After finishing The Guinevere Deception I asked myself where Kiersten was going to take this next book. I thought, how could this story line get any better? It couldn't! Until I read this book. I love how Kiersten builds on Deception so easily. She takes the stones and builds on them, bringing back the points that she highlighted on before and making us realize that it wasn't some throwaway comment, it was more important than that.

The entire time I read this book, I was captivated. Not only was I in awe at Kiersten's amazing story telling, but at how she continued to build the world in this story in different and creative ways. We get introduced to new characters without losing touch with the old ones. We see Guinevere's changing perceptions and fears as she goes from impostor to Queen. And, the best part of all, we get some love interests thrown in there.

I loved every second of this story and I honestly cannot wait for the third book! If you haven't read Guinevere Deception yet, I would highly recommend changing that. And if you've read Guinevere and haven't picked up Camelot Betrayal, you're doing yourself a disservice. I need everyone to read this book because I have a lot of feelings about what just happened!! Excellent story, excellent plot, storytelling, characters, and everything in between. An absolute favorite of mine!

I am happy to report that I enjoyed this sequel much more then the first book, The Guinevere Deception, due to the fact that I knew what to expect from the plot and writing style but also because the author really packed this sequel with more action and I loved the characters development both personality and relationship wise. Guinevere remains a very compelling main character and I can't wait to see her story progress in the third book.

Thank you to TBR and Beyond Tours and Delacorte Press for the advanced copy of this book!

The second installment of this series, one in which Guinevere is sent by Merlin to protect Arthur from the coming darkness, gave us all the things we loved in the first book only more. More mysteries, more adventure, but most of all.

More questions.

In The Camelot Betrayal, we see Guinevere question her place in all things. In Camelot, in her magic, in Authur's life. She's still determined to help protect Camelot, but part of that is doing her duty as Queen while still feeling like the great pretender. Things only grow more complicated when Guinevere's - the real Guinevere's - sister shows up unexpectedly in Camelot.

The first book left us with so many questions about Guinevere and where she came from, and Kiersten White feeds us lowly peasants only bits of scraps when it comes to this mystery. We find out a bit more, but nothing concrete. Guinevere can't trust her mind. She has no idea what's real and what Merlin spun for her with magic, and we get to see her really struggle with her identity in this book. Who she was certainly, but also who she needs to be to those around her.

We see some growth in the romance love triangle here, but I still don't know who to ship! There are some really lovely moments with both Mordred and Arhtur, and then end left us on such a cliffhanger. I can't wait to see where it goes in the next book. There are also some really great moments with Lancelot. I love seeing their friendship growth and even strain at times, while Lancelot tries to deal with being a woman knight and her duties to Guinevere. I'm really interested to see where this goes too, because it seems like the love triangle could be a square at times, but I dare not get my hopes up!

Overall, I think Kiersten did a great job of bringing us back into Guinevere's world while leaving us in suspense! So many questions still to be answered, but I'll never get tired of Brangien's quick sarcasm so I don't even mind the wait!

Series Info/Source: This is the second book in the Camelot Rising Trilogy. I got a copy of this book through NetGalley to review.

Story (2/5): I only read the first 30% of the book. This had all the same issues present that I had with the first book in this series but worse. It’s slow and I just don’t like Guinevere as a character. The book starts off promising with Guinevere and Arthur going to the woods to fight magical trees sent from the Dark Queen...then things go downhill from there.

I am not sure where the story was trying to go, it kind of just wanders. We get to see Guinevere prepping to go to a wedding and see her dodge her sister. There is also a lot of her moping around the castle worrying about Arthur (who is a fairly oblivious jerk). I just didn’t like any of it and alternated between being bored and frustrated. I finally decided just to stop and read something else.

Characters (2/5): As mentioned above I just do not like Guinevere’s character. Too much time is spent on Guinevere’s internal dialogue and the “relationship” she has with Arthur is painful to read about because it’s just so awkward...Arthur is kind of a pain in the butt. The only character I enjoyed from the first book was Mordred and in the first 30% he is in the story very very little.

Setting (3/5): While I enjoyed the Camelot setting when it was introduced in the first book, very little is added to the setting in the first third of this book. It was fine, but definitely not intriguing, magical or engaging.

Writing Style (3/5): I am a huge Kiersten White fan but this series just isn’t for me. I was so-so about the first book in this series and this one was even worse. It is easy to read technically and the writing flows fine. However, the pacing and characterization need a lot of work. The story wanders too much and I don’t see a point to any of it. The characters were do get to spend time with are annoying and wishy washy.

My Summary (3/5): Overall this series is just not for me. It’s a neat idea and technically everything is readable. I just don’t think the story is paced very well and the decisions the characters make are mystifying. I alternated between being frustrated and bored with this book and finally decided to give up the struggle to read it. If you are a huge fan and don’t mind wandering stories you might really enjoy it. I just didn’t like it and decided to move onto something else (I have enough frustration this year...I don’t need to add to it).

I thought this was ok. I didn't like it as much as the first book. The pacing felt off to me and it took away from the story.
Since this is the second book in the series, I won't talk about the plot. I was thinking about rating it 2.5 but bumped it up just because I do really like some of the characters. Brangien is probably my favorite. Sadly, this book just didn't do it for me.

I am a fan of the story of Camelot so when Kiersten White came out with The Guinevere Deception I was excited to see how she brings this legendary story to life. She did a great job with the first book and this second one.

I like that Sir Lancelot was change from being male to female because it gave the relationship between Guinevere and Lancelot stronger with their friendship and loce between them even though it is forbidden.

But I am still not sure about her ans Arthur’s relationship because I am not sure how I feel about Arthur. He just doesn’t give me the wow feeling like Lancelot and Mordred does. I am conflicted with my feelings about Lancelot and Mordred because I like him too. I think he genuinely loves Guinevere and is respectful of her wishes so I am hoping that I don’t hate him in the next book.

In this book we get the answers from the cliffhanger from the first book and we get to know more about who Guinevere is. Also, we see her grow slowly in this book even though she still trying learn more and be less naive about what is going on. Hopefully her growth continues in the next book.

Overall, I really love this book and can’t wait for the next book to answer another cliffhanger from this book.

I'll admit right off the bat that I liked this book a lot more than I did the first one. Granted, it was extremely slow at the beginning, and I didn't really get interested in the story until after Guinevere's super-long side quest that took up what seemed like the entire first half of the book.

Big wins for this book:
- Lancelot and Guinevere's friendship grew, and I quite enjoyed the direction she took with it. Despite what I said at the end of book one. The legends say a lot about Guinevere and Lancelot and their love story—but they also say a lot about Mordred and
- I think the Mordred romantic plot line is a little bit stronger than Lancelot(?). I'm curious to see how this one plays out. But then you've got Arthur
- Playing hard to get throughout the course of the book and then he's finally ready, and it's all ripped to shreds.
- The moral ambiguity regarding Mordred and Morgana!!!

Some losses for this book:
- Side quests are big in video games and King Arthur, but the beginning of this book dragged on forever and probably could have been done away with.
- Arthur. I wanted more. Gimme more in the next one please and thank you?
- But let's be honest, it's gonna be Mordred, and I'm kind of here for it.

My biggest takeaway from this series is that Kiersten White is paying SUPER close attention to the actual King Arthur legends. Having studied King Arthur for a semester in college, we read a lot of the legends, from the time Arthur was first mentioned up to The Sword in the Stone by T. H. White. There are a lot of different nuances and things that Kristen uses in these books that pay homage to those stories. Because of that, I found it really hard to engage with the story, because I feel like I already know what's going to happen. I kept telling myself as the book went on that nothing could surprise me—and while I was mostly right, I was also a little bit wrong.

The ending really took me by surprise. And for goodness sake, I can't wait to read the next one. Because . . . we all know what happens to Arthur right?

Right?

White continues her series about Guinevere and Camelot. She holds the reader's attention with further character development and great plotting. A solid middle book for this series.

Hello Gemmies! I have an exciting book review to share with you today. Please note: I received a digital ARC of this book (via NetGalley) from its publisher in exchange for an honest and fair review.

The Camelot Betrayal by Kiersten White is the second book in the Camelot Rising Series. This is a wonderful retelling of the classic arthurian tale. Kiersten White has created an incredibly detailed, lush, rich world full of fierce feminism, plots within plots, and magic! It's a world I don't mind getting lost in. The Camelot Betrayal picks up right after the events in The Guinevere Deception, so I definitely recommend reading the series in order. I enjoyed this book so much...there is tons more action, more heartache, more intrigue.......just more!

The Camelot Betrayal is not just an action packed thrill ride full of intrigue, love, and betrayal, but It is also an extremely well written character driven story. I love that Guinevere is front and center in this series and our main protagonist. I found her to be complex and relatable as she struggles to remember her past and discover who she will become going forward. I found her self doubt to be frustrating at times. But if i'm being completely honest, I would probably react the exact same way if I were in her satin slippers. There are so many plot twists and gut punches, this story left me breathless throughout. We are also introduced to a slew of classic characters with a modern twist. One of my favorites is Lancelot who in this version is a bad ass female knight. In the romance department I am definitely #TeamMordred. Who doesn't love a hot guy with questionable morales?!?!? My only complaint with this book is....it ends on a cliffhanger.....again!!! Kiersten White...how dare you?!?!? How long am I supposed to wait for book three?!?!?

If you are a fan of intricate epic fantasies, stunning world building, love, lore, magic, betrayal, complicated relationships, and action galore then go read this book! This gem published by Delacorte Press is available for purchase from all major booksellers. I give The Camelot Betrayal 4 out of 5 gems. I cannot wait to read more stories set in this universe. Happy Reading!

The Camelot Betrayal by Kiersten White is the much awaited sequel to The Guinevere Deception. This is a King Arthur retelling that instead focuses on Guinevere, but this time she isn’t the real Guinevere. She’s been sent by Merlin to protect Arthur and Camelot. Or has she?
This sequel further explores Guinevere’s relationship to her duty, her spotty past, and her own morality. The cast of characters is expanded upon which I find to be the highlight of both books. I loved seeing Guinevere’s relationship to the people she’s chosen as her friends grow throughout the story. We also got to see significantly more of Arthur’s kingdom and the areas outside of it that were much rougher.
While we got to see much more of the kingdom and each character’s story, the central plot to this book felt a little bare bones. Not much advanced beyond getting a couple more clues to the series plot as a whole. It might just be that I haven’t read a lot of questing type of fantasy, but it feels like more should have been accomplished besides discovering things that I had already begun to guess while reading the first book. However, I am partially willing to chalk that up to this being a YA book and me coming at this as an adult who is familiar with certain tropes and story devices.
Overall, I’d recommend this book for anyone who enjoyed the first one and wants to see the characters’ stories progress.

Kiersten White's books are always a hit for me, and this was no different. The writing, worldbuilding, and character were all very interesting and enjoyable. I enjoyed this a lot more than the first book.

Gigantic thanks to Netgalley and Random House Children's for this eARC in exchange for an honest review. This is the second installment in The Camelot Rising series and the continuation of Guinevere's story as she confronts her duties as Queen of Camelot.

I enjoyed the first book and I loved continuing with this story. There wasn't a whole lot of new information in this particular book, but it was interesting to see the characters grow. There were changes to all our beloveds in this story. I enjoyed seeing them change and adapt to new circumstances and environments.

Overall, this is just a fun story and an easy read. I didn't enjoy this as much as the first book because I did feel like it suffered from "second book syndrome." However, that didn't keep me from finishing it and it won't keep me from continuing the series. ⭐️⭐️⭐️ for me!

(11/12/2020) 4 Stars.

Thank you to Netgalley and Random House books for an e-arc of this book! The second installment in the Camelot Rising novel does a great job at exploring the inner struggles of Guinevere, the seemingly false queen of Camelot. Though the novel packs more action, there are slower parts that introduce some new, interesting characters. The romance is fascinating (is it a triangle or a square? I DON'T KNOW and that makes it all the more exciting). I always end up choosing the wrong love interest so I'm trying to stay neutral but knowing some semblance of Arthurian legend, two choices seem obvious (though one is genderbent) and the addition of Mordred makes things spicy! The novel puts an interesting spin on the story of Morgan le Fay and makes her into a more sympathetic character. The Dark Queen is still an enigma and is actually a point of the story that confuses me. If Morgan and Arthur's mom is Igraine, then how is the Dark Queen Mordred's grandmother? Family trees truly elude me. Other than that point of confusion, I really enjoyed this story and can't wait for it's conclusion! That cliffhanger though!

2.5 stars

Arthurian retellings will always be a buzzword for me when it comes to stories and I was a bit on the fence to see how Kiersten White would continue the story past the events of the Guinevere Deception. While the first book felt somewhat disappointing in the execution of the plot, the sequel felt even more mediocre. The writing felt repetitive at times with Guinevere typing knots and her fear of being "not good enough" for choosing Arthur. I think my feelings of mediocrity stems from just not liking Guinevere as a character - she has very little substantial personality that makes her different from the typical YA fantasy protagonist and this book utilizes those common stereotypes as main pathways to keep the plot moving forward. There's petty drama, an unnecessary love triangle, and just shallow characters that only have one aspect of their personality to make them interesting. The book itself has a lot going on plot-wise, but there isn't anything substantial that is relevant until maybe the last quarter. Bottom line, this feels like a "middle book syndrome" story that doesn't quite have a purpose other than the drag out the conclusion. On a positive note, the premise still intrigues me enough to the point where I'd consider picking up the finale because after all this build-up please give me the showdown I'm desperately waiting for.

This book was one of my most anticipated reads of 2020 because I ADORED the first book. For me, the second book in a series, specifically in trilogies, is always the worst book because it's just rising action for the ultimate conflict. This book was no different.

I enjoyed the internal conflict that Guinevere was facing. I think the author did a phenomenal job at showing her mistrust for people and her anxiety and anger. It was just sooo slow. I wanted to see more of a development in her relationship with Arthur but guess I'll have to wait til the next book.

I love the relationships in this series. They feel super guinuine and realistic. They aren't perfect which makes me like them even more. I really just wish this book had MORE: more plot and more development.

Just as in the first book, I thought the first half was quite boring and slow, and I read the second half at a furious speed. I didn't see the plot twist coming with that character who appeared to be someone else and turned out to be a powerful magic user in diguise. I'm so glad Mordred and Guinevere are finally reunited! They have so much more chemistry than Arthur x Guinevere, and that potential relationship is the real reason I'm still invested in this series. I'm also curious to find out who/what Guin really is since it's still shrouded in mystery.

Fistly, thank you Netgally and publisher for an e-arc of this book in exchange for an honest review.

The Camelot Betrayal is the second book of the Camelot Rising series.
I cannot get enough stories based on Camelot and the character’s in it. In a lot of ways reading this book felt like coming home. Not only to the world Kristin White created in The Guinevere Deception but also into my childhood since I was such a fan of Sir Author and his Knights of the round table.

I liked how this book took a bit more time focusing on the characters. I’ve heard people say that they didn’t like the tit wasn’t as fast passed the first book but I would disagree. I think it has wonderful pacing.

I loved how in the last fifty pages or so everything was wrapped up nicely, all of the plot points were brought together in c\such as way that it blew my mind. (And that plot twist though! I did NOT see that coming!)

First of all this book was supposed to bring me closure, answers, and peace!! Well not really, I am well aware that this is the second installment in a trilogy and the point is to make you want to read the third book, and oh boy it did.

While the story keeps the same formula we saw in Guinevere Deception, with a slow-burning beginning and absolutely explosive ending, but this time around the dangers looming outside and inside of Camelot so much more real and present. The story doesn’t feel like a filler at all, a fault that I see too often in the middle book of a trilogy, but gives a fake sense of closure by answering some of the questions I had through the first book, like who is Guinevere and who are her parents, but at the same time bringing out even bigger question.

I love that the story mostly focuses on character development, we see more of Mordred and his true intentions and reasoning behind the betrayal from book one. He is such an excellent example of a good character doing something bad, but with good intentions. On the other side of the spectrum, you have Merlin, an asshole doing a terrible thing that has actually good results. I hope to see “the end justifies the means” philosophy explored more in the last book. I am not at all mad that the story is not centered around Merin, even if he is the one that put all the pieces in move, but around all these other people that have to live with the consequences of his actions. when some of them, like Guinevere and Arthur, saw him as a father figure and mentor.

My favorite part of the whole story was probably the relationship between Lancelot and Guinevere. They are both outsiders, women trying to make themselves heard in a patriarchal world. I’ve never been so happy for a gender-bender character because it just adds a new layer to their relationship, a way they understand each other’s struggles and something else to bring them close together.

The cliffhanger killed me, and I am already waiting impatiently for the conclusion of this trilogy.

I absolutely adored this novel! Everything about it satisfied me. The Guinevere Deception started out somewhat slow, but The Camelot Betrayal was a wonderfully paced, interesting read that fulfilled everything I was looking for. Guinevere and Lancelot are, as always, wonderfully vibrant characters. Kiersten White's Arthur is my favorite representation of the legend that I've read thus far (and I've read quite a few). And, of course, Mordred is such a wonderful and fascinating antagonist. I was starved until this book, and now I'm surviving the post-binge hangover of wishing for more but knowing I would burst if I had it.

Keep a look out at readingonthdl.com for my full review!

Love love love! I'm a sucker for anything King Arthur related, and this series does not disappoint. I love flipping the idea of Guenivere being the focus. Or is it Guenivere at all?