Betraying Season by Marissa Doyle

Genre: YA Fantasy Fiction

Publication Date: September 2009

Author Website: www.marissadoyle.com

One Word Review: Unexpected

First Line: “Saints preserve us!”

Synopsis: Penelope (Pen) Leland has come to Ireland to study magic and prove to herself that she is as good a witch as her twin sister, Persy. But when the dashing Niall Keating begins to pay her court, she can’t help being distracted from her studies. Little does Pen know, Niall is acting upon orders from his sorceress mother. And although it starts as a sham, Niall actually falls deeply in love with Pen, and she with him. But even if he halts his mother’s evil plan, will Pen be able to forgive him for trying to seduce her into a plot? And what of Pen’s magic, which seems to be increasingly powerful? --GoodReads

Kathy’s Review: This was a fun sequel to Bewitching Season; I think in a lot of ways I liked it more than the first. The magic was a lot more prominent in this one, although I still would have liked to see Pen use it more, or seen a little more time with her in attending her classes. I liked that Pen and Niall were given more page-time versus the time Persy and Lochnivar had in Bewitching Season. So, even though I did enjoy their chemistry, it took a slightly different turn then I expected. I liked that they liked each other so much they enjoyed the simple act of holding hands. The last part of the book it quickly turns a little more racy and I guess I wish Niall's would have come up with a better solution for “saving” Pen. I would have liked to see some clever scheme that shows off all those brains he's suppsoed to have, but I guess that was the best he could come up with? I am glad Pen had a head on her shoulders and did the right thing.

I enjoyed the story, although it did seem a little slow or drawn out in part, it was still a entertaining read. If you enjoyed Bewitching Season then you will probably like Betraying season. Oh, and I loved little Corkwobble, a fun new character that I wish we could have seen more of.

Reading Order:

Book One: Bewitching Season
Book Two: Betraying Season
Book Three: The Waterloo Plot