Tess is the older of two twins. Although she is supposed to be responsible and mature (even
though she’s just a few minutes older), she is the free-spirited one of the two and is always in trouble. But she soon finds out that trouble catches up to you, and after an affair ends horribly, she becomes estranged from the family, and her sister is held up as the older of the two, and the one that should marry. Tess is forced to live as her sister’s servant for the next few years, and eventually, her twin sister is proposed to and accepts. The book begins at this point. After an uncomfortable wedding, Tess decides to run away, and embarks on a journey of self discovery, adventure, and healing. Towards the start of her journey, she meets Pathka, a quitgul (a dragon-like creature unique to this fantasy world) and discovers that he is almost a different being from when she first met him. They were friends when Tess was a little girl, but Pathka disappeared, and when Tess discovers why, she helps him escape. He becomes one of her main companions through the book, and his character develops further as the reader learns more about his deflected responsibilities and problematic decisions. But he and Tess become very close, and it is his quest that Tess becomes invested in when she sets out to find the great serpent Anathuthia. This quest becomes the main focus of the book. She follows the Road, and begins to find joy in just living, in just walking down the road of life. Encountering robbers, meeting friends and foes, and discovering romance, Tess of the Road moves steadily and measuredly through the plot, which makes it a comforting read. Although the ending was a bit anticlimactic, I enjoyed this book. Its delicate exploration of difficult topics such as marriage, social expectations, and stereotypes make it an intelligent, well-written book. I wasn’t a huge fan of the lack of action, being a large sci-fi and adventure reader, but overall this book was a pleasant read. I would recommend this book to fans of low fantasy-style books, but would advise potential readers to read the Seraphina series first, as I found out after reading this book that it was part of a sequel series and meant to be read after the Seraphina books. It still made sense, though (apart from a few references to the other series’ characters and plot). I would rate this book a 4 out of 5 because although it was a bit lacking in excitement and action, it was overall a very enjoyable read.