Item: I Must Betray You
Rating: 4.00
Author: quirkycat

by Ruta Sepetys

#1 New York Times Bestseller and winner of the Carnegie Medal!

A gut-wrenching, startling historical thriller about communist Romania and the citizen spy network that devastated a nation, from the #1 New York Times bestselling, award-winning author of Salt to the Sea and Between Shades of Gray.

Romania, 1989. Communist regimes are crumbling across Europe. Seventeen-year-old Cristian Florescu dreams of becoming a writer, but Romanians aren’t free to dream; they are bound by rules and force.

Amidst the tyrannical dictatorship of Nicolae Ceaușescu in a country governed by isolation and fear, Cristian is blackmailed by the secret police to become an informer. He’s left with only two choices: betray everyone and everything he loves—or use his position to creatively undermine the most notoriously evil dictator in Eastern Europe.

Cristian risks everything to unmask the truth behind the regime, give voice to fellow Romanians, and expose to the world what is happening in his country. He eagerly joins the revolution to fight for change when the time arrives. But what is the cost of freedom?

Master storyteller Ruta Sepetys is back with a historical thriller that examines the little-known history of a nation defined by silence, pain, and the unwavering conviction of the human spirit.

Praise for I Must Betray You:

“As educational as it is thrilling...[T]he power of I Must Betray You [is] it doesn’t just describe the destabilizing effects of being spied on; it will make you experience them too.” –New York Times Book Review

“A historical heart-pounder…Ms. Sepetys, across her body of work, has become a tribune of the unsung historical moment and a humane voice of moral clarity.” –The Wall Street Journal

* "Sepetys brilliantly blends a staggering amount of research with heart, craft, and insight in a way very few writers can. Compulsively readable and brilliant." –Kirkus Reviews, starred review

* "Sepetys once again masterfully portrays a dark, forgotten corner of history." –Booklist, starred review

* "Sepetys’s latest book maintains the caliber readers have come to expect from an author whose focus on hidden histories has made her a YA powerhouse of historical fiction…Sepetys is a formidable writer, and her stories declare the need to write about global issues of social injustice. For that reason and her attention to detail, this is a must-read." –School Library Journal, starred review

* "Cristian’s tense first-person narrative foregrounds stark historical realities, unflinchingly confronting deprivations and cruelty while balancing them with perseverance and hope as Romania hurtles toward political change." –Publishers Weekly, starred review

“Sepetys keeps readers riveted to this vivid, heartbreaking and compelling novel, locked into every meticulously researched detail. I Must Betray You demands a full investment from its audience--through poetic writing, sympathetic characters, revolutionary plot and pacing, it grips the heart and soul and leaves one breathless.” –Shelf Awareness, starred review

"A master class in pacing and atmosphere." –BookPage

I'll confess: I put off reading I Must Betray You for a couple of months. Why? Ruta Sepetys' last novel absolutely wrecked me, so I had to prepare myself for this latest novel emotionally. We all know the writing will be spectacular and thus hit us right in the feels as always.

The year is 1989 in Romania. Christian Florescu is a seventeen-year-old kid who should be spending his time worried about normal teenage stuff. Instead, he's worried for his family, friends, country, and future.

This worry compounds when Christian finds himself on the raw end of blackmail. Now, he must become an informer, which requires him to betray everyone and everything he loves. Or he can lay down his life—neither sound appealing.

“This never knowing, it weakens us,” Bunu would say. “It’s a form of control. They know exactly what they’re doing.”

Wow. I don't know how Ruta Sepetys does it, but her work is always so beautifully (and painfully) emotional and human. It is impossible to do anything other than feel for the characters in her story, as it feels like we're transported in time, only allowed to watch the story as it unfolds.

I Must Betray You very much lives up to the high expectations readers like to have. It is brilliant, tense, and incredibly emotional. Likewise, it doesn't shy away from the graphic nature of the events that occurred in 1989. Readers might want to consider themselves warned on that count.

The chapters were surprisingly short, yet that actually made the larger story more approachable. It was easier to take it in through these little bursts, giving our hearts a chance to recover before moving on to the next event.

Christian's character is a solid foundation on which this story was built. I sincerely just wanted to reach out and hug the kid as he struggled his way through so many things. It's hard to put into words how this story made me feel. At least I know I'm not alone in those feelings.

I think I Must Betray You may be my favorite Ruta Sepetys book (to date – give it time, and I'm sure I'll fall in love with the next release. I always do), which is saying something. So please, go ahead and read I Must Betray You; you won't regret it.

Read more reviews over at Quirky Cat's Fat Stacks

I Must Betray You

by Ruta Sepetys

Reviewed by Quirky Cat on May 3, 2022

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