Read It With A Buddy #2 - Betrayed

Hello again! So Elyssa and I have finished our reviews for Betrayed, but I noticed that we had different ratings. Because of this, I will just post our reviews seperately. Hope you enjoy them,

--Zakiya, the walking butterfly [and Elyssa!]

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Betrayed (House of Night, #2)
By P.C. and Kristin Cast
Publisher: St. Martin's Griffin, 2007
310 pages, paperback
Read: 7/17/2010
Genres: Young Adult, Fantasy, Coming of Age, Romance

First Line of Book: " 'New kid. Check it out,' Shaunee said as she slid into the big, boothlike bench we always claim as ours for every school meal served in the dining hall (translation: high-class school cafeteria)."
Last Line of Book: "I'll go back for you, Stevie Rae."


Zakiya's Review: Betrayed was even better than Marked. More guy drama, more fun with friends, Zoey's big moment as the head of the school (sort of). It was just a giant step up from the series debut that I was glad I continued the series. Hopefully, Chosen will be even better!

In this book, Zoey and her friends take over the Dark Daughters -- the House of Night's prestigious group of students. Zoey has also taken the position pf High Priestess in Training, a big deal to Neferet (the "principal"). Her first Full Moon ritual is coming up soon, but things always seem to get in the way.

Betrayed was an ah-mazing sequel. IT had some great kick-butt action near the end, which I really enjoyed. Something good (and bad) happens to Heath, but I'm not telling what :). Zoey's vampyre friends are defined just a little bit more, and they have some cool stuff going on with them. Meanwhile, Stevie Rae catches hell, and Zoey just might be able to trust Aphrodite now, even though Neferet is encouraging her not to.

I loved this book, the characters, and the plot. Basically every single letter! I can't wait until I can get ahold of Chosen!

Rating:


Quotes from the Book:

"Cats do roam free all over the school. They often followed "their" kid to class. Nala, in particular, liked to find me several times a day. She'd insist I scratch her head, complain a little, and then take off and go do whatever catrs did with their free time. (Plot world domination?)"

" 'What's wrong with you?' Stevie Rae said.
The attention that the four of them had been focusing on trying to figure out if there was a hair in Erin's salad or if it was just one of those weird strings of celery shifted instantly to me."

" 'We don't do ugly,' Shaunee said.
'Yeah, and pot's ugly. Plus, it makes you eat for no good reasom. It's a shame the hottie football players are into that,' Erin said.
'Makes them less hottie,' Shaunee said.
'Okay, hottie-ness and pot are not really the point,' I said."

"The cat was as fat as a Butterball turkey. I mean, her tummy looked like she had a pouch and could hide a herd of baby kangaroos in there. That's probably why she wheezed. Carrying around all that cat fat couldn't be easy."



Elyssa's Review: I enjoyed this second book of the House of Night Series more then the first time I read it. Probably because last time I did not get to read Marked before I received Betrayed from the hold list at the library.

I was a bit put off by the language that this mother and daughter team used. I was shocked at how much they used slut, skank, and hag bitch. What is with the tossing of these terms? And why is it that when a female is bad she is an automatic slut. Really. I think we could be better then that. All of the pop culture talk is also over done. Plus it really dates the book even though it really is not that old.

Zoey is now the head of the Dark Daughters and sons (a special group on campus) as priestess in training. The detail surrounding by their religion and her priestess duties was well done. Asking for guidance from her Goddess, Nyx, and receiving help must have felt amazing. The religion and Goddess offers some hint of humanity into the assumed horrible existence of vampires. I am just sorry for Zoey that she starts to question her mentors true intentions.

Zoey should really learn to trust the people she calls friends. It is hard to read and enjoy a character if they keep making the same mistakes over and over. For me it is more like banging my head against a wall (or telling my kids to pick up their toys).

Personally, I really loved how entertaining it was to read about her desire for blood. It is all apart of becoming a vampire. The change does not usually include this desire so soon. A fledgling does not also make it through a change. One of Zoey's friends did not make it through the change. It was absolutely a shock for me and I cannot image how she felt. Damion did say the darnest things and they were nearly almost always funny. It was too sad to watch her friends try to cheer her up without much luck.

Another part that I enjoyed was the fact that Zoey is now questioning herself over three different men. Her boyfriend, Erik, is absent from House of Night doing a monologue for a competition for most of the book. Zoey ends up meeting Loren Blake who is a part time professor whom she believes is very interested in her. We can not forget Heath, her human boyfriend/ex-boyfriend.

Overall this book was a fun read. However, you will find flaws in the book. But who picks up a urban fantasy paranormal romance for a literary masterpiece? I'm looking for a read that will transport me to another place that I can enjoy for a few hours. This book did just that.

Rating: 3