The Kiss of Deception by Mary E. Pearson (Spoiler-free) Review

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.

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Going into this book, I wasn’t sure what to expect. I had seen mixed reviews so I kept my expectations low while reading, but found that was unnecessary. I ended up really enjoying this book! I was pleasantly surprised as to how much I really liked this story! I still don’t understand the negative reviews. I had so much fun reading this and it was hard for me to put down.

The book starts off with a scene of Lia getting ready for her wedding. She is to be wed to a prince of another region to create an alliance. Lia wants love, not an arranged marriage for political reasons, so she skips town before the wedding even happens. She blends in working at a tavern. This is when two mysterious and good-looking men show up. What she doesn’t know is that one is the prince she was supposed to marry and the other is an assassin sent to kill her. This is when the fun begins and the story really starts.

What I loved most about this book is the fact that we don’t know which guy is who. We know their names and their descriptions of how they look, but that’s it. Throughout the book, the reader is kept in the dark as to who is who. I had so much fun reading like this. I was trying to play detective the whole time trying to guess correctly! It was definitely my favorite part of the book! I definitely recommend picking up The Kiss of Deception if you are a fan of books that are mysterious like this!

Lia was such a great main character. She is a princess but she doesn’t act like it. She blends in so well with the rest of the town because she acts just like everyone else that lives there. She works hard in the tavern just like the rest of the employees. She’s also stubborn and strong. She stands up for what is right and what she believes in.

I wish I could go into detail on the guys (the prince and the assassin) but I can’t without spoiling the whole book. If you want to know who is who, then you are going to have to pick up the book for yourself!

Overall, this was a brilliant first book in a trilogy! I am most definitely going to be continuing on with this series! I can’t get enough of it! I am giving this book a rating of 4 out of 5 stars!