{"id":25886,"date":"2014-12-29T23:41:31","date_gmt":"2014-12-30T03:41:31","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/sonderbooks.com\/blog\/?p=25886"},"modified":"2014-12-29T23:41:31","modified_gmt":"2014-12-30T03:41:31","slug":"review-of-mortal-heart-by-robin-lafevers","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/sonderbooks.com\/blog\/?p=25886","title":{"rendered":"Review of Mortal Heart, by Robin LaFevers"},"content":{"rendered":"

\"mortal_heart_large\"<\/a>Mortal Heart<\/em><\/p>\n

by Robin LaFevers<\/p>\n

Houghton Mifflin Harcourt, Boston, 2014. 444 pages.
\nStarred Review<\/p>\n

Wow! The third book of the trilogy that began with Grave Mercy<\/a><\/em> is everything I hoped it would be! I had preordered the book before I found out I was going to be a Cybils judge. So the book came in while I was very busy with Cybils reading \u2013 and was the first thing I pulled out when we had finished making our list of Finalists.<\/p>\n

The trilogy is summed up in three words: Medieval Assassin Nuns.<\/p>\n

One thing I love about the three books is that each one is a complete story on its own \u2013 the complete story of one of the initiates into the order of St. Mortain \u2013 the god of Death. I also love that each girl\u2019s story is totally different from the next. Each book has romance \u2013 and I thought I had it all figured out how it would go. Then this volume was completely different.<\/p>\n

Because each book tells a complete story, with even a little bit of overlap in the timelines, you could read the books in any order. But I still highly recommend beginning with Grave Mercy.<\/em> You will want to read all three books, so you might as well start at the beginning. The first book also goes into a little more depth about the political situation facing the Duchess of Britany. (The duchess in the 1490s really was engaged to multiple suitors when her father died.) <\/p>\n

It\u2019s all based on actual historical events \u2013 even the ancient gods of Brittany, whom the church absorbed as saints. I\u2019m guessing that in real life, the god of Death didn\u2019t have actual physical daughters who had special gifts as assassins, but it definitely makes a good story!<\/p>\n

This third volume goes into more detail about some of the paranormal elements, as Annith meets the Hunt, with hellequins sent out from Death himself. Like Ismae and Sybella in the books that went before, she is struggling with her role and whether the Abbess is actually representing Mortain\u2019s guidance, or following her own purposes.<\/p>\n

There is an overall plot arc to the series, too, which is resolved in this book. I didn\u2019t know anything about Brittany and its history with France, so the resolution was a surprise to me. I\u2019m guessing things didn\u2019t happen the way they did for the same reason portrayed in this book, but they *could* have, and I love that in a historical novel.<\/p>\n

Parents of young teens, just to warn you: All the girls \u201ctake lovers.\u201d No details are given, so they are not sexy reads, but that might influence whether or not you think it\u2019s good reading for your own daughters.<\/p>\n

They are wonderfully romantic tales, with each book having its own conflict and dangers, and each girl having a different \u2013 but beautiful \u2013 relationship with the god of Death. And I do like the way no one can push around these trained assassins!<\/p>\n

Yes, on finishing this trilogy, I\u2019m all the more impressed with each book individually, and the series as a whole. Each book demonstrates outstanding writing. I have no doubt I will be coming back to these books over the years. In fact, I’ll be looking for an opportunity to reread the whole series soon.<\/p>\n

robinlafevers.com<\/a>
\nhmhco.com<\/a><\/p>\n

Buy from Amazon.com<\/a><\/p>\n

Find this review on Sonderbooks<\/a> at: www.sonderbooks.com\/Teens\/mortal_heart.html<\/a><\/p>\n

Disclosure: I am an Amazon Affiliate, and will earn a small percentage if you order a book on Amazon after clicking through from my site.<\/p>\n

Source: This review is based on my own copy, preordered via Amazon.com.<\/p>\n

Disclaimer: I am a professional librarian, but I maintain my website and blogs on my own time. The views expressed are solely my own, and in no way represent the official views of my employer or of any committee or group of which I am part.<\/p>\n

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