A historical fiction featuring queer characters and a love triangle? Sign me up! A Traitorous Heart is a story about fighting for our future. For our love, our country, and to be the best ruler we can be. It delves into witchcraft, features secret societies, and yearning. Keep reading this book review of A Traitorous Heart for my full thoughts.
Summary
Paris, 1572. Seventeen-year-old Jacqueline “Jac” d’Argenson-Aunis is lady-in-waiting to her best friend and former lover, the French Princess Marguerite “Margot” de Valois, but she dreams of more. If Jac plays her cards right, one day, she’ll become a full member of the Societas Solis, a secret society of spies—just like her uncle and guardian, Viscount Gabriel d’Argenson-Aunis.
But it’s hard to think about her own ambitions while France is on the brink of war, and the only thing that might save the country is an alliance—a marriage between the Catholic Princess Margot and Henry, the awful son of the Huguenot queen. Who would be the perfect person to play matchmaker? Jac, of course.
Jac resents lying to her best friend almost as much as she resents the brazen and arrogant King Henry, but it’s her one chance to prove to the Societas Solis that she belongs among their ranks before her uncle can marry her off or worse. The more time Jac spends in the French Court’s clandestine corners, though, the more she starts to wonder if Henry is…not as terrible as she once believed. And the Societas Solis may not be what they seem.
Review
(Disclaimer: I received this book from the publisher. This has not impacted my review which is unbiased and honest.)
I will always read queer historical fiction stories. And A Traitorous Heart is a delight. I fell into Jac’s story. She so desperately wants to be part of this secret society, but what if they’re hiding more than she thinks? A Traitorous Heart is full of meet cutes, hidden relationships, and covert meetings. At the heart of A Traitorous Heart is this question about how do we fight for the future. We can think we have to do something, but what happens if we didn’t? If we didn’t manipulate our friends? If we didn’t hide our love? Cotter balances our pursuit for love with saving the future of our kingdom.
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Can we ever be loved for who we are and not our role? How do we become the best version of ourselves we can? It’s hard to lay our cards out on the table, but sometimes we are stronger together. And the best shape is the triangle, or so I’m told. While certain elements of the plot seemed sprung on us, I enjoyed A Traitorous Heart. There was just the right amount of larger macro plot action, while also staying grounded in their individual lives.
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