Betrayed

Cursed #2

by Rhianne Aile

Will Northland's brother, Tristan, went to America to break a centuries-old curse and found love in the most unexpected of places: within the heart of a werewolf. When Will goes to visit, he meets not only Tristan's mate, Benjamin, but their friend Raul, who receives a plea for help from his old werepack: his twin brother, Richard, has gone missing and is possibly under the influence of a witch. Raul leaves to find his brother, and Will goes with him, offering to use his magic to both locate Richard and protect them all from the threat of dark magic. But when they find him, a totally unexpected passion explodes between Richard and Will, stunning them both. Suddenly, discovering who betrayed Raul and Richard isn't the only challenge. It's now a struggle to solve the mystery so Will can claim Richard's heart just as the wolf has claimed Will as his mate. Don't miss Cursed, the story of Will Northland's twin brother, Tristan, and his struggle to free Benjamin Sterling from a centuries-old curse.

Genres: M M Romance, Paranormal, Shapeshifters, Contemporary, Fantasy, Gay, Magic

277 pages, Kindle Edition

First published January 22, 2010

About the author

Rhianne Aile has an unhealthy relationship with her computer, iced tea, and chocolate. Growing up, she split her time between Oklahoma and Chicago, making her equally fond of horses, skyscrapers, cowboys, and men in well-tailored suits. Facilitating retreats for women and authors keeps her traveling enough to stay happy.

Reviews

[Mouse · Rating 1 out of 5]

I feel like I should be reviewing it in parts. The review moved from an almost DNF, into 1 territory… And I don’t know, ended up somewhere near a low 2. But. When all is all said and done, I guess I’m giving it a 1.5. The redeeming qualities are almost nonexistent.

The problems with the first half of this book are numerous. I could talk all day about little things that drove me nuts. Like copyediting mistakes ("Alex cleared his throat to warm them of Eric's return"), but I'm going to try to keep this review focused.

From the very beginning I was confused to who was who and what was going on. There seemed to be a whole lot of people with very few descriptors and even less atmosphere. Which would have been easier to suffer though if Aile had stayed in the correct POV. She jumped around in peoples' heads like a bunny on crack.

It is very important that writers know the difference between 3rd limited and omniscient. And where was the editor in this case? At some point someone needed to say something. It was so bad that there were pages where we'd flit through three heads and I'd have to think, "WHOSE HEAD ARE WE IN?!"

And then (if that was not enough) there is pages (and pages... and pages... LIKE 30!) of backstory involving people who are NOT the main characters. Followed by sex between a couple who are NOT the main characters. This was a recurring theme. She seemed to like writing random sex scenes as much as she liked randomly changing POVs.

I'm trying not to comment on every horrible thing. Like the fact that she was adverb crazy. Two adverbs per line is a little much for anyone. Though, surprisingly, the adverbs dropped off in the latter half of the book.

The biggest irritation of all was the two main characters didn't meet till page 62. SIXTY-TWO PAGES OF OTHER PEOPLES BACKSTORY.

The main character, Will, sets out to find Richard. It's going to be So. Hard. They're going to need So. Much. Help. But it didn't turn out that way. Turns out all you need is a map and a crystal.

Will thinks: "With surprisingly little investigation, he and Raul had found Richard in the county jail, held on a series of little charges that hadn't been cleared because they didn't know who he was."

First of all, the "surprisingly little investigation" -- YA THINK? Secondly, that sentence right there... yeah. That's how it is. So. Um, hum. Convoluted.

Once again. Editor?

The last half (maybe less than half) if you can manage to swim through the mire and reach it, is actually quite pleasurable. I was surprised. The adverbs dropped off and the sentences were less convoluted. Also, it was (primarily) focused on the main characters (imagine that).

This book could have used at least two more drafts and then an edit.


www.theanonymousmouse.com

[Betryal · Rating 5 out of 5]

Before I even discovered ebooks existed I was buying what I could find in hardcover books that were M/M and where I live and what's avail to me the pickings are slim. When I visited LA that's where I picked up the first book to this one called Cursed and I truly enjoyed the book. It sits on the shelf in my 'special' collection. But when I noticed Betrayed the sequel in ebook I practically flew out of my chair and pumped the air with my fist I was so dayum excited. And true to Rhianne's writing technique she didn't disappoint me one iota.

Cursed takes you on a wild adventure of how Tristan the warlock meets Benjamin the werewolf and it's scratchy :laughing: but good. Now in Betrayed Tristan is back along with Benjamin and the story surrounds Tristan's twin brother Will (which is the story I'd always been hoping for) and how he meets his mate Richard who is in fact Raul's twin brother. Sounds confusing? Read it to get more cause that's all I'm dishing out on it. All these twins makes you want to go ape shit, but I got a real kicker out of this book.

True to my word it's worth reading this book and if you haven't read either one get them both sit back and enjoy the ride. I did!

[Lily · Rating 4 out of 5]

3.75 out of 5 stars

Will Northland came to the United States to help his brother Tristan break a centuries old curse. It's been a few weeks since then and Will is living with Tristan and his mate Benjamin. Will is happy that his twin brother, a fellow witch, has found love with his werewolf mate but wishes he could find someone to love as well. When Raul, the consort to the Alpha of Benjamin's pack needs magical help to locate his own missing twin, Will volunteers.

Raul and Will travel to Ohio in search of Richard and finally locate him. It seems Richard has been in jail for a few days and has lost his memory. Will immediately goes to get him out and as soon as they meet Richard knows, or rather his wolf recognizes, that Will is his mate. They head back to the house and promptly fall into bed. Since Will is not a werewolf and Richard has lost his memory they are mostly unaware that the intense attraction they feel is a mating instinct. The next day Will uses his magic and the bond forming between them to break the spell that was affecting Richard.

Richard decides he has to go back right away to stop the witch that's behind his problems. Since his wolf won't risk anything happening to his new mate he leaves Will behind and heads off to face the witch, Sienna, who also happens to be his wife. Instead of fixing the situation Richard once again falls under the evil witch's spell and Will and Raul have to find a way to help him. Arriving at Raul's former home they have to work together now to figure out a way to save Richard, his father the pack Alpha and the pack itself from the clutches of Sienna. In the end it will take the help of Tristan, Benjamin and Raul's mate, Alex, all working together with Will and Raul to save Richard and ultimately secure a happy future for all.

Betrayed is a nice sequel to Cursed and although it could be read as a stand alone it's best enjoyed if read in sequence. I liked the premise of the werewolf and the witch, it was a nice change from the usual werewolf/human pairing. That said the characterizations are still similar. Richard, Benjamin and Alex are all big, strong Alpha males while Will, Tristan and to a lesser degree Raul, are all smaller, more pretty than handsome and naturally submissive to their wolf mates. What was nice was the fact that Will and Tristan both were instrumental in saving their Alpha partners.

The sex between the three mated pairs is hot and quite frequent although there are no menage scenes. Many times prior to having sex and after the men shift to wolf form but there is no shifted sex in this book. It's just that the wolves are very tactile and the men enjoy letting their wolves out to play.

While I did like the main characters and for the most part the secondary ones as well I felt that Sienna was too underdeveloped. She's described as a beautiful Kewpie doll and we know she's a powerful witch but there's no feel for who she is and why she did the things she did. I did enjoy the magical aspects of the story and it was interesting reading as Will and Tristan used their magic.

Overall this was a nicely written story featuring characters that are for the most part well developed and interesting. There is strong chemistry between them and even though the path of their relationship is rocky and full of obstacles there is a HEA ending for Richard and Will. The plot was a bit predictable with the usual insta-love true mates trope used in most shifter stories but the addition of magic and the fact that the Alpha is the one that needs rescuing was a nice change. Recommended for fans of paranormal and shifter stories and I do suggest reading Cursed first and then Betrayed.

[Monica Vidal · Rating 3 out of 5]

Another audiobook ruined by the narration. Honestly. How can they not do an English accent to an English character?! Plus there was these pauses along the narration where you can clearly hear the guy taking his breath, you know?! Like when you talk too much and has to breath between sentences. WTF?! Editing much, please! Ugh.

Anyhow. Let’s focus on the story cause I wrote the review for book one and pretty much said nothing about the actual plot. Will, the MC in this one, is Tristan’s twin brother from book 1. Tristan is all mushy mushy with his alpha mate and Will comes from England to visit. Raul, who is the mate of the packs Alpha, also has a twin brother, Richard who is missing and asks Will to help find him, since both Tristan and Will are witches. Obviously, Will and Richard are going to fall in love and bond and have ultimate epically sex with marking and claiming and MINE, it’s a werewolf book and if you have read one, you have read them all.

This one has A LOT of sex. Not only the main couple have sex on page, but also the other two couples. More than once. Come to think about it, this book is pretty much porn and I’m here for it, as usual. I regret nothing.

[Rossy · Rating 4 out of 5]

RA has done it again and i couldn't be happier!

I had been waiting for Will's story since i finished Cursed. I even emailed RA, immediately to make sure that his story was going to be told. Which luckily she had already been working on it. This was truly a fantastic follow up to the first book and it answered all the questions i still had.

[Elisa Rolle]

Like in Cursed, also in Betrayed there is a bit of contraposition between a non shifter partner, Will, who is also small and pretty, and the big bad wolf, Richard, the Alpha of his pack, the one in command, but who, in the end needs his mate to solve his trouble. More, Richard is under the spell of an evil witch, and she is a woman, a petite and beautiful china doll, who, nevertheless, is able to chain Richard under his clutches.

When we first meet Will in this second book, the first image we have of him is of a pretty boy: long dark curls, lithe body, and a behaviour that his almost childlike, he gossips with his twin brother on the sexual exploits of his mate, Benjamin. But as soon as the brother is not in the room, we also realize that Will is hoping to find the same happiness Tristan has with Benjamin, and he knows that he will not find it in Benjamin’s house.

So when he is asked to go help Raul’s brother (Raul and Alex are another mated pair, and Alex is the Alpha of Benjamin’s pack), Will heartedly agrees. Richard is vanished, but to Raul and Will don’t take too much time to find him suffering of amnesia, but with one only sure thing in mind: Will is his mate and he will not let anyone else near him. Truth be told, Will is more than willing to spend almost two days in bed with Richard, to help him going free of his wife’s spell, the witch (witch not b….), and if someone else doubts his reasons… well probably he is not wrong. This is probably where the light feeling of the story emerges, even if in danger, even if under a spell, when Will and Richard are in bed together nothing else is important.

There is a lot of sex, very tactic feeling; there are absolutely not sex scenes in shifted form, but the werewolves in the book like to be in their wolf form, and their mates like to stroke them (no pun intended); on the other hand, the werewolves like to let their wolf go out and play, and there is an heavy use of smell sense and bodily fluids to mark the territory. But when it’s the time to play on a more sexual level, there is always a man on man action.


http://www.amazon.com/dp/1615813926/?...

[Arthur · Rating 2 out of 5]

I wanted to like this book, since the author is one of my favorites and I liked Cursed. However, I felt like the author used a reversed Deus ex machina. Everything seems to be under control, and then, out of nowhere, the characters decide to get into troubles! Imagine reading a story about a witness protection from powerful mafia that--upon talking to a friend--decides to take the mafia leader alone, knowing that the leader is very powerful and can put him under a spell right away! Yes, I'm talking about Raul and Richard's decision to let Richard went back to his pack without Will.

Apart from that, there are several other things that also cringed me, almost made me stop reading. I continued because I've paid the book. Such as:
- Everyone is dragging not tell Will that Werewolf mates are for life, and that Will is Richard's mate. This allows Will goes to find another man for a date. Had they told Will, he wouldn't have been confused about Richard.
- The use of the other man to make Richard jealous. Gosh, I hate when people use someone to make the other person jealous. The hatred is doubled when the person knowingly put the bait person in danger!
- Out of nowhere, Richard resigned his claim to the Alpha position, which again, put everything in danger.

Usually, the author is smart in making the plot believable. This one, though, I felt that she's kinda choosing short cut to make the story came together. Because I had high expectations toward the author and the book, I felt betrayed.

[Adara · Rating 4 out of 5]

I really like shifter stories, and I liked the prequel, Cursed, but I actually prefer Betrayed over its prequel. The story behind Betrayed is alluded to in Cursed, so readers of Cursed will be happy to continue on, but you do not have to read Cursed before reading Betrayed; there are a few characters you will understand better if you have read Cursed, but all of the story points that you will need to know are re-covered in Betrayed.

I'm not exactly sure what I like more about Betrayed. I think I like the story premise better for one, but more than that, I like the ending better in regards to what happens to the twins. It makes sense to me, and I just appreciate the way it was written; it really sells the idea to me, and it's a great ending.

[Dee Wy · Rating 2 out of 5]

I'm sorry to say this was just boring. Gah!

[Hope · Rating 4 out of 5]

I enjoyed the first book in the series more. The characters of Richard & Will were sweet and their story was compelling. The world building was quite good, but I felt some of the language and intimate scenes were a bit lazy. All in all, I'd give this a straight 4 stars but Cursed 4.5

[Dela · Rating 2 out of 5]

Labourious

[Shawn · Rating 4 out of 5]

So I gave this one 3.5 stars (Says 4, but I wish we could do halves.). I liked it soo more more than the first book. I think I liked the fact that there was more of Raul in this one. He really pulled me in the first book when he was introduced. I was so glad that there was more of him in this one. That and the fact that I like Will better than Tristan. (I though they are twins, but really...Will is cooler). I really liked Richard. I loved the dynamic between the two sets of twins.

If I had anything to really bitch about it was the lack of the villain in this story. Sienna's presence was felt through the spells and the few brief times I saw her on the page, but I never really knew who she was. I wanted to know why she did what she did. I was never really clear on her motivations. I like me villains to be as 3 dimensional as the heroes. (Usually because I love the villains more. lol. ) That element was really lacking to me.

I'd also love to see a book that dealt with Alex as a character. Out of everyone in this world, he is the one I know the least and subsequently and very curious about. We've had little glimpses about him, but I feel like there could be something very interesting and exciting about him, if given the opportunity to have his own story. (A prequel maybe, before he met Raul? I dunno)

Anyway I really enjoyed this book. I'm curious to see if anything else comes out of this world. I like it and the characters. I feel like many more stories could come out of here.

[Jessica Rose · Rating 5 out of 5]

W.O.W

I admit, I've come across this book a lot when I was browsing through Goodreads, but never once was I interested enough to read it. When I can't access the internet for whatever reason, I randomly chose a book to pass the time. And this was it. I fell in love completely from the very first chapter.

Will Northland, despite everything, was a brave, somewhat-selfless man. Even though he didn't know that Richard was his soul-mate and when Richard said something harsh and cold to him, he still risked everything to rescue the person who he barely knows who broke his heart. I love the fact that he trusts his feelings to the extent that he stayed to help.

My favorite scene was when Richard's wolf got jealous over another man. Might be a bit twisted, but still, I love it when one of the character portrays jealous and dominance over their partner - but you can still feel the love lacing beneath the act. The way he ripped out Will's clothes that carried the scent of another man, the way he jumped on Will, the sex...well, everything was just plain hot.

Pfft, even 5 stars doesn't cover the book. It was written so damn beautifully, it just completely blew me away. There's no doubt that I'll read another book of this series should the author release it.

[Amanda · Rating 5 out of 5]

This review is for the audiobook version, narrated by John Lamberti. The reading of this book is better than in the first book of the series. It's not fantastic, but it's good, and it doesn't take anything away from the story.

Betrayed is a wild ride - a sexy and engaging continuation of the world and characters we were introduced to in Cursed. The characters are well developed, and the large community of characters adds a richness to the story. The story is unique and intriguing. The plot twists wonderfully, and the pacing is perfect. It's very engaging from beginning to end.

This is a very erotic book, with many hot sex scenes. I love the way the metaphysical elements of werewolves and magic are woven into the physical and emotional intimacy.

Even though I thoroughly enjoyed the first book, Betrayed took things to another level for me. I'll be looking for more from this author for sure!

I don't recommend this as a stand alone, but I highly recommend this series for anyone looking for a highly erotic paranormal romance story.

*I received a free copy of this audiobook to read for Inked Rainbow Reads in exchange for an honest review.*

[Barb ~rede-2-read~ · Rating 4 out of 5]

Sequel to Cursed, this is the story of Will, twin to Tristan, and Richard, twin to Raul. Will is a witch who came to the US to help Tristan when Tris was trying to break a family curse put on his mate Benjamin. Richard is a werewolf, future king of his pack, who is magically bound to Sienna, a dark witch who is trying to gain control of the pack. When and and Will meet their souls recognize their true mate and they bond quickly. Richard then leaves to take care of Sienna and get her out of his life.

The story is all about the hold Sienna has on Richard and about Will trying to break that spell. It's a good story, a nice followup to Cursed, and has tons of hot sex scenes for those who want that. It's not a heavy read or complicated storyline. Without giving away spoilers I'll say that, although part of the ending of the story was expected, the final twist was a pleasant surprise.

Both sets of twins have a HEA.

[Rici · Rating 4 out of 5]

Dies ist das zweite Buch der Reihe. Das erste Buch handelt hauptsächlich um Tristan, während dieses hier sich mit seinem Zwilling William beschäftigt. Aber auch dieser hat Verbindungen zu einem Werwolf. Allerdings ist dieser von einer Hexe verzaubert, sodass Vorsicht gilt und ein Plan geschmiedet werden muss.
Ich mag die Beziehung zwischen den Zwillingen hier immer noch sehr gerne. Die Geschichte reiht sich direkt an die von Tristan an. Sollte man das Buch allerdings relativ schnell lesen, dann erscheint es einem doch etwas zu viel Sex zu sein. Auch optisch reiht sich das Buch prima an seinen Vorgänger an.
Fazit:
Das Buch hat gute Charaktere, eine Interessante Story, Hexen und Werwölfe – was will man mehr?
Ich geben 4 von 5 Sternen.

[Zona · Rating 3 out of 5]

This was a good sequel to Cursed. I really enjoyed finding out what happened next to the Northland twins and I loved that it was fairly seamless. I liked the addition of Richard and the twin aspect he had, a lot of twins in these books. It was kind of complicated to keep everyone straight though and I found myself kind of dozing off throughout some parts. I'm guessing because there were some parts of the story that dealt with secondary characters more than necessary.
Betrayed was definitely fun brain candy and I liked finding out the ending. It was really well done and had great action as well as romance.
Fun paranormal romance with a m/m theme throughout. Mature audiences only ;)

[Michelle · Rating 5 out of 5]

It has been a few years since I first read 'Betrayed'. The last time I didn't go back and read Book 1 'Cursed' immediately before it.
On doing so this time, I have come to appreciate even more what an excellent paranormal author Rhianne Aile is!

Instead of the traditional novella we have come to expect of wolf meets soul mate.. mating sex, story over.. Cursed and Betrayed are so much more!
The author has imagination and uses it in spades. To give us, the reader more than just a standard ho hum paranormal story.

My only negative is (as far as I'm aware), the author hasn't written any more books with the characters we come to love in these extended novels.

[Rin · Rating 3 out of 5]

The book, including the first book, was generally okay. The main peeve I had about both books was that there was not much building going on in the emotional aspect. It felt like there was just sex and boom, they are in love forever. I would have loved more 'getting to know each other' then finally really falling in love than just the physical part of the relationship. Overall an okay read but not my favourite.

[Nene · Rating 5 out of 5]

Awesome. Just awesome. This series is amazing and this second book is just as good, if not better, than the first. Richard and Will are great and its cool that we get to spend more time with Tristan and Benjamin and Alex and Raul. Man, to be a fly on the wall watching those guys in a room together...*fans self*.

[Grandmat · Rating 4 out of 5]

Same review as 'Cursed'. Interesting story, good characters. However, the frequency of the sex scenes was overwhelming. Don't get me wrong. I enjoy a hot scene with the best of them, but after a while I found myself skimming through. Sugar is great, but too much becomes cloying. But, if you're looking for this type of story, go for it. There is a quite entertaining story buried under the sex.

[CB · Rating 5 out of 5]

A great follow-up to Cursed, which I recommend reading first. The characters from the first story are throughout this book and it was great to see them all again.

A very entertaining book with lovable characters, a lot of hot sex and a different twist than the usual werewolf theme and more on the witches powers than the first book.

[Kendra T · Rating 4 out of 5]

This was a great follow up to Cursed. I loved seeing a story about Will-he was a great side character in Cursed. It was awesome to see more about Raul and Alex and to learn about Raul's brother Richard.

[M'rella · Rating 4 out of 5]

Four stars, but only because there was too much sex, which is not my thing.

[Melanie Steward · Rating 4 out of 5]

I'm a fan. if you don't like same sex fiction stay away.

[Katherine · Rating 4 out of 5]

I liked this better than book #1. I connected with the MC better this time.

[Kate · Rating 5 out of 5]

One of my favorite werewolf series, anyone know if there will ever be a 3rd book? I really want a book just for Alex and Raul

[Libbsmm · Rating 4 out of 5]

3.75 stars

[Sai Schneider · Rating 5 out of 5]

A great next book. I loved it :D

[Icesumly · Rating 2 out of 5]

2.5 stars
2 stars for the plot and 4 stars for the narration.