The Traitor's Kiss

Book excerpt: "This is an action-packed, expertly plotted story, drenched in double crosses and intrigue, with an irresistible heroine and a sweet and sexy romance. A late-breaking twist gives way to a final act that will leave readers eager for subsequent books in this planned trilogy." —Publishers Weekly , starred review An obstinate girl who will not be married. A soldier desperate to prove himself. A kingdom on the brink of war. With a sharp tongue and an unruly temper, Sage Fowler is not what they’d call a proper lady—which is perfectly fine with her. Deemed unfit for a suitable marriage, Sage is apprenticed to a matchmaker and tasked with wrangling other young ladies to be married off for political alliances. She spies on the girls—and on the soldiers escorting them. As the girls' military escort senses a political uprising, Sage is recruited by a handsome soldier to infiltrate the enemy ranks. The more she discovers as a spy, the less certain she becomes about whom to trust—and Sage becomes caught in a dangerous balancing act that will determine the fate of her kingdom. With secret identities and a tempestuous romance, Erin Beaty's The Traitor’s Kiss is full of intrigue, espionage, and lies. An Imprint Book "Marital and martial matters collide when brides and spies become ensnared in a treasonous plot. . . . Sage is a clever, contrary female protagonist who remains realistic and likable, while her fellow protagonist Ash is enigmatic enough to require a second read. . . . Both epic and intimate, a semi–old-fashioned alternative to the wave of inexplicably lethal superheroines and their smoldering love triangles." —Kirkus Reviews "Complex characterization, deftly layered adventure story, and [a] balanced blend of political maneuvering, romantic interludes, and action scenes." —Kirkus Reviews "Beaty balances a taut web of deceit...readers will be carried away by the mystery." —The Bulletin of the Center for Children’s Books (BCCB) "A debut novel that blends fantasy, romance, and battlefield action. . . . A slow burn YA fantasy with clever genre mixing." —School Library Journal