Have you ever suffered intense physical pain? Perhaps you’ve been injured while playing sports, or you battle a lifelong disease. Maybe you’ve always been healthy, but are grieving the loss of a loved one or a close friend. If so you might empathize with Cyra, the heroine in Veronica Roth’s Carve the Mark. Her story illustrates an important truth—pain often serves a purpose, but we don’t have to suffer alone.