Sadly this one wasn’t really for me, I just couldn’t connect with the characters this time around, just not for me but I’m sure others will enjoy

Thank you Netgalley and publisher for the e-arc for an honest opinion.

Please take in mind it’s my opinion, and everyone is allowed to have one.

I honestly couldn’t get into the first book, I DNF’ed that one, along with this one. It was all so confusing, and I just didn’t like the characters at all or the story.

I was so excited to read The Betrayed. I had really loved the first book and was ready to see what the next book would bring. I was also hopeful that Hollis would be more of a character to root for, rather than feeling a bit sorry for her because she acted out due to insta-love. 

For me, The Betrayed was so much better than The Betrothed. I thought that Hollis was a better character. A stronger person who thinks more of others than herself. I also felt that the romance was more compelling. I felt that it was more real than before. Before just felt like plot need rather than the way things should have been. 

I also enjoy reading more about Ethan. And I can understand some of his behaviour even if it is a bit annoying!!

I did think that the ending was a bit rushed and how it came to be a little too simple. Basically it was very very convenient. But whatever, I had my happy ending and good conquers evil. Which at the end of the day is what I wanted. So I felt like I was winning for this book. 

This was a serious guilty pleasure that I cannot wait to pick up and read again soon!

I thought this was a good second to the series. It’s a bit hard to review, because it wasn’t my very favorite, but I was able to finish and enjoy. Felt it might be a bit rushed, confusing at times, but for fans or her prior works, i am sure quite enjoyable. I would give it a 3-4 star review and recommend to those whom are fans of both The Selection series and The Betrothed, I did find it better than the first in the series,

I enjoyed this book so much that I didn't want to put it down at all! I loved the progression of the characters, the grief and resilience is so well portrayed and the ending made me all gooey inside. Some things you could see coming but it was so well done that I didn't mind at all and still really enjoyed it!

An absolute must read book!

I will admit I was not a fan of the betrothed so I was going into this one quite sceptical. Now while I didn’t love this book I must say it did redeem itself from book one. The characters are still awful for me and so I still wasn’t interested or invested in anything they did. I did find the plot moved better and I was quite pleased with the action and pacing of the story.

Give it a try!

The pretty cover is the only thing to love about a book as contrived as THE BETRAYED. If ever a book made me throw my ereader in frustration, this one had me send it flying into space.

There is marginally – marginally – better characters and character development than in its predecessor. The book opens with Hollis, defeated but determined, trying to carve out a new life for herself in the foreign land of Isolte, who are the natural enemies of Coroa, her home country. We are reintroduced to Scarlet Eastoffe, who has evolved some form of depth, the Eastoffe and Northcott parents, who were... there, and finally, Etan Northcott, the distrustful revolutionary wishing to depose the tyrannical king of Isolte. Sadly Valentina, by such low standards my favourite character of THE BETROTHED, melts more into the background for Amazing, Brilliant, Clever Hollis.

She is completely and utterly undeserving of all the praise heaped onto her. She could suggest the most basic thing to aid the revolution, and EVERYONE will go up in arms about how clever she is, how smart the idea is, how come they didn't think of that before! She outwits and outmanoeuvres strategists who have been at this game for years. Her, a court girl who has never touched military strategy in her life. There's a persistent story thread of otherness as well, in that Hollis, a born and bred Coroan, feels like an outsider to the Isoltens. Besides it feeling terribly flat given that by the end, everyone adores Hollis and throws away any natural resistance they had to Coroa because of her, there's nothing to distinguish between her and the Isoltens, except one or two random cultural elements. The world-building is so poor that it's detriment to Hollis' internal struggle of fitting in. Nothing feels real, everything feels forgettable. Laughably there's a map in this book with ten other countries. Do we get any information about these other places? Of course not.

The romance was better than the Hollis and Silas pairing of the first book; the love interest has a personality, wants, desires, and hit-and-miss banter with Hollis as well. They have more developed chemistry and their romance together was more grounded in reality. We even get treated to some minor angst in that Hollis feels as though, by falling in love with someone else, she is betraying the husband that lasted for a week. However, the bar was so low it was in the ground, and bearable doesn't mean good.

Unfortunately, my minor grumblings only exacerbate from here. The ending is so absurd I actually laughed out loud, and it whole-heartedly contributed to my low star rating for this book. It really rubs salt in the wound that both the book's antagonists are so pathetic that they essentially give in at the apex of their stories. One of them, of course, not by his own choice, and the other gets busted for ordering the murder of several families and just... shrugs and accepts it. Why did anyone fear this person?

Putting aside the terrible story and characters, THE BETRAYED's prose reads like a repetitive word-vomit first draft of a juvenile writer, for the amount of smiling (74 instances), nodding (83 instances) and perturbingly swallowing (45 instances) that Hollis and co. do. Seriously, I searched the phrase "I swallowed", and Hollis says this 27 times. It really speaks to how little variation there is to the characters' body language.

If Cass took a writing class, or ten, she would have the potential to really dominate the YA fantasy romance market. She clearly has talent in drawing people in, but keeping them there? I don't think THE BETRAYED is a book anyone would miss if it suddenly disappeared off the shelves.

WILL I MORE BY THIS AUTHOR? Cass used to be auto-buy. Now... I'll check out reviews first.

Kiera Cass has done it again! Fans of both the original The Selection series and The Betrothed will be thrilled with this sequel. Readers will be swooning and having all the feels while following Hollis's journey. The story is filled with romance and solid character development. If you enjoy YA romance series, be sure to pick up The Betrothed and soon after The Betrayed. You won't regret it!

Also worth noting that the covers are still completely gorgeous.

I must admit, I wasn't really a fan of The Betrothed and felt both that the romance was stilted and the action far too rushed. However, The Betrayed - whilst not perfect - was a significant improvement! I wish I could give it 3.5 stars, as the romance was actually believable and the familial relationships good.

I still had some issues with the plot though - it felt a bit rushed and problems were presented and resolved within a few pages, so there was no chance for any kind of tension to build. It was an easy read, but not particularly gripping.

I received a copy from the publisher in exchange for an honest review.