As the Series Draws to a Close, Pittacus Lore Details "The Fate of Ten"

The Fate of Ten - Pittacus Lore

Even as the giant ships filled with Mogadorian soldiers loomed over two dozen human cities, John Smith (title character of I am Number Four)  and his faithful friend Samwise… err, Sam bring the powers vested in them by the elders of Lorien to bear against the evil Setrakus Rá. As the two BFFs battle pasty-faced Mogs in the streets of NYC; Six, Seven (aka Marina) and the trueborn Mogadorian Adam who channels One find themselves in a pitched battle with other Mogs at an ancient temple in the Central American jungle. That leaves only Five and Nine, the remaining Garde, who battle against each other high above Manhattan.

Sam’s beloved Sarah and his high-school nemesis, Mark, have joined forces with The Navigator in what looks as though it will be a losing cause: ten or so teens and one adult, arrayed against a gazillion evil aliens led by a shape-changing ghoul who can blank the Garde's legacy powers with a twist of a wrist? But wait… suddenly, teens (and only teens – this is, YA, after all) around the world have suddenly begun developing Legacies of their own. 

But why? How? And more to the point, is it too late? Read The Fate of Ten and perhaps you’ll find out…


Pittacus Lore (the nom de plume of a cottage ghost-writing industry) appears to – finally – be drawing the Legacies of Lorien series to a close. The cover blurb (or maybe a press release, who knows?) claims that this is the penultimate chapter in the series – though one can be fairly sure there will be additional installments, often the same story told from a different point of view. In fact, the first two chapters of The Fate of Ten are simply the novella “Legacies Reborn” told from John’s POV instead of Daniella’s. No word on whether “Rebel Allies” is in there somewhere, too…

“Lore” moves the story forward, however, in this installment: a critical plot point is revealed via a magical flashback – one told to everyone with a Legacy, which is suddenly a larger group than just a day or two ago. The true connection between Ella and Setrakus is also revealed, as is the evil plan in Rá’s twisted mind. Be prepared, however, for a cliff-hanger ending (duh!) with some sorrow mixed in. Like all books and novellas in the series, The Fate of Ten does a workmanlike job of staying true to the rules of the Lorien universe, as well as to the rules of Young-Adult fiction. Chief among the latter is that only teenagers, preferably sixteen or seventeen, can be heroes. Rest assured, however, that the delicate sensibilities of your teenaged readers won’t be assaulted by profanity, sex, or drugs; though there’s certainly plenty of violence.

In the end, The Fate of Ten moves things along (finally) and sets the stage for a slam-bang finale. This reader predicts that John Smith will be revealed as Pittacus Lore reborn and that one of his powers will be the ability to resurrect the dead. Just sayin’…

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