The Betrothed by Kiera Cass
My rating: 3 of 5 stars
I wanted to love this book because I’m a huge fan of Kiera Cass’ previous work, particularly her awesome “Selection” series and her stand-alone “The Siren.” If I could separate this book in two, I would give the first 80 percent 2 stars, and the last 20 percent a solid 4, because it really isn’t until the end that some semblance of narrative tension is introduced to what up until that point is a pretty flat plot.
The premise: King Jameson (I wanted to do a shot every time I read his name!) is in search of a bride, and after flirting his way through the kingdom’s loveliest ladies, has landed on Lady Hollis Brite, our heroine. I had to continually remind myself she was the heroine because she wasn’t terribly endearing or catchy. We find out she is very beautiful but by her own description, not especially smart (this may or may not be true) or cunning. What she is, though, is observant, and also funny; we are told she makes the king laugh, and this is what’s won her a crown.
As the novel meanders along, we watch King Jameson’s (shot!) affections increase, Hollis’ intense parents hover, her brittle and grating BFF Delia make particularly sharp and biting comments, and things only get mildly interesting when a new family rolls in: the Eastoffes are castoff refuges from a neighboring kingdom, and there are all kinds of references to the horrible things they’ve suffered without any real description of said horrible things. Of course the Eastoffes have a hot son who catches Hollis’ eye just as her attention toward Jameson (shot!) begins to wane and she thinks maybe she’s not down for this whole ornamental queen thing after all.
This rather flaccid love triangle between the clueless-but-jovial Jameson, waffling Hollis, and the hot newcomer is the center of the novel until the aforementioned 80 percent of the way through. FINALLY at that point some stuff starts to happen that extends beyond the flip-flopping heart of a teenager. It does set up the next book to be more successful because finally we’ve got some serious political intrigue, betrayals and heartbreak to queue up an interesting storyline. Because of that, I will likely read the sequel. I would say to Cass fans, if you’re committed to her work, then read this book with patience knowing that it does, barely, get better by the end.
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