I wanted to love this book, and for the most part, I did. The world-building, friendships, red herrings and plot twists captivated me. I enjoy Arthurian legends (maybe because I read Avalon High 100 times as a tween) and love the female-centric spin that White put on the story. My only complaint is that this felt a little like a filler book for the character of Guinevere. Her exploration of relationships and her own self-worth are well deserving of their own novel, but I was most intrigued by the mystery surrounding her identity and wish that it had been answered. Guess I'll just have to read the third book to find out!

Guinevere wants to be useful. She wishes to be anything but a dainty queen trapped in a castle.
She is strong and fearless, ready to fight the threat of the newly risen dark queen with King Arthur.
This is the second book in the Camelot Rising series, and it started out a lot slower than the first book.
Guinevere is a bit of an unreliable narrator, with her amnesia, and I liked that--I like unreliable narrators.

One of my only criticisms is that her relationships with most of the characters were somewhat flat. It was insta-friendship with Brangien and Dindrane, and even things with Arthur felt a bit forced.
The only relationship I really liked was with Mordred.
I want more of Mordred. He is so wickedly delightful.

Overall, I really enjoyed that Kiersten White changed things up and made some things her own, but I want more Mordred!

I finally had a chance to read the precursor to this title so I could fully understand and embrace this book. I think it works best if read as a sequel (vs. a stand-alone). Guinevere is a great strong female lead character, but she is also a bit self-focused. I can forgive that, being that most of the audience (YA readers) are also self-absorbed.
Overall I found this to be a capturing world and we've already added this to our order for the library.
thanks for the galley!

Arthurian Legends and stories hold a special place in my heart! For some alpha-male reason, I love Arthur. That lead me to read this series. Guinevere deception was my first book from White and I was awestruck. I totally loved the first part and I had my doubts because sometimes second books disappoint me, but with The Camelot Betrayal, White did not betray my expectation.

Much like the first book, this also deals with character development, self-doubts and lot of magic! Guinevere is torn between her identity of being a Queen and a witch.. she must realise who she is, what Arthur means to her and she must help him destroy the dark forces. All the beloved positive and negative characters return in this story too, with enjoyable twists. I loved the feminist touch and the Excalibur action... woah Chef’s kiss!! The story breaks down to doing the right thing at any given circumstance. Plot is fast moving, with magic and action. I read this in less than two days. Excited for the third book!

This series is a must read for any Arthurian legend lovers. Thank you Netgalley, Delacorte Press and Kiersten White for the arc in exchange for an honest review.

I received this book from NetGalley in exchange of an honest review. Thank you so much, Random House Children's and Delacorte Press, for the chance to read and review this book.

In Camelot king Arthur is expanding his kingdom's influence and queen Guinevere is at his side, but even though she accepted this new role, Guinevere fights against the feeling of not belonging. Plagued by nightmares and lost memories, Guinevere isn't able to find her place in Camelot, not with her friends, each of them occupied with their own problems and troubles: Brangien pining for her lost love Isolde, Lancelot, fighting to prove her worth as Queen's knight and Arthur, with his kingdom to deal with and less time for her.
When the younger sister of the real Guinevere comes to Camelot, Guinevere has to struggle with more and more deceptions.

The Camelot Betrayal is the second book in this new fantasy series and it explores magic and its consequences, romance, betrayals, memories and loss.
Like the first installment, The Camelot Betrayal is full of plot twists, magic and questions, with an intense main character who is struggling to understand who she is, what memories are real, what really happened and is happening around her and Camelot.
Hurt and betrayed by Mordred, fascinated and scared by him and by the Lady of the Lake, Guinevere tries to fit into a role made for someone else, wondering what and who she should be. Wife? Sister? Queen? Witch? While Arthur is busy with politics and the Dark Queen, Guinevere has to deal with missing memories, intrigues, romances and more and more questions about everything. Her character is really complex and relatable in her wondering, in her trying to do the right thing, protecting her loved ones and her city.
Interesting her thoughts about magic and its aftermath, about her own intricate feelings about Arthur and Mordred and Merlin.
The Camelot Betrayal is full of strong female characters, both old and new, characters determined to protect, fight and save and do the right thing.

In a world mixing politics and magic, roles and romance, enemies and allies, The Camelot Betrayal is an intriguing sequel, full of plot twists, sweet and intense moments, magic, love and friendships.

What drew me to Camelot Rising was the characters and the story in the first book. As someone well-versed in Arthurian legends, I knew that there would be things that would bother me a little about a retelling. Yet, I still found myself enjoying book one a lot. Book two was interesting as well, but I'd definitely say that it suffers from second-book syndrome. It felt like a lot of building up and not much happened.

I love a good re-telling and I meant to read the first book in this series, but I wasn't able to before needing to get a review written for this installment. Even so, I know the story of Arthur and Guinevere, so I wasn't as lost as I could have been. This is a very well-written re-telling and the character development is stellar! I really enjoyed the nuances and relationships between the characters! Kiersten White is a great author and this is perfect for fans of the Arthurian tales or those who aren't familiar with them and want a new perspective!

Fantastic world-building, fast-paced action, and wonderful descriptive prose make this a standout this Fall! The perfect novel for me and I would recommend to any YA fans, medieval tales, Arthurian tales, strong female leads, fantastical settings, and a healthy dose of action!

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for providing me an eARC in exchange for an honest review. Super excited for this to release in November!

Hmm... how to review this one. I kind of didn't like it as much as the first book. It almost felt that Guinevere was complaining throughout the whole book. I felt that there was a little too much focus on the younger sister than there should have been, it felt a little drawn out to me and shifted focus away from things that were more of a threat. Not to say that Guinevere shouldn't have been worried about "her" younger sister showing up and exposing her as not the real Guinevere, but more than half the book was trying to uncover what her purpose there was.

The threat from the outside, the Dark Queen, and Mordred were supposed to be more of a threat, and they were all but ignored. There was one minor battle involving her at the start of the book and then nothing involving her for the rest of the book. I just felt, that with how the first book ended there should have been more.

It could be that this book was supposed to be more about Guinevere finding herself, but she was always more focused on everybody else that it didn't feel that she was actually trying to find herself more.

One of the best things about this series so far still though, is the relationships she does have. Her friendship with Lancelot and Brangien, and the one she starts with Isolde. Her relationship with Arthur is, strange to me. I don't really know what to make of it. They care for each other, but I don't feel that he has any romantic notions towards her, and she is split in a sense between duty and how Mordred made her feel. It's just a complex situation.

I am looking forward to the next book in the series. Hopefully, Guinevere gets the answers she's been wanting

I have read almost everything that Kiersten White has wrote. I find her retellings of old stories to be in-depth and additive. Camelot Betrayal is the 2nd in her series that focuses on Guinevere from the King Arthur tales. Much like the first book Camelot Betrayal is just as amazing. The characters, the plot, the language of her writing style are all wonderfully formed. This book does leave you wanting even more of Guinevere and it makes me sad how long I have to wait to read more of her story.

I received a copy of this book from Netgalley and Delacorte Press.

What do you do when the sister of the dead woman who your pretending to be shows up and wants a relationship?

This is one of the questions poor Guinevere has to figure out while ruling Camelot.

This book expands on Arthurian mythology in a most delightful way!

And that cliffhanger is a doozy!

I loved The Guinevere Deception so I was really looking forward to this 2nd installment in the series and it did not disappoint. I really do love the relationship between Guinevere and Lancelot. They have such a deep friendship. I love Brangien as well and the role she plays in Guinevere's life.
I struggle some with the relationship between Arthur and Guinevere and I love the choice he gives her towards the end of this book. Guinevach was an interesting character and I loved the twists and turns surrounding her character and the uncertainty of where that storyline was going. Of course the book ended with me needing the next book in my hands right now.

I really enjoyed the character growth Guinevere had throughout this book following The Guinevere Deception. She's still unsure, but she's actively trying to figure out what kind of person she is. I loved the relationships she had with Lancelot, Arthur, and Mordred. Mordred remains my favorite of the three. There's a chemistry there that's incredible. The ending was a cliffhanger that I need the next book immediately!

I received an advanced copy of this book in exchange for my honest opinion.

There wasn't much improvement with this sequel. I am still not a fan of Guinevere. She is terribly naive and I did not agree with almost all her decisions which saddens me because I thought for sure she would grow on me with the sequel but nah. It just didn't happen and that is okay. It's obviously this isn't for everyone and I am left unsure if I will read from this author again in the future. I think the only positive was the strong friendship and connection between the Queen and Sir Lancelot, and Mordred. The chemistry between those particular characters was undeniable that oftentimes, I forgot about her growing feelings for Arthur.

Considering everything—it’s definitely a ‘it’s not you, it’s me’ read. I can understand why most readers will gravitate towards this YA fantasy retelling but my issues with connecting with the characters and immersing myself in the storyline was problematic and affected my reading experience. I didn’t care enough to finish this and I hope other readers can at least find some joy with this release.

It is hard to be the middle book (or movie for that matter) in a series. I was a bit nervous to read this book. I loved the first book, and I would strongly encourage you to read book 1 before starting this book.

I had hoped that this book would dig deeper into the relationship between Guinevere and Arthur. I was a little disappointed. But I did enjoy how the author developed some of the female friendships in the book. The book does end on a bit of a cliffhanger, and there are some interesting twists, turns, and revelations in the book. Overall, even though this book didn't quite do what I wanted it to do, it was a very worthy and high caliber book 2 in a series. I certainly look forward to book 3.

Thank you Netgalley and publishers for a free eARC in exchange for my honest opinion.

As sequels go, I really enjoyed this one. It had me hooked from the beginning, and didn’t miss out on much since it’s been a while since I read the first book. I felt like Guinevere is really growing into her role as queen of Camelot and is coming to terms with what it means to be queen. I was really rooting for her throughout the story. I thought that her supposed ‘sister’, Guinevach, a bit of a peacock through much of the story. (You probably know the type: a bit airheaded, flirtatious, has nearly everyone in the castle wrapped around her little finger, etc..) And the plot twists! (Sorry, don’t want to go into detail here as they contain a bit of a spoiler. Trust me guys, you’ll want to be surprised.) Let’s just say I wasn’t expecting it, but it turned out to be good. In the end, I’d rate this book five stars, and I look forward to when it finally comes out next month.

Thank you to the publisher and Netgalley for an ARC of this in exchange for an honest review.

The Camelot Betrayal is the sequel to The Guinevere Deceptionand was one of my most anticipated reads of the year. Much like it’s predecessor this book was a 4 star book for me. I really enjoyed it overall, and I am excited to read the next book in the series. I will say that if you do not like slow books with minimal action, this book will NOT be for you. Much like TGD it is a slow paced book filled with characters slowing learning, and finding themselves. There are a few moments of action in this book that breaks up the slower paced character driven portions. I love a good character driven story, and so this book really fills my needs in that regard.

Guinevere is back as Queen in this one, and still struggling with Arthur and their relationship. If you know the story of Camelot, you know what happens, but I like White’s take on their relationship, even if Arthur is a little boring. Is he too good? Too modest? I don’t know. But Arthur of all the characters, does not stand out so strongly. Is this intentional? I don’t know, all I know is that I am intrigued by her relationship with Arthur.

Guinevere and Lancelot. Another relationship that is...interesting. And I can’t really talk about Arthur without Lancelot and in this book Mordred as well. Guinevere has a complicated relationship with the three of them, and it seems they are all poised to be her love interests. <s>I know exactly who I would pick for her to end up with...</s> Anyways I love how we are given these relationships because I loved watching them play out. They were some of the most delightful aspects of the the book.

Other delightful relationships is Guinevere’s friendship with Brangien, which I loved. There are so many moments between them that are delightful. I love female friendships, and I love how this one was depicted in this book. It was nice to see that even with the romance portion there was a good amount dedicated to her friendship.

As I mentioned earlier the plot in this book was heavily focused on still trying to find out who she was (being more character driven) and what is going on with her memories and Merlin. A bit more is revealed in this book, and I am so excited for the third to see what new secrets will be revealed! We also see Guinevere taking more action in this one versus the first and her struggle with that. There were some amazing moments in here.

That ending though!!!!

White’s writing is still one of my favorite things. There is something so readable about it, and so enchanting that it is easy to get lost in it. I absolutely cannot wait to own this book!

While I felt The Guinevere Deception lacked significant character development and had a stagnant plot line, The Camelot Betrayal resolved those issues and brought an action packed follow up to the table!

Guinevere still longs for answers to her origin and memories to fill the empty places in recollections of the past, however, she shows significant strength in the trials she faces. She doesn’t wait to be told she’s a queen, but shows that she truly is one by the strength of her character. That’s what I’m here for!

Guinevere wrestles with twists and turns that keeps readers on their toes and leaves them wanting more with that cliffhanger! Can’t wait to pick up book three. Great job, White.

My review will be posted on my Goodreads and Instagram on October 27th, 2020. I have linked both platforms to this review.

I think this was honestly a pretty good sequel.. I felt like the the character development was well written and I enjoyed how Guinevere is still trying to find herself and who she is. The romance wasn't a huge surprise but I think it will play out perfectly. There were still big chunks in the book where the pacing was slow and I needed action to happen, but when it finally did I was pleased.

After months of trying to finish this book, I have decided to stop reading it. I have made it over half way through the book and no action or advancement of the story has happened yet. I was so looking forward to this book after reading the first. While the first was slow, it eventually picked up the pace. I thought that this would be the case with this book, but unfortunately it has not held my attention. I will still be purchasing this book for my library since I have the first in the series. I am really disappointed in this one!

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for this arc.

4.5 stars.

I really enjoyed this book, more so than the first. Although, I can’t say I remember too many details of the first. I really enjoyed all of the relationships in the story. Except for maybe Arthur. I’ve never been sold on him. I did notice an increase of chemistry between Lancelot and Guinevere. I will forever remain team Mordred. I also enjoyed Guinevere’s struggles, especially regarding he magic and choices. While this book was slower pace in terms of action, it was a fast and enjoyable read. I’m looking forward to the next.