Review: Betrayed by P.C. Cast and Kristin Cast

Betrayed
Author: P.C. Cast and Kristin Cast
Series: House of Night, #2

Synopsis (goodreads): Fledgling vampyre Zoey Redbird has managed to settle in at the House of Night.  She's come to terms with the vast powers the vampyre goddess, Nyx, has given her, and is getting a handle on being the new Leader of the Dark Daughters. Best of all, Zoey finally feels like she belongs--like she really fits in. She actually has a boyfriend…or two. Then the unthinkable happens: Human teenagers are being killed, and all the evidence points to the House of Night. While danger stalks the humans from Zoey's old life, she begins to realize that the very powers that make her so unique might also threaten those she loves. Then, when she needs her new friends the most, death strikes the House of Night, and Zoey must find the courage to face a betrayal that could break her heart, her soul, and jeopardize the very fabric of her world.
  

Review

Betrayed is definitely better than Marked. I think a huge part of that is because things are getting heated up. Zoey is finally getting the answers she didn't have to questions in the first book, and now she's having to figure out how to deal with the problems that have risen. You see a side of people that you didn't see in the first book. Some of those sides you'll like; some of them, you definitely won't. Humans are disappearing, strange "ghosts" keep showing up (usually only when Zoey is around), new and old love interests are pulling at Zoey's heartstrings, and just when she thought that things couldn't get any worse, her heart and world are both shattered, and she finds an alliance, I guess you could say, in someone she never thought was possible. 

There are some things that I didn't like about this book, and it may contain a few spoilers, so if you haven't read the book, you can just skip this. I'll try not to have spoilers that will completely ruin the book for you, but if you're one of those people who, like me, hate to be spoiled about anything in a book, I wouldn't read any further. One of the things that I really didn't like was how Zoey seemed to be lusting after just about everyone. Well, perhaps I exaggerated that a bit. She was lusting after three guys, but to me that's two too many. I can understand one of them, since he's her ex-boyfriend, and human so she has bloodlust for him and a possible Imprint on him, but the other guy who just shows up at the school and she gets all dreamy-eyed and tongue-tied over? No. Just no. I don't care if he's droolworthy, or whatever. She has a boyfriend, and it shouldn't have happened. It was just too much. I also, didn't like how a lot of the time, the dialogue between the characters seem to be lacking in depth. I mean, I'm no writer and I don't claim to have much talent in that area, but at times I felt as though I could've written it better. It seemed to be a bit ridiculous as well. I mean, "slut", "hag from hell", "stank", "bitch": I get that they don't like the girl but still! Those words were way overused. However, the parts of the story that are not character dialogue (and not all the dialogue was bad; just some) are written quite well and I thoroughly enjoyed it.

The story itself is rather amazing, and I loved following Zoey as she learned new things about herself, her friends and the people around her, and the fact that her friendships with Stevie Rae, Shaunee, Erin, and Damien never wavered no matter what she asked them to do or how she acted towards them was quite refreshing, and I only hope that continues throughout the series.

I rate this book: