think ANASTASIA (1999) meets DUNE meets NARNIA meets A LAND OF STORIES meets ARCANE (Netflix). FOOLS revolves around Lael, a 12-year-old from Earth who is kidnapped and dropped in the middle of a forest on an unknown planet where she stumbles upon other children who were similarly taken. while she struggles to understand the children and the alien world around her and somehow find a way home, she is dragged into a plot that would see a long-lost heir returned to rule a kingdom in tatters. the scope zooms in/out and the 3rd-person pov switches often to dive into the minds/worlds of side characters who enrich the world and introduce the larger conflict in which Lael becomes embroiled. the events unfold as told by a mysterious unnamed narrator who is interviewing a future Lael who has seemingly survived to tell her story. by the end only some questions get answered with the promise of more to come. themes of death/grief, loss of innocence, oppressive governments, revolution, slavery/child slavery, faith, fate. TW: on page death of major and minor characters, gore, depictions of slavery, mentions of child-marriage, thoughts and attempts of self-harm and suicide.

overall, i had a really great time reading FOOLS! i was wary of the concept of it being self published and the author's lack on online presence, but i found myself getting wrapped up in the story while i read! my favorite elements were the formation of the relationship between Lael and the boys (especially Jack!), the concept of interstellar pilots seeing the future between stars and being revered as prophets among various civilizations (SO COOL!), the rich world building and distinct cultures of the various peoples we meet, the in-depth histories of major and minor characters (which felt very GRRM to me!).

the construction of FOOLS was, at times, clumsy. i was unsure who the intended audience of FOOLS was. on netgalley it is tagged for both adults and teens&ya. while the main characters we follow are tweens and the pacing was pretty nonstop, i felt the structure and voice leaned more adult. since this is self published, i assume not enough eyes were on it to help hone the elements needed to determine this as adult OR ya. since i manage the ya catalogue at my library, i only order books that are decidedly ya. i personally loved FOOLS, and i do think it's a story teens would find both fun and thought-provoking, but i'll have to see what other readers thought of the rating before ordering.