The Betrayed (The Painted Maidens Trilogy, #2)

by Terra Harmony

[Raven]

Serena is slowly falling into her new role as Queen of the Undine. The deadline of her birthday, where she is to give herself over to the Werewolves as a sacrifice to amend their differences, looms. Serena is willing to do anything to save her people, but Liam isn't so willing to allow his sister to die. Together, they search for a way to help both of their races thrive without anyone needing to be sacrificed.

This book picks up within a few weeks of where The Rising left off. The story was really easy to jump right back into. I found the story here to be slightly more interesting than the one in The Rising, however, it dragged a bit more. I had trouble connecting to it, which had me turning the pages with a mild interest but little dedication. It felt like I was reading a "rainy day" book that I barely cared about instead of a continuation in a series I was completely curious about.

I think the characters were the biggest blemish in the story for me. I had trouble connecting to them with The Rising and it's only made worse here. Even though the writing is smooth, I couldn't get too emotional about them. The one time I did get completely emotional, was with a side character who, depending on your point of view, hardly mattered.

The character that I got emotion about the most was Cordelia. I cried hard when she died, but I got really angry afterward. I loathe the "mother dies in childbirth" plot point and think it should never be used. It rivals only the "man finds out about a secret child days before wedding to another" plot that shows/books seem to think is a good idea to bring in drama. I hate it. Why is it painted that women are so weak that we can't survive a childbirth? For that matter, why is it a good idea to make a newborn an orphan? I hated it in Harry Potter so obviously I will loathe it in a series I am not nearly as devoted to. This plot point alone nearly ruined the book for me.

This book suffered from the Sophomore Slump, there is no way around that. It tried to be strong, and it did advance the story fairly well. It wrapped up a few things a bit too cleanly, leaving you wondering what will happen in the third book, but it was handled well in general. The lack of Liam in the final pages was enough to latch me onto the third book, but other than that, this book suffered. I truly believe that the third in the series will make up for it, but then, I generally have low expectations for sophomore novels in a series to begin with. This series is worth continuing, even if this book wasn't as entertaining as I had hoped it would be.



Read this and other reviews at my blog.