"Traitor’s Heart is by far Ms. Wang’s best work to date. I think she hones her skill with each book, and you can tell. The characters “flesh out” more with every volume, and I found myself really looking forward to my reading sessions. That’s saying a lot, since I read while I’m on my stationary bike, and I hate exercising.
A very satisfying quality about Wang’s writing is the way it transports you into another time, where brutality is accepted as the norm, and it’s only by your wits, relationships, and alliances that you survive. I don’t want to give away any of the surprises, but there are quite a few, and with each new revelation, you understand the characters and their motivations at a deeper level.
Matthew’s slow but steady metamorphosis into a decent human being was something I particularly enjoyed, and Reiya’s Celt-like tribe was a constant source of intrigue.
One of the main themes of this series, at least to me, is how hard it is to do what’s right, when every side in a war has its heroes and villains. All war is monstrous, on so many levels, and a decision that appears moral for one faction can have disastrous consequences for the innocents on the other side of the conflict. Aliwyn, the heroine, loves people on both sides, and her sense of right and wrong is drastically challenged when each choice she makes can cause death or terrible hardships for someone.
Aliwyn’s affections are always enrapturing or endangering her, so there’s never a dull moment. If you like stories about adventure, love, and endurance through the worst of times, you should love Traitor’s Heart."