Review of The Betrothed by Kiera Cass

Read for: Anticipated Release/ Recently Added/ Audio Book

Synopsis: "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."

My Review: The Selection series is one of my guilty pleasure reads, so I was super excited to be getting a new book from her with a somewhat similar idea. I dove right into this book, not really checking the synopsis. We jump right into what feels like the middle of Hollis' story, she is clearly already into a relationship with King Jameson. We don't get to see what draws them together, and don't really get a warm and fuzzy feeling from their relationship. It is clear there is supposed to be a love triangle but it is definitely skewed, making it so there is little to no tension building. I felt like I never got a clear picture of who the characters are or even the world. It all felt a little rushed and glazed over, instead of fully immersing me in the world and story. Maybe it is just that the target audience is definitely a younger teen and I have outgrown much of a tolerance for the style of writing, and have come to expect much more depth in the books I read. I will still read the second book because I can't leave a duology unfinished but it definitely won't be a high priority.

My Rating: What a disappointment! I don't know if it is the fact that I am over Cass' writing or that she just isn't coming up with anything new or growing as an author but I was so underwhelmed.  The characters were flat, there was no connection or chemistry. The wow moments weren't there, and what was there just seemed like afterthoughts and purely there for the effect of 'wow, she went there'.  I finished this book less than a week ago and already had to look up the character names to write my review, so very forgettable.  So very sadly I give this a rating of One Paw and a Stump Wag.