Kiss of Deception
Mary E. Pearson's Kiss of Deception is the first novel in her Remnant Chronicles trilogy and a YA fantasy that hangs its plot on a single elegant trick. Princess Lia, the First Daughter of the kingdom of Morrighan, is supposed to be the bride in a strategic marriage to a man she has never met from neighboring Dalbreck. On the morning of the wedding she runs away with her best friend, Pauline, to the seaside village of Terravin, where she takes a job as a tavern girl and tries to figure out what kind of life she actually wants. Two young men arrive in the village in the same week. One is the spurned Prince of Dalbreck, traveling under cover to take a look at the bride who humiliated him. The other is an assassin sent by the kingdom of Venda to kill her. Pearson refuses to label which suitor is which until well into the book, asking the reader to make the same identification mistakes Lia makes.
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On her wedding morning, Princess Lia runs to a remote tavern town with her best friend. Two men arrive in the same week. One is the prince she stood up. The other is the assassin sent to kill her. The book hides which is which.
Mary Pearson's Remnant Chronicles has three books: The Kiss of Deception, The Heart of Betrayal, and The Beauty of Darkness. There is also a follow-up duology, Dance of Thieves and Vow of Thieves, in the same world.
No. The Kiss of Deception is YA fantasy with romantic tension but no explicit content. Most readers rate the spice 1 out of 5.
No. The Kiss of Deception is YA fantasy with romantic tension but no explicit content. Most readers rate the spice 1 out of 5.
Kiss of Deception was written by Mary E. Pearson, published in 2014 by Square Fish.
Kiss of Deception is 494 pages in standard print editions, though page counts vary slightly between hardcover, paperback, and large-print formats.
At an average reading pace of about 250 words per minute, Kiss of Deception takes most readers 7 to 11 hours to finish.
Kiss of Deception is a standalone novel by Mary E. Pearson, not part of a series.
Kiss of Deception is available in hardcover, paperback, ebook, and audiobook formats from Amazon, Bookshop.org, ThriftBooks, and most major bookstores.