Amor Fati — Jack Smith

Amor Fati follows Frederick, a restless teenager whose reckless punch lands him in hot water with Horatio Dark-a man tied to the shadowy underworld. Driven by his all-consuming passion for the enigmatic Lilac, Frederick tumbles into a maze of corruption and dangerous alliances, all while confronting the possibility of fatherhood and his own wavering moral compass.Desperate to clear his name and protect Lilac, Frederick pinballs between questionable allies: a lawyer more eager to collect fees than save his client, a crooked judge demanding under-the-table payouts, and the menacing Mr. Dark, Horatio's father, whose offers of help come with high-stakes consequences. With every choice, Frederick finds himself further entangled in debt and deceit.Lilac, harboring her own desires and secrets, both captivates and confounds Frederick, compelling him to propose marriage even as the truth about her pregnancy remains murky. Torn between loyalty and self-preservation, Frederick fights to hold onto the idea of a better life-an upscale apartment, a fast car, and the love he craves-while everything he's built teeters on the brink of collapse.In a world ruled by ambition and backroom deals, Amor Fati crackles with moral ambiguity, driving readers to question how far they might go for the person-and the life-they want most. Jack Smith's gripping narrative thrusts us into a feverish drama of obsession and consequence, challenging us to decide who, if anyone, can be trusted when every path forward seems a step deeper into the widening darkness of the abyss.