The Traitor's Kiss by Erin Beaty Pages: 352
Published by Imprint on May 9, 2017
Series: Traitor's Trilogy #1
Genres: Young Adult, Fantasy & Magic, Romance
An obstinate girl who will not be married. A soldier desperate to prove himself. A kingdom on the brink of war.
With a sharp tongue and an unruly temper, Sage Fowler is not what they’d call a lady―which is perfectly fine with her. Deemed unfit for marriage, Sage is apprenticed to a matchmaker and tasked with wrangling other young ladies to be married off for political alliances. She spies on the girls―and on the soldiers escorting them.
As the girls' military escort senses a political uprising, Sage is recruited by a handsome soldier to infiltrate the enemy ranks. The more she discovers as a spy, the less certain she becomes about whom to trust―and Sage becomes caught in a dangerous balancing act that will determine the fate of her kingdom.
The Traitor’s Kiss by Erin Beaty is a young adult fantasy. It is the first book in the Traitor’s Trilogy, and it is one of my favorite reads of 2017! By far. I freakin’ loved this book. I wanted to re-read it immediately after I finished it. It actually took me 4 days to read because I kept forcing myself to stop because I didn’t want it to be over. I need the second book ASAP. (I have re-written this review twice now, because every time I look at it, it feels super gushy. But I’m not toning it down any further because I want to share my excitement for this book. I seriously loved it so much!)
The Traitor’s Kiss is the story of Sage Fowler, a young lady who ends up as a matchmaker’s apprentice/secret spy when she doesn’t wish to be wed herself. The book is told in multiple perspectives, including Sage’s, and some of the soldiers they encounter. Sage accompanies the matchmaker for her country along with lots of young ladies who wish to be matched at a grand event, where people from all countries come to be matched. The story develops on their journey to the event.
It is really hard to explain the magic that is The Traitor’s Kiss. I loved the mystery of it all. I loved Sage and I really, really loved Ash. The romance is incredibly swoon-worthy and epic. The characters are dynamic and excellent, the world building is rich and detailed and really well done, and I even loved all the military lingo and strategy that played into the storyline. I thought Erin Beaty did a great job of making all of the military tactics/strategy not only accessible and easy to understand, but also super interesting.
I have so much more to say about character specifics, but I will save them for later because I don’t want to spoil anyone, but I would love to chat about this book with anyone and everyone so comment below if you have read it!!
Bottom line: if you love YA fantasies that have excellent world building, great political and military intrigue and an epic-ly awesome romance, The Traitor’s Kiss is sure to be a favorite of yours. It certainly is a favorite of mine. The Traitor’s Kiss is one of my favorite reads of 2017. I am dying for more!
Be sure to check out the guest Post from Erin Beaty and see the secret message she left behind for you all!
You can see that post HERE
See why The Traitor's Kiss by @ErinBeatyWrites @ImprintReads is one of @BookBriefs favorite reads of the year! Share on X
Book Recommendation:
If you loved The Traitor’s Kiss, you will also love the Reign of Secrets series by Jennifer Anne Davis.
You can check out my review for the first two books in the series below.
It is one of my all time favorite fantasy series. Of all time people!!
About Erin Beaty
Erin Beaty was born and raised in Indianapolis, Indiana, which means she can’t drive a tractor, but she won’t eat veggies that come from a can. She graduated from the US Naval Academy with a degree in rocket science and somehow always ended up writing her study group’s lab reports. After serving in the fleet as a weapons officer and a leadership instructor, she resigned to pursue her side hobby of populating the Church of Rome. It still amazes her when other people want to hear the stories that come out of her head.
She and her husband have five children, two cats, and a vegetable garden and live wherever the navy tells them to go.
This sounds super interesting — I love YA fantasy, and the idea of a matchmaker having a secret spy sounds amazing. Great review!
I loved this one so much! I really hope you get the chance to read it Alyssa!
You had me at “The romance is incredibly swoon-worthy and epic and world building rich” Michelle!! I’m definitely taking a second look at Traitors Kiss. I’m so happy this was an epic read for you. Also, I’ll be checking out Jennifer Anne Davis’ series as its new to me.
I loved this one so much! I really hope you get the chance to read it Kim!and the Reign of Secrets series is a must read! I am reading the prequel series, the key right now and I am loving that too!
Great review, now I am intrigued this one really looks and sounds absolutely fantastic and right up my alley. Plus it is a new to me book and I totally love fantasy books. Thank you so much for your awesome post.
I loved this one so much! I really hope you get the chance to read it!
Sounds a bit different than the usual ‘romance’ story and I am always on the lookout for a fresh take.
sherry @ fundinmental
It’s totally different than both the usual romance and the usual fantasy!
I’m so glad you liked it…I’ve read such negative reviews! Can’t wait to read!
I loved this one so much! I really hope you get the chance to read it!I had no idea there were so many negative reviews. That bums me out because its one of my favorites of the year. (to each their own I guess)
Oh I have an e-ARC so I need to read it ASAP! But I won’t let the negative reviews get me down!!
I really enjoyed this one too. I loved Sage and Ash and the other guards. I thought this was a great start to the series, and am looking forward to more. Great review!
Sam @ WLABB
I am so happy you loved this one too Sam. I loved Sage. I thought she was going to be pretentious at first, but she really isn’t at all.