The engagement of Lady Kestrel to Valoria’s crown prince means one celebration after another. But to Kestrel it means living in a cage of her own making. As the wedding approaches, she aches to tell Arin the truth about her engagement... if she could only trust him. Yet can she even trust herself? For—unknown to Arin—Kestrel is becoming a skilled practitioner of deceit: an anonymous spy passing information to Herran, and close to uncovering a shocking secret.
As Arin enlists dangerous allies in the struggle to keep his country’s freedom, he can’t fight the suspicion that Kestrel knows more than she shows. In the end, it might not be a dagger in the dark that cuts him open, but the truth. And when that happens, Kestrel and Arin learn just how much their crimes will cost them.
I read this within 24 hours. Really, this is as gripping as the first novel. The stakes have been raised, and the impact of character choices can be felt across the entire empire.
As much as I loved The Winner's Curse, its follow-up has blown it out of the water. The Winner's Crime stepped up the political intrigue and there are no allies for Kestrel. She can't be sure who to trust and it's fascinating to watch her unravel the plots of the empire. The fantasy setting really lent itself well to this; life in the capital is gorgeously described but underneath all the pretty packaging is the dread of what could happen. No on is safe. (Seriously. No one.)
And man, the consequences have grown exponentially from the last story. This novel focuses more on conquests and out-maneuvering the emperor and sneaky courtiers, and I adore these types of stories. Kestrel and Arin still have their love/hate thing going on, but it isn't nearly as prominent as the last story. An improvement, I think, because every scene with them together practically leaps off the page. Their relationship simmers in the background and really drives a lot of their choices.
And some of the choices these characters make. Oh boy. There are no black and white options here. And none of the characters are completely moralistically good. Kestrel and Arin (along with side characters) are complex and feel like real people, even though I don't always agree with their decisions. I can't wait to see where they end up in the last book.
The pacing of this novel is tight and there are plenty of twists along the way. All in all, a quick read but nothing is certain and I kept guessing the whole way.
One of the few sequels that outdoes the original. The final book is going to be awesome. 4.5/5
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