67 pages • 2-hour read
Sorrow and Starlight: Zodiac Academy 8
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Symbols & Motifs
Stars
Content Warning: This section of the guide includes discussion of emotional abuse.
In Sorrow and Starlight, stars represent fate, and the conflict between the Fae and the stars symbolizes The Struggle Between Fate and Free Will. Astrology and the zodiac form the basis of the magic and world building in the series, and the stars themselves are the closest thing the story has to a divine force. Stars are markers of destiny, the literal source of all the characters’ magic, and arbiters of the ongoing conflicts. They are the ones writing destiny, determining the fate of every individual and the outcome of wars and rebellions. When Darcy accuses the fallen star of cruelly toying with the lives of the Fae in Chapter 15, it replies, “Cruelty is a construct of Fae, not us. When we are perched within the sky, we are neither good nor bad. We see all, we offer answers, we guide and gift, but we may take and destroy if the choices made below us invoke it” (203). Later, when the stars whisk her and Tory away, they tell the twins, “We seek harmony in all things. We right the tipping of the scales, forever seeking a point of bliss. We have no need nor use for sentiment or feeling. Right or wrong” (1215). They represent the ancient, impartial hand of fate, seeking order and aesthetic harmony without regard for human (or Fae) concepts like justice and happiness. This directly opposes the emotional humanity of the Fae characters like Tory, who make decisions that go against the cosmic balance. In these moments, the stars respond, making a singing-like sound that is actually screaming.
The Book of Ether
The Book of Ether from which Tory extracts dark rituals is tied to The Struggle Between Fate and Free Will. While the stars represent the “fate” half of the conflict, the book represents the “free will” aspect and the fight for self-determination. When Tory opens the book, she reads, “Even a destiny mapped out by the stars and drawn into reality by time itself can often be changed. Fate is not the master of this world” (457). It is the opening to the spell that she later uses when she makes her ultimate move to counteract fate: binding herself to Darius and restoring him to life. For her, someone who has been caught in the web of ancient prophecies and cursed legacies, the book offers the hope of a way to fight back against the forces that have oppressed her for so long. However, the power it offers her is a double-edged sword. To meddle with fate is to risk everything. The rituals written within exact a heavy toll on the soul to perform, and, as of the end of the novel, the full price it will take on her is not yet known. However, this has a symbolic accord with what the tome represents. The Book of Ether is itself the unknown, a relic of a bygone era when magic was untamed and the rules of reality were still fluid. For Tory to align herself with it is to oppose the rigid rules of the stars and fate.
Curses
Two main curses feature in Sorrow and Starlight: the one that Lavinia placed on Darcy and the one that Clydinius placed on the entire Vega line. The curses punish the transgressions of the past while simultaneously forcing characters to embark on journeys of redemption and self-discovery. The curses, as a result, compel the characters to confront the darkest parts of themselves, leading to transformative growth or, in some cases, catastrophic downfall. For Darcy, the curse of the Shadow Beast is the former. She struggles to keep her identity in the face of the oppressive darkness that Lavinia imposes on her. At the beginning of the novel, she describes the curse as “crushing, suffocating, and so powerful it fe[els] like it [i]s carving fissures into the depths of what ma[kes] [her]…[her]” (9). The curse attacks her agency, turning her into a weapon to be used at Lavinia’s whim. When Darcy breaks it by finally facing the Shadow Beast, it symbolizes her taking back her own agency. By freeing and healing the shadow beast, she demonstrates that she has retained her compassion and heals herself.
The curse on the Vega bloodline, on the other hand, represents The Impact of Past Actions on the Present and symbolizes the irreversible moment when pride meets downfall. The curse is a reminder that the past cannot be rewritten without incurring an enormous price. It is a constant, lingering presence in the twins’ lives that undermines their ability to reclaim glory without suffering consequences. In essence, the curse of Clydinius is not simply about misfortune; it is a manifestation of the inevitable collapse that follows when one overreaches and defies the natural order of things.
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