Review: The Betrayed (The Dawning of Muirwood #3) by Jeff Wheeler

Add a comment

MY ⭐️ RATING: 4.75/5

Format: Kindle Whispersync

BOOK DESCRIPTION

When fates collide, a new legend is born in the awe-inspiring conclusion to the Dawning of Muirwood trilogy by Jeff Wheeler, Wall Street Journal bestselling author of The Druid.
Bound by more than the search for a fantastical stolen tome, Eilean and Hoel plummet through the mirror gate into Leoneyis-a world on the brink of disaster as its sovereign’s reign begins to unravel. Enemies converge to destroy King Andrew, who has become headstrong and paranoid. His influence is undermined, and his kingdom is vulnerable. That’s what happens when a king is betrayed by a queen.
The Queen of Brythonica is not just the rival of an anxious king. She’s in possession of the ancient tome that Eilean and Hoel seek, which could help her achieve immortality. She knows Eilean is coming for her, and she is every bit the match for the young wretched. After all, they learned under the same master.
Eilean’s first mission: save King Andrew’s court lest it disappear under the floods of the Deep Fathoms. Her second: retrieve what is rightfully hers from the clutches of the Queen of Brythonica. To do so means confronting the queen in a duel of wits and magic.
The fate of Leoneyis is left to Eilean. She must save one world to secure the future for which she is destined in her own.

MY REVIEW

Wheeler does a tremendous job of telling the final story in this trilogy that leads to the events of The Harbinger series. I’ve said this more than once, but I have to say it again, I always enjoy reading Mr. Wheeler’s works because they are light, easy reads that makes it such a great palate cleanser, but he does an excellent job of telling such a fascinating story that steeped in English lore and history, with characters that you can’t help but love.

One of the struggles I had in the previous book was the lack of a “story so far” section to remind me of the events of book 1. For some reason, despite the fact that it’s been almost a year since I read book 2, I didn’t have that same issue. I was able to fall right back into place with the story as if I had never left. That says a lot about a book, and the fact that I ate this up in 2 days says even more about how much I actually enjoyed it. The pace was perfect, it never felt rushed, and yet, it moved quickly. The treachery, the court intrigue, the magic, all of it was fantastic. Púca still holds a special place in my heart even though he wasn’t really featured much, but Eilean, Hoel and Owain continue to be such incredible characters that I just loved seeing how they developed throughout this series through all the trials they have to go through.

“Happy is the man who finds a true friend, and far happier is he who finds that true friend in his wife.”

I love the realism of this series, while it has it’s fantastical elements, it’s ties into lore and history really help transport you to these places like Ceredigion and Occitania. The other part that helps transport you is the narration by Kate Rudd, who does such a tremendous job of differentiating her voices between the male and female characters, along with the accents of the realm. On top of that, the feelings she’s able to portray, like trembling voices through fear or sadness is just another layer of the narration that sucked me in.

Since this series takes place before The Harbinger series, it was so cool to see all the pieces falling into place and to see why they did. I think I read that series back in 2019 or so, so I think I may need to give it another go just so I can see how all those puzzle pieces fit, now that I know the beginning of that story.

Official Reading order of the WOJW (World of Jeff Wheeler):

  • The Kingfountain series
    • The Queen’s Poisoner
    • The Thief’s Daughter
    • The King’s Traitor
    • The Hollow Crown
    • The Silent Shield
    • The Forsaken Throne
  • The Legends of Muirwood
    • The Wretched of Muirwood
    • The Blight of Muirwood
    • The Scourged of Muirwood
  • The Covenant of Muirwood
    • The Banished of Muirwood
    • The Ciphers of Muirwood
    • The Void of Muirwood
  • The First Argentines
    • Knight’s Ransom
    • Warrior’s Ransom
    • Lady’s Ransom
    • Fate’s Ransom
  • The Dawning of Muirwood (Current)
    • The Druid
    • The Hunted
    • The Betrayed
  • The Harbinger
    • Storm Glass
    • Mirror Gate
    • Iron Garden
    • Prism Cloud
    • Broken Veil
  • The Whispers of Mirrowen
    • Fire Blood
    • Dryad-Born
    • Poisonwell

Leave a comment