages to survive the fight, which turns deadly. Most of the gods are impressed; it has been a while since Starpower has been seen. Though one god is not impressed at all—Xül. They start to dismiss her, but Thais sees her opportunity to plead for her brother. She tells them that he is in the Trials by mistake and has no powers. The god Drakor then summons Thatcher and starts torturing him, as that is usually a way to bring powers out. Thais also feels the torture thanks to their bond. All of a sudden, Drakor’s body caves inward and explodes. Thatcher does have powers, and it is an incredibly powerful and rare one; even he is shocked.

The two siblings are taken to a room to wait, and they decide to start making a plan. They have nothing left to lose—they are going to kill Olinthar, the King of the Gods, the one who has caused all of their personal pain and death. They decide it will be a suicide mission, but they are both okay with it.

It is then time for a Choosing Ceremony, where the Legends get to choose their mentees. The god Chavore chooses Thatcher, which infuriates Xül and turns into a bit of a spectacle. With no other option, Xül says he will choose the other Morvaren sibling. The twins say goodbye, and Thais is taken to Draknavor for her training, though Xül has zero interest in her, as he wanted her brother. But she later eavesdrops and finds out he is not training her because he doesn’t want her to ascend and be used against him, so Xül is just going to let her die. Thais won’t take that, and confronts him about it, telling him that he is going to train her and does not have a choice.

Meanwhile, Thatcher is starting his training with Chavore, and he can’t seem to find it in himself to recreate or find his magic. Xül doesn’t have much faith in Thais’s training, but eventually he brings his army of the undead to show her some of his true power. It scares her enough to realize she has a lot to learn and motivates her to train harder. He then makes it even more real by bringing in versions of her brother, dead or attacking her, and she must “kill” him. Eventually, she is forced to kill her brother in one of these simulations, and though it isn’t real, it breaks her heart. For Xül, this is a sign she is truly ready for serious training.

They start their training, and Thais is happy but exhausted because now it is real. One evening, Xül gets a note saying that the first trial will take place in one week. That night, instead of training, Xül takes her for an alchemy lesson, where he steals her blood and tricks her into revealing she has at least one godly parent. Reluctantly, Thais reveals that her father is Olinthar, the King of the Gods. She explains that her mother was raped, and soon after giving birth to the twins, she died. Olinthar has no idea that he has two children. Xül is shocked and pleased to have this new secret, which Thais begs him not to reveal. Xül now wants to make sure Thais wins the Trials and ascends so the two can work together in the future to take down the king, though Thais still has her own plan of killing the king if the opportunity comes.

The first trial arrives, and Thais is happy to be briefly reunited with Thatcher. Their first trial is to hunt the goddess Davina. She and Thatcher find each other quickly and work together. They share the things they have been learning while apart. During the hunt, they make a new ally, Marx. Between the three of them, they find Davina and think they have won—until they feel pain and realize they all have antlers, meaning they are now going to be hunted by Davina. Thais is badly injured and passes out, but Thatcher carries her across the finish line. When she wakes up, she is back in Xül’s home. A couple of days have passed; twenty-five survived the trial from the original thirty-nine.

Soon after, there is a party for the contestants to celebrate their first win. Marx and Thais are really good friends, as they have trained together. During the party, Xül has an admirer, Nyvora, who is very flirty. Xül doesn’t seem into it and soon grabs Thais so they can go home. Thatcher and his mentor Chavore finish their party and decide to attend King Olinthar’s party, which Thatcher uses as an opportunity to spy on his father and the other gods.

Instead of training, Xül decides to take Thais on business, visiting the Eternal City, specifically his domain of the Prisoners of the Damned. While there, he learns unsettling news requiring him to speak with his father, Orthus, the god of death. At Xül’s parents’ house, Thais meets both parents and eavesdrops on their conversation. Xül knows she has been listening and confronts her, creating a tension-filled moment, which is interrupted when they find out the second trial is to take place the next morning. They go back to Xül’s home, and he offers her a place in his bed, which she says no to but later regrets.

The second trial takes place in the flooded city of Memorica. Everyone has the same task of finding a key, and they are warned that they may need to share a memory. After she and Thatcher find their keys, they are told they must share a secret that could cost them everything. Thais cannot share her true secret, so instead she lies and shares that she actually enjoyed her first kill. The gods know that is not her true secret, so they attempt to kill her. She and Thatcher are forced to fight for their lives. During the fight, they bring down the city archives, and the gods are furious. Even though they complete the task, many of the gods want them disqualified for the damage. King Olinthar is brought in to make the final judgment, which is the first time the twins have seen their father. Olinthar decides they are not disqualified and tells them to go home. Xül quickly grabs Thais because he wants to show her something.

Thatcher and Chavore stay behind to speak with King Olinthar. Unbeknownst to them, it is like a big family, with Thatcher and Chavore being half-brothers. Olinthar has high hopes for Thatcher and wants him to win and ascend.

Xül takes Thais to the place where the first Primordial War ended, hoping she can gain answers and understand some of the history. He also explains that the war might be repeating itself and warns that the twelve gods could control Thatcher because of his type of power. Thais now has a renewed sense of purpose to keep training. During an intense session where she learns to control multiple stars at once, Xül kisses her. But then he immediately leaves for business in another realm. Her training is now overseen by Aelix and her friend Marx.

Days go by, and then things go badly when intruders attack, intending to kill Thais. It turns into a brutal fight where Thais overuses her Starlight and almost dies. Xül returns and takes out the rest of the enemies, but Thais still passes out. When she wakes, Xül tells her that he has agreed to his father’s marriage proposal with Nyvora.

Thais keeps her distance from Xül but is eventually forced to get ready for a very fancy ball. Just before she is about to enter the room, her stylist gives her a cryptic warning not to drink anything. Thais finds Marx and Thatcher and tells them not to drink either. She soon discovers that the ball is all an illusion and that they are in the third trial. Eventually, Xül shows up with Nyvora on his arm. Thais realizes she is very jealous of her and forgets all about the trial, focusing on making Xül jealous. It works, because Xül comes for her and takes her into a room where things escalate quickly. But in the middle of their intimate moment, Thais realizes it is not really Xül and remembers that it is all an illusion. She breaks free, finds Marx and Thatcher, and gets them out of the haze and out of the trial. She is mortified to know that everyone saw her making out with what she thought was Xül. Xül takes Thais home, where she runs to her room and stays away from him for the next day, though she eventually decides that is ridiculous and goes to find him to talk. Instead, the two end up kissing and admitting that something is definitely there between them.

As the next trial approaches, they continue training. Xül decides to take Thais to the realm of Heron for a different type of preparation. While there, she meets a seer who tells her that he sees the bond between her and Thatcher, but that the bond of her brother will be broken after the Trials. This scares Thais, but Xül takes her to his childhood home to calm her down. The two eventually share all of their feelings for each other and end up sleeping together.

Meanwhile, Thatcher keeps getting invited by Olinthar to visit. He becomes worried about his mentor Chavore, who keeps getting more distant. Eventually, Thatcher must visit the king, and the visit ends with him being forced to use his powers to kill for Olinthar. Thatcher is devastated.

Thais wakes up blissfully in Xül’s arms. When he leaves for work, she decides to snoop around his room, which she has never been in before. She discovers her last name on a letter, written in a cryptic message that needs to be translated. It takes her all day, but she figures it out and is shocked. Xül and his allies are planning to kill Thatcher after the final trial. When Xül arrives home and she confronts him, he confirms it is true, and she attacks him. Aelix has to intervene and forces Thais to pass out. When she wakes, she is chained down, with Xül, Aelix, and Marx looking at her. Xül confirms it is true but reveals that he is also part of the resistance, a group planning to kill the king, and now Thatcher, because Thatcher just killed for Olinthar. Thais then reveals her big secret: that she and Thatcher have a bond and a pact to kill the king even if it means their death. Thais begs to talk to Xül’s father to save Thatcher’s life. Xül agrees, and when she talks to his father, he says the only way he will agree is if Thatcher does a blood pact, swears loyalty to Xül and his father, and simultaneously acts as a spy while working for King Olinthar.

The third trial starts and quickly ends due to an error. At this point, only four contestants remain, and the gods decide these four will be the ones to ascend. Xül quickly goes to Thatcher to make the blood pact. That night, before she is ascended, Thais and Xül finally make up, especially after he says “I love you” to her. He even says he will call off the wedding so he can have eternity with her. She agrees, though she tells him she is planning to go into King Olinthar’s domain as a spy. Xül does not like it but lets her decide. At some point during the night, Thais wakes to Xül tracing symbols on her back and mumbling. She tries to question him, but he tells her to go back to sleep.

The next morning is the day of her ascension, and Thais chooses to go to Olinthar’s domain with Thatcher. Olinthar is surprised but welcomes her anyway. Once the ascension begins, Thais panics, realizing she can’t feel the bond with Thatcher. She goes looking for him after the ceremony and ends up going through a portal to follow him, which takes her to the ruins of the Primordial War. There she sees Olinthar, who reveals that he is actually Moros, the Primordial of Endings, who has been using Olinthar’s body as a host for years. He needs a new body and is planning to use Thatcher’s. As Thais starts to attack Moros, she feels a sword go through her from Moros’s companion, Elysia.

Meanwhile, Xül is still at the party. He has the difficult conversation of breaking off the marriage with his father, but right in the middle of it, he feels immense pain and realizes it is Thais. His father realizes that Xül bound his soul to Thais.

Thais watches in horror as Moros is in the middle of a ritual with Thatcher. She tries hard to wake her brother, and he eventually does. The two reach out to each other and use their powers together. They defeat Elysia, and Thatcher is able to use his power to pull Moros from Olinthar’s body. In anger, Moros opens a tear that looks like an abyss, and Thatcher gets sucked in. Moros says he is going after him and will return with vengeance, jumping in after him. The tear closes. Olinthar stirs, looks at her, and says “Daughter,” but Thais has had enough and goes straight to her father, killing him.

Xül arrives to find a beheaded Olinthar and Thais looking completely empty, mumbling about Thatcher. She explains everything that happened to him and his father. Xül then explains that since she killed the king, she will gain all of that power, and she is clearly not ready or fit to be a ruler, let alone queen. Thais doesn’t care what happens; all she cares about is Thatcher and that she lost him. Xül has no choice but to go with the ultimatum his father gives to protect Thais: he marries Nyvora, becomes king, and Thais rules from the side but is protected.

Xül’s wedding approaches, and Thais doesn’t care one bit. She sits outside, dead inside, until Xül joins her. He doesn’t want to be at his own wedding. She leaves him behind and decides to visit the seer, who tells her that he felt Thatcher’s thread for seven seconds. This means that in thirty-six years, Thatcher’s thread will be ready and can be latched onto for seven seconds. It gives Thais hope that she has a chance to grab her brother, even if it is slim.

Meanwhile, Thatcher is being tortured by Moros. Little by little, he forgets who Thais is, and even who he is. All he remembers is darkness. Eventually, he sees a light, and a woman arrives. She introduces herself as Queen Andrid Valtry. She wants to give him purpose in her realm and asks what to call him. She gives him a gift from the void and a new name: Aether.