The Kiss of Deception – Book Review (Spoiler-Free)

Hey everyone! I hope you’re all doing great and having a wonderful weekend 😊

Today I bring you another review of a book that I’ve been meaning to read for forever. And now that the trilogy is over, I thought it was the perfect time to do it.

This is my new book crush, by the way. So if I sound like I’m fangirling like a maniac, it’s because I am!

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This review is completely spoiler-free.

• Title: The Kiss of Deception (The Remnant Chronicles #1)
• Author: Mary E. Pearson
• Publisher: Henry Holt
• Publication Date: July 8^th, 2014
• Page Count: 489

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Princess Arabella (who prefers being called Lia), First Daughter of the House of Morrighan, flees on her wedding day. She doesn’t want to marry some “old toad” to secure a political alliance, much less someone she’s never met.

She’s ready to start life anew with her best friend Pauline in a faraway village, but of course there are obstacles. Two obsctacles, to be precise: one determined prince trying to bring her back and one deadly assassin trying to kill her.

 

I wasn’t expecting this trilogy to be anything like this. I was expecting a lot of YA drama, stupid characters, an even stupider story line and really, really cheesy romance. Let me tell you right now, it’s none of that. I mean, it’s the entire opposite of that. It was absolutely awesome.

 

Everything? Well, I’d say about 98% of this book is amazing. And the other 2% is just me being picky.

The Kiss of Deception grabbed my attention from the very start. The author has this almost flawless way of explaining things and bringing the reader into her world, slowly pulling us in. It never felt like an info dump, although there’s ton of information to process.

I could clearly envision everything Pearson wrote about, and her writing felt almost poetic, especially when she described how her characters were feeling. There was so much rawness and emotion.

There’s a huge amount of political intrigue in this, which I was so happy about. You’re never really sure who Lia can trust or not and I feared for her life constantly. Basically, this book keeps you on edge a lot.

Speaking of Lia, she is one of the strongest, most grounded heroines I have ever come across. And not in a “badass”, obvious kind of way. She’s no Celaena Sardothien. She’s a pretty average girl overall.

Only as the story progresses do we really get to see how mentally strong and fierce she is. Her personality really shines through in crucial moments. She changes a lot throughout the story, due to her circumstances, but overall she doesn’t stray too far from the person she was from the start. She simply grows and adapts, learning which decisions to make, which sides to take and, mostly, how to survive.

The guys. I loved them, in very different ways. Or rather, I enjoyed one’s character and personality, but clearly fell in love with the other. I’ve heard many people say they had a lot of trouble choosing one over the other, changing their opinion constantly. And I can understand why: they’re both very likeable. But again, in very different ways. I guess it really depends on the type of love interest you prefer.

Lia and Pauline’s relationship is so awesome. They’re so different but they complement each other so well – all of Lia’s faults are Pauline’s strengths, and vice-versa. Their time together was honestly one of the most enjoyable parts of this book. I loved Pauline’s fierce loyalty, her kindness and her gentleness, and Lia’s fierce protectiveness, her determination and her sassiness.

Not only do we get really nice moments of companionship from them, but from all the other women they come to befriend as well. They developed this wonderful group that not only stands up for and helps one another, but that also has tons of fun together.

The plot twist! THE PLOT TWIST, you guys. I was not expecting it! I had a pretty clear vision in my mind of things, and then all of a sudden it was shattered in the most unexpected and awesome of ways. And I almost hit myself for not realizing that, of course, things shouldn’t have been as crystal clear!

Some people will probably pick up on it sooner, but I have to say Pearson was masterful at disguising her true intentions. Looking back, I’m still not able to fully grasp the extent of her cunning schemes.

There are some more plot twists in between that are just as unexpected and will make you question everything. Like, EVERYTHING.

 

Lia got kind of annoying at one point. There was just this instalove vibe going on that I kept swatting away but wouldn’t really disappear and it made me really fed up. She just kept focusing too much of her energy and thoughts on it. And okay, I get it, she’s seventeen and it would be normal for her to feel like that, I guess. But ugh.

Besides the fact that it was not my ship, it was also kind of just boring and a bit nauseating after all the amazing stuff that had happened until then. Was it to show that she was a normal teenager with normal teenage urges? Maybe. Did I enjoy it? No.

Thankfully, it didn’t last too long.

 

Man, I have no words to describe how wonderful this book is. Pretty much everything about it was absolutely fantastic!

I loved the writing, the world building, the characters, the romance, the plot… It was all so nicely woven together and made perfect sense no matter which way you turned.

The plot twists were absolutely masterful. The way the author tricked the reader into thinking one thing and then another, making them keep questioning themselves over and over again until the climax… Genius.

The slow burning romance had me begging for more each and every time. It wasn’t overbearing and the characters didn’t behave like idiots (most of the time).

I loved the love triangle, which is something you probably won’t hear from me ever again. I loved how, despite it playing a huge part in the whole story, it never really outshone the actual plot or what was going on. Except for maybe once or twice, which is a pretty decent ratio, I’d say.

This book never felt like a chore. It had an amazing pace and even when nothing relevant was happening, it still made it look interesting and pleasureable to read. I was never bored with it and I can barely wait to find out what happens next!

My only complaint? LET MY SHIP SAIL, FOR THE GODS’ SAKE.

I recommend The Kiss of Deception times infinity.

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Final Rating:

***

Thank you so much for reading and until next time!

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What did you think of this review? Have you read The Kiss of Deception? （⋆＾－＾⋆）

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