Title: The Heart of Betrayal
Author: Mary E. Pearson
Page count: 470
Date published: July 2015
Publisher: Henry Holt and Co.
My rating: 4 out of 5 stars!
Summary: (from Goodreads)
Held captive in the barbarian kingdom of Venda, Lia and Rafe have little chance of escape. Desperate to save Lia's life, her erstwhile assassin, Kaden, has told the Vendan Komizar that she has the gift, and the Komizar's interest in Lia is greater than anyone could have foreseen.
Meanwhile, nothing is straightforward: There's Rafe, who lied to Lia but has sacrificed his freedom to protect her; Kaden, who meant to assassinate her but has now saved her life; and the Vendans, whom Lia always believed to be savages. Now that she lives among them, however, she realizes that may be far from the truth. Wrestling with her upbringing, her gift, and her sense of self, Lia must make powerful choices that will affect her country... and her own destiny.
I was pretty excited to find the Heart of Betrayal sitting on the "New Teen" bookshelf at my library. I snatched this baby up in a matter of seconds and didn't let it leave the safety of my arms until it was checked out under my name. I really liked the first book, The Kiss of Deception, and was pumped to go back into Lia's world. [You can find my review for The Kiss of Deception here if you're interested] I really had no idea what I was getting into when I first started this book because the summary leaves a lot to the imagination.
The Heart of Betrayal leaves off immediately after the events of book one. Kaden is the assassin and Lia arrives at Venda as a prisoner. Rafe has sacrificed his freedom and became a prisoner as well in an attempt to help Lia. Lia has no idea what's in store for her. She only knows that her village by the sea is long gone and what has taken its place is very dangerous.
I'll start off saying that I really really liked the setting of this book. Terravin was nice for book one but I'm glad we get a new setting for book two. I'd wanted to know more about Venda since it was mentioned in book one. Pearson does a good job of satisfying that want. We learn a lot about the way Venda society runs and its government per se. That was something that the reader wasn't informed of with Terravin in book one.
Lia is forced to learn the tricky ways of the Vendan court. With little influence, Lia must be smart and witty in order to keep herself alive. She must remain useful to the Komizar, the man who rules Venda, or risk her life. Same goes for Rafe as well. Both must learn how to navigate the Komizar and Kaden. Every day increases their risk of being murdered. Time is running out for Lia and Rafe.. even with Kaden's help to keep them (more so Lia) alive.
I loved the constant tension that resonated throughout the chapters and the majority of the book. Every decision that Lia made could cost her. The stakes were much higher in this book than it was in The Kiss of Deception, and I very much liked that. Lia had to grow up really quickly. I already felt that she was pretty awesome in the first book but now I just find her amazing. If the first book made her seem loyal and hardworking, this book made her seem wise and strong-willed. Lia was careful with everything that she did - knowing that her every move was being watched by the Komizar and Kaden. The Komizar is a ruthless and cruel man. He wouldn't have a problem killing her if he no longer felt that she was beneficial. Lia made sure that she was important enough to the Komizar and Venda that her life would be spared.
As a character, the Komizar was easily one of my favorites. I thought he was interesting and had a reason for everything that he did. His methods are often cruel and cannot be justified but still. He fought and schemed his way to the crown. In doing so, it's all too clear to him that anyone can plot against him for their own agenda. He's paranoid, crazed with greed and power, and has a temper. None of this is a good combination for Lia or Rafe but is a great thing to read about. Komizar is someone that is meant to be feared and tiptoed around for fear of making him angry but what I loved about Lia was that she was able to stand up to him in her own ways. I think this made Komizar even more hungry for control over Lia, Venda, and his subjects. Power-hungry and bent on absolute control will never be a good thing.
Since I'm talking about characters, I might as well mention the point-of-view switching that the author uses. This is nothing new if you've read the first book. We get the POV of Lia, Kaden, Rafe, and Pauline. I much enjoyed Lia and Rafe's point of view. Pauline's part in the book was rather small but I feel that she will be more important in the third book. Kaden's point of view, however, I didn't like.
Kaden spends all of this book waging war inside himself. On one end is his loyalty to Komizar and Venda. On the other side is his feelings for Lia and his desire to keep her safe from harm. You can probably tell that this isn't going to go well. Komizar is not a man to underestimate. If he wants Lia to suffer, she will suffer. Either Kaden must listen to the man who treats him like a brother or go against his ruler and do what he feels is right. Because of his constant struggle, Kaden is moody and whiny. While I can tolerate it to some extent, I can't justify the woe-is-me behavior attitude that he shares for all of the book. Make a decision, Kaden! I don't want to spend the entire book reading about you going back and forth between Komizar and Lia. Pick who you're going to side with so we can move on from this. The constant back and forth annoyed me.
Rafe, however... me likey. Me likey a lot. Between the two love interests, Rafe is portrayed to be the noble one - the prince who gives up his freedom so that Lia won't have to go into Venda alone. Most of the time I'm more drawn to the dark, mysterious, snarky, and brooding type of guys like Kaden but, well, you know my reasons why Kaden fell short for me. But while Kaden didn't live up to my book crush potential, Rafe did. He was just so good in this book. I think that he truly loves Lia for sacrificing everything for her. While Kaden couldn't decide what he wanted from life, Rafe had decided long before that he was going to do whatever it took to keep Lia safe. I respect that. He's loyal and kind. Also very protective and brave. All of these are qualities that I like in a love interest. I would have liked to see more of the book in his point of view just because I liked him so much.
As for the ending.. it was great. All of the tension and build-up that happened throughout the book boiled over at the end. Everything happened at once. Fighting ensued. A character dies. Other characters run away. Some are split apart. The way the book leaves off gives me an inclination that the third book is going to be a roller coaster ride from start to finish. It's going to be intense.
Overall, I really enjoyed this read. I liked it better than the first book. Exploring Venda and Vendan culture was really interesting and even better than the coastal town Terravin. I enjoyed the antics of the court and the back and forth between Komizar, Lia, Kaden, and Rafe. Definitely worth reading if you liked the first book!
Until next time,
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