The Kiss of Deception by Mary E Pearson

Published: July 2014

Publisher: Henry & Holt

Pages: 484

Copy Provided by: Library

Summary: Goodreads

Summary:

A princess must find her place in a reborn world.

She flees on her wedding day.

She steals ancient documents from the Chancellor's secret collection.

She is pursued by bounty hunters sent by her own father.

She is Princess Lia, seventeen, First Daughter of the House of Morrighan.

The Kingdom of Morrighan is steeped in tradition and the stories of a bygone world, but some traditions Lia can't abide. Like having to marry someone she's never met to secure a political alliance.

Fed up and ready for a new life, Lia flees to a distant village on the morning of her wedding. She settles in among the common folk, intrigued when two mysterious and handsome strangers arrive—and unaware that one is the jilted prince and the other an assassin sent to kill her. Deceptions swirl and Lia finds herself on the brink of unlocking perilous secrets—secrets that may unravel her world—even as she feels herself falling in love.

Review:

This title has been on my TBR list for a long time. I finally got around to reading it because I kept seeing Book #3 was coming out and figured it was about time I gave it a shot.  Wow! Was I ever glad that I did!  The story begins right off the bat with Lia getting ready for her wedding day.  Although she is apprehensive and suspects that her husband to be is rather old and dowdy.  All she knows is that he is the prince of a country with which Morrighan needs stronger ties. Her marriage is an alliance and she is just a political pawn in her father's regime.  She has no say in the matter and is incredibly unhappy about it.   So the morning of her wedding, she flees with her servant. 

I loved this character when I first started reading as she wanted to be recognized for herself. Not as a representative of her country. However, she is also quite headstrong and speaks out before thinking and is rash.  She reminds me a bit of Arya from Game of Thrones but more attractive and mature.  Her and her maid find a town to begin a new life in and they work in a bar. She learns to work hard and seems to enjoy the anonymity and develops a strong work ethic as well as close ties to the other women working at the establishment. 

However, the two men who she comes to know (during their long stay at the inn) have come seeking her out. One is the assassin sent to kill her and the other is the prince meant to wed her.  They both seem to be falling for Lia though.  

**spoiler alert!!**

I have to admit, I got them mixed up. There was so much flip flopping between characters that originally I thought that Kaden was the prince and Rafe was the assassin. So of course I was totally against her falling for Rafe for the first 1/2 of the book...jeesh!!  I need to stop reading quickly and let the words sink in!!

**end of spoiler **

The author does a great job of building up Lia's character and then tearing her back down again. I recently read another series that did a great job of this as well, the Arcana Chronicles by Kelsey Cole.  I love it when authors do this because you see a character start to earn their place in the world. You see their trials and tribulations and the things that really shape who they are.  Their adventures shape and challenge their inner depths of character, drawing on strengths they may have never had before given different circumstances.

Anywho, if you have not yet given this title a shot, I highly recommend it. Sure, Lia can get a little tedious at times but she grew up sheltered in a castle so she has a lot to learn and see. Besides, who wouldn't like the attention of two handsome young men??

BTW, The last chapter of the book was  AWESOME!!  So awesome in fact that I re-read it after I had finished the book...

- Christinabean