Across books · Theme
Fate and Destiny
Characters often speak of fate and inevitability, from John Carter's mysterious immortality to Dejah Thoris's arranged marriage, yet individual choices and actions repeatedly alter the course of events, questioning predestination.
Fate and Destiny appears as a literary theme in 19 works in the BetterReads curated set. Each book develops the idea in its own plot, voice, and historical moment — the links below open the book-scoped theme guide beside the text.
Characters often speak of fate and inevitability, from John Carter's mysterious immortality to Dejah Thoris's arranged marriage, yet individual choices and actions repeatedly alter the course of events, questioning predestination.
Beauvallet's confident belief in his own luck and destiny, along with Dominica's sense of inevitable romance, suggests a world where bold actions align with a predetermined fate, often defying rational odds.
The narrative is driven by prophecies, divine visions, and the inescapable will of the gods, with characters like Harmachis and Cleopatra seemingly bound to a tragic, preordained path.
Characters often feel driven by inexorable forces or prophecies, and Conan's rise from a wandering mercenary to a leader and king suggests a destined path shaped by his actions and the world's chaos.
Dr. Ferguson is described as a fatalist convinced of his mission's success, and the journey is often portrayed as guided by providence, with miraculous escapes reinforcing a sense of predetermined triumph.
Characters repeatedly discuss luck, fate, and destiny, from the opening conversation about a man who followed his dream to Norrie's cynical remarks about 'destiny taking its course.' Colet's decision to accompany Parsell is framed as a fateful choice, suggesting that individuals are both agents and subjects of larger forces.
In each book
A Princess of Mars
Characters often speak of fate and inevitability, from John Carter's mysterious immortality to Dejah Thoris's arranged marriage, yet individual choices and actions repeatedly alter the course of events, questioning prede
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Beauvallet
Beauvallet's confident belief in his own luck and destiny, along with Dominica's sense of inevitable romance, suggests a world where bold actions align with a predetermined fate, often defying rational odds.
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Cleopatra
The narrative is driven by prophecies, divine visions, and the inescapable will of the gods, with characters like Harmachis and Cleopatra seemingly bound to a tragic, preordained path.
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Conan Stories
Characters often feel driven by inexorable forces or prophecies, and Conan's rise from a wandering mercenary to a leader and king suggests a destined path shaped by his actions and the world's chaos.
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Five Weeks in a Balloon
Dr. Ferguson is described as a fatalist convinced of his mission's success, and the journey is often portrayed as guided by providence, with miraculous escapes reinforcing a sense of predetermined triumph.
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Gallions Reach
Characters repeatedly discuss luck, fate, and destiny, from the opening conversation about a man who followed his dream to Norrie's cynical remarks about 'destiny taking its course.' Colet's decision to accompany Parsell
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Kai Lung’s Golden Hours
The narrative is steeped in references to destiny, omens, and the influence of ancestors and spirits, with characters often interpreting events as guided by cosmic forces, yet also exercising agency through their choices
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King Solomon’s Mines
Quatermain repeatedly invokes fatalism, believing his life is predetermined, while Ignosi's return to claim his throne is framed as a destined restoration of rightful kingship, suggesting that events are guided by a high
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Lais
Characters are often bound by prophecies or inescapable fates, such as Gugemar's wound that can only be healed by a specific lady, or the doomed love of Tristan and Isoude, highlighting the inevitability of love's conseq
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notre_dame_de_paris
The novel is framed by the Greek word 'ΑΝΑΓΚΗ' (Ananke, meaning fate or necessity) carved into Notre-Dame, and the narrative explores how characters like Esmeralda, Quasimodo, and Claude Frollo are trapped by inescapable
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Perishable Goods
Mansel's death in the King's bedchamber is framed as inevitable, with the room having been 'waiting' for 'The Last of the Knights.' The narrative suggests that certain outcomes are preordained, and characters accept thei
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Short Fiction
The stories often suggest that life is governed by inexorable forces, with characters feeling trapped by destiny, as Lois reflects on 'just destiny' and the inevitability of tragic outcomes.
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Suspense
The theme of destiny recurs, with characters like Madame de Montevesso invoking 'Destiny' as a force shaping lives, while the unfinished nature of the novel itself suggests that fate remains unresolved and unknowable.
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The Aeneid
The entire epic is driven by the inescapable force of fate, which decrees that Aeneas will found Rome despite the constant opposition of Juno and the personal tragedies he endures along the way.
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The Golden Triangle
The narrative emphasizes inescapable patterns, as Patrice and Coralie are drawn into a cycle of violence and love that mirrors their parents' doomed relationship.
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The Luzumiyat
The poems explore the inescapable power of Fate, portraying life as a game of 'Give and Go' and a road to the grave, where human efforts are ultimately subject to unseen, cosmic forces.
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The Portent
The narrative is steeped in fatalism, from the prophetic 'clanking shoe' that heralds doom to the coincidental births of Duncan and Alice in the same month and year, suggesting that their union is preordained despite obs
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The Sundering Flood
The story is steeped in prophecies, inherited luck (or ill-luck), and the sense that Osberne's life is guided by a preordained path, from his encounters with Steelhead to his eventual reunion with Elfhild.
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the_return_of_the_native
The characters frequently feel trapped by fate or destiny, as seen in Eustacia's prayers for love and her sense of doom, and in the tragic chain of events that seem predetermined. The novel explores how individual choice
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