The Betrothed - Kiera Cass

 

When King Jameson declares his love for Lady Hollis Brite, Hollis is shocked—and thrilled. After all, she’s grown up at Keresken Castle, vying for the king’s attention alongside other daughters of the nobility. Capturing his heart is a dream come true.

But Hollis soon realizes that falling in love with a king and being crowned queen may not be the happily ever after she thought it would be. And when she meets a commoner with the mysterious power to see right into her heart, she finds that the future she really wants is one that she never thought to imagine.

Blurb taken from Goodreads.

*

I am a massive fan of The Selection series, so I was really excited to get my hands on this book. I was really excited to read it, even though I'd seen a lot of negative reviews. I figured I wouldn't necessarily mind that a lot of the plot was similar to The Selection, as I'd really enjoyed a lot of the themes. I was definitely optimistic.

Now I've read it, I definitely have a different perspective. It's not that I didn't enjoy it. Rather, I feel a little bit confused. What on earth was that?! It started well (definitely recycled from The Selection, but that was okay), and then just plodded along, not really going anywhere. 

And then BAM! Plot twist. But a plot twist that was random, unnecessary and definitely not in keeping with the rest of the story. 

Do I think the sequel will be any better? No. Am I going to read it anyway? Absolutely.

Rating: ✫✫✫

The Story

The story was kind of the reverse of The Selection. Hollis has been picked out by King Jameson, and is hoping to keep his special favour so she can be Queen. But unfortunately, the course of true love never did run smooth, and Hollis's eye is caught by another. I genuinely didn't mind the blatant similarities between the author's other stories, because The Selection was always a bit of a guilty pleasure of mine. Even if it wasn't a very stimulating read, it was a sweet love story and I was really enjoying it.

I do wish, however, that the development of the characters had been a little better. We never really get to know any of them on more than a surface level, and I think this hinders some of the plot progression. Some of the plot points that included more minor characters weren't as exciting as they could have been if only the characters had been a little more fleshed out. I'm looking at you, Delia Grace. However, even Hollis herself  could have done with a little more oomph. I didn't connect with these characters as much as I have done with the author's other fiction.

And then there was the plot twist. That weird, random, unnecessary plot twist. The plot wasn't particularly earth-shattering before it, but the moment I read it, I put the book down. It was WILD. It didn't make any sense to me, except that the author was clearly trying to find an excuse to get the ending she wanted. It's just far superior to write the whole book towards that ending, rather than putting in a shock twist that ruins the integrity of the story. Eugh.

The ending spiraled from there. It couldn't have been further from where the story began, and I don't think that's a good thing in this case. It just felt like two different stories pushed together and forced to work. It's a real shame, because I could have enjoyed The Betrothed, even for all its other flaws.

The Verdict

I'm really disappointed by this book. I love Kiera Cass for her ability to write fluffy stories that don't require a lot of effort to read. And this could so easily have been that, if it wasn't for that damn plot twist. 

I can see what she wanted to do, but it didn't work at all, and it just ruined the rest of the story. It's a real shame, because I was really hoping I would enjoy it, despite all its other negative reviews.