Annith has been raised nearly since birth in the Convent of Mortain, the god of the death, training hard to be a handmaiden of Death. However, unlike her sisters in the convent, she has not inherited any of Mortain’s gifts, and must watch as her fellow sisters go out on missions to do Death’s work without her. When she overhears the Abbess saying that she is to become the convent’s next seer, she knows that she must escape or she will be trapped inside the walls of the convent forever. After she leaves, she discovers a secret that could change her life forever. Mortal Heart is the final book in the His Fair Assassins trilogy.
I liked the main character, Annith, because she showed herself to be strong and resourceful. She was also more devout to her God, Mortain, than the main characters in the first two books, which was an interesting change. However, I would have liked more dialogue in the book in some parts since they were a little bit slow. There also wasn’t a lot of humor in Mortal Heart, but I enjoyed it anyway because that just added to the dark tone of the book. Overall, I liked the book a lot, and would definitely recommend it for other teens who want a historical fiction read with a little bit of magic and murder.
Mortal Heart made me think about what it would mean to be truly devout to a God during the time frame of this book. It combined some of my favorite elements in a book: a strong female character, magic, action, a bit of romance, and adventure.
Reviewed by PhuongVy, Grade 8, Glen Allen Library
HCPL TeenScene's Read + Review 