Series Review: The Remnant Chronicles by Mary E. Pearson

Series Review: Is this series worth your time? Does it get better as the novels progress? Or does it get worse? Find out below:

Synopsis for The Kiss of Deception (from Goodreads):

A princess must find her place in a reborn world.

She flees on her wedding day.

She steals ancient documents from the Chancellor’s secret collection.

She is pursued by bounty hunters sent by her own father.

She is Princess Lia, seventeen, First Daughter of the House of Morrighan.

The Kingdom of Morrighan is steeped in tradition and the stories of a bygone world, but some traditions Lia can’t abide. Like having to marry someone she’s never met to secure a political alliance.

Fed up and ready for a new life, Lia flees to a distant village on the morning of her wedding. She settles in among the common folk, intrigued when two mysterious and handsome strangers arrive—and unaware that one is the jilted prince and the other an assassin sent to kill her. Deceptions swirl and Lia finds herself on the brink of unlocking perilous secrets—secrets that may unravel her world—even as she feels herself falling in love.

Series: The Remnant Chronicles

There is a spin-off series: Dance of Thieves

Author: Mary E Pearson
# of Books: 3 (Full Reading Order Here)
Book Order: Chronological
Complete?: Yes
Genre: Young Adult, Historical Fiction, Romance, Fantasy
Heat Rating: warm
Point of View: First Person, Multiple
Publication Dates: July 2014 – August 2016
Source & Format: Public Library–Hardcover; Audiobook (#2 & #3)

**This post was originally published as a Fresh Friday review of the first book of the series. It has now been updated to include the newest publications in the series.**

My Expectations:

When I grabbed this book, I wasn’t sure what to expect. Normally, I don’t like books that hint at a love triangle in its plot but I’ve been looking for an awesome Young Adult Historical Fiction novel with a strong heroine and this one looked like it was worth a shot.

My Review of Kiss of Deception:

The Kiss of Deception starts supers slow. The focus (and wrongly so in my opinion) is mostly on Lia settling in town, doing menial tasks and talking about how free she is. It’s a lot of talking with really no plot whatsoever. It makes for a dull start and things really don’t get interesting until the halfway point when we learn that there might be another plot going on.

The book reminded me a lot of The Girl of Fire and Thorns but whereas I really loved the character development of that heroine, I just felt like it was lacking for Lia in this book. Lia isn’t super interesting, she’s rather dull and while I appreciate her independent spirit, I wish she would think about the consequences of her actions a bit more. She does improve within the last third of the book but for the first half, she wasn’t anything to write home about.

What did keep me reading was the mystery of the two strangers. The way that Mary E. Pearson writes the two boys characters is great! You really don’t know who is the assassin and who is the prince until the last third of the book; and by then the plot actually starts to become interesting and worth while. The “love triangle” isn’t really that much of a love triangle in the sense that she is torn between two boys and can’t make a decision. Maybe it will progress into something more in the next book, but it was well done in this book.

–February 27, 2019– Book #2: The Heart of Betrayal

It’s been YEARS since I read the first book but I had some pretty great notes about what happened so it didn’t take me long to get back into this world.

I really, truly enjoyed this book. I didn’t have the best experience with the first book–it was a rough start–but by the end I could see that bigger things were coming. And they most certainly did!

Lia was much more interesting as a heroine in this addition. I found her to be terribly dull and rash with her actions in the first novel; but I was pleasantly surprised with her here. She’s starting to get a backbone and gets a little more cunning with her actions and motives. It was interesting to watch her navigate this new world she finds herself in.

Also, the audiobook was FANTASTIC! I love when there are multiple cast members and it really just brought this novel to life for me.

–March 21, 2019– Book #3: The Beauty of Darkness

This series has come a long way from the start and it’s reflected in this finale. While I thought there were some pacing issues in the middle (parts seemed redundant and mundane), it still kept my full attention. Again, I listened to the audio version and I have no regrets there.

Series Rating: 4/5

The Kiss of Deception 3.5/5 | The Heart of Betrayal 4/5| The Beauty of Darkness 4/5

A very slow start but things definitely pick in the last half and I think/hope things will be at a faster pace for the next book like they were near the end of this one. For Young Adult fans who enjoy Historical Fiction with a dash of magic (and a small dash at that) that move at a slower pace will enjoy the start of this new series.

Read if You Like: historical fantasy novels, suspense/mystery, politics
Avoid if You: dislike action novels, dislike monarchies

The Girl of Fire and Thorns by Rae Carson (Fire and Thorns Series #1);
The Ring and the Crown by Melissa de la Cruz (The Ring and the Crown Series #1)
The Hedgewitch Queen by Lilith Saintcrow (Romances of Arquitaine #1)