Author: Kiera Cass
I opened this book with such high hopes and closed it with such disappointment.
In The Betrothed, Hollis Brite is a daughter of the court and has caught the attention of King Jameson – who has chosen her to stand by his side and become his future queen. She’s thrilled until she meets Silas, a stranger that has come to the castle to resettle in her country.
The premise promises a glistening kingdom, courtly danger, and a forbidden romance. Hollis falls in love with Silas almost instantaneously. And what we as readers get is nothing like the premise promised.
Instead, The Betrothed is full of vapid, flat characters and a kingdom with no substance.
There was no character development throughout the entire story. There was no plot progression. The King, Jameson, was void of a personality alongside Hollis’s love interest Silas. Cass never shows us what makes them human and I wasn’t able to get invested in them as characters. The only character that didn’t feel flat was the rivaling country’s queen Valentina.
At the very least, I was able to get through reading this without dragging my feet. It moved quickly despite nothing really happening the entire book. The ending was nonsensical, anticlimactic, and boring. I didn’t feel anything for any of the characters affected and the “cliff-hanger” just made me glad the book was over.
This is the first book in a duology, though, so I’m hoping the second book is leagues better.
Kaitlin S.