Title: The Winner’s Crime
Author: Marie Ruskowski
Publisher: Farrar, Straus and Giroux
Publication Date: March 2015
ISBN: 9780374384708
Synopsis:
A royal wedding is what most girls dream about. It means one celebration after another: balls, fireworks, and revelry until dawn. But to Kestrel it means living in a cage of her own making. As the wedding approaches, she aches to tell Arin the truth about her engagement: that she agreed to marry the crown prince in exchange for Arin’s freedom. But can Kestrel trust Arin? Can she even trust herself? For Kestrel is becoming very good at deception. She’s working as a spy in the court. If caught, she’ll be exposed as a traitor to her country. Yet she can’t help searching for a way to change her ruthless world . . . and she is close to uncovering a shocking secret.The truth will come out, and when it does, Kestrel and Arin will learn just how much their crimes will cost them.
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Wow, I am so entrenched in this book and listening to the audiobook is almost better than just sitting down to read it. Why am I listening to the audiobook? I’m getting these books through my local library and the Libby app and they don’t have the ebook versions available. I was apprehensive at first, but the reader is actually quite good and I found myself nearly devastated by the end of this book.
You want to talk about slow burn? Rutkowski is brutal in that she does not give the reader an inch when it comes to the development of the romance in this series. It’s beautiful and devastating simultaneously. What kept me hopeful throughout this book was the hope that we’d see the two protagonists: Kestrel and Arin, come together and find even a modicum of resolution. But no, that’s not to be had in this book. I’ve already checked out book 3 and I intend to dive right in while I exercise tonight so that I can get SOME kind of resolution. I’m going crazy waiting.
This book follows Kestrel as she lives with the consequences of her actions as she fights with ever fibre of her being to save the man that she loves, even if she can’t even admit to herself that love is indeed what she feels. There is no safety in this new world, and there are certainly no allies. There is a brutal war, devastating consequences for actions against the empire, and no one to trust. This world that Rutkowski has built has no mercy. The author has done an incredible job of world building
Kestrel is such a compelling character, but boy, was I ever frustrated with her in this book. I know Rutkowski built her well since I got so invested in her arc. I could totally empathize with her heart and her desire to save Arin & prevent greater violence to his people, but her inexperience often shows and she’s playing at a game where masters rule and win. Kestrel’s heart is good and she’s learning to play the political game. But she’s not yet strong enough and it results in repeated devastation. I have no clue how it’s going to go in the third and final book,
All I know is I’m swept away and eager to find out what’s to come next.
Happy reading!
Worn Pages and Ink 