Betrayed By Blood

The Amaranthine Chronicles #1

by Tiffany Shand

In a city of lies and deception, only one thing stands between chaos and justice. For centuries, a band of outlaws called the Amaranthine has kept the peace in Ormere and hidden in plain sight whilst the Order of Sorcerers spreads their deadly magic among the city’s inhabitants.
After losing her fiancé in bust gone wrong, Amaranthine Agent Kaylan Avilion returns home to discover that Elijah didn’t die but instead was changed by the twisted guards of the Order, who seek to find a dangerous artifact tied to Kaylan’s past and the murder of her family. When her sister goes missing and a foe from their past reemerges, Kaylan knows she must save Freya before she’s poisoned by the very people who took Elijah away from her. But how will Kaylan react when she learns Elijah’s secret and can they come together to stop the Order’s plan in time?

Genres: Romance, Paranormal

95 pages, Kindle Edition

Published February 1, 2017

Reviews

[Siobhan · Rating 3 out of 5]

The Amaranthine Chronicles – made up of Betrayed By Blood, Dark Revenge, and The Final Battle – was a fun quick read, although it wasn’t quite all that I had expected. It works best if you read them all in one sitting, as they very much feel like one story split into parts rather than three separate stories. Due to this, my review of the whole series is more detailed than my review of each individual part.

Betrayed By Blood, the first story in this short collection, was a fun introduction to the series. It was enough to pull us into the world, attempting to give us a large variety of aspects that are to be pulled together in the next two books. I could sit and list all the story arcs that are opened up, but to do so would be to give spoilers – just know there is a lot given in such a short read.

Whilst having so much happening was a lot of fun, my enjoyment was hindered somewhat due to a lack of information pertaining to the world building. I had so many questions, questions that weren’t related to the twists and turns being added to the story. Thus, my attention was focused upon the wrong thing. I was waiting for explanations of the wrong things, never really falling under the spell of the story, as I didn’t quite understand the world properly.

Whilst it was an enjoyable story, I couldn’t quite bring myself to give it a four star rating as I felt as though it wasn’t quite as fleshed out as it could have been. There was a lot of promise, but certain aspects were lacking, meaning it wasn’t quite all I had expected it to be.

[Nada Sobhi · Rating 3 out of 5]

Betrayed by Blood by Tiffany Shand is a novella and the first instalment in The Amaranthine Chronicles Series.

The book opens with Kaylan Avilion, a magic-wielder with various gifts and a sad past, coordinating with others to capture a sorcerer whom they suspect is selling certain illegal potions. The attempted capture goes bust and Kaylan's fiancé Elijah is presumed dead.

A year later, Kaylan returns to the city she once lived because her sister, Freya, has gone missing. There she learns that Elijah is still alive but has changed significantly.
There is a lot of evil and many mysteries surrounding Elijah, Freya and the Order which governs the city.

We are told that the Amaranthine are another kind of Order that protects the people, albeit secretly.

I felt there needed to be more character development. Also, the beginning was a bit confusing for me. Until the end, I couldn't figure out which characters had what powers or abilities.

Still, Betrayed by Blood has many interesting characters and I liked how Shand revealed certain aspects about her characters through events. A kind of show don't tell technique but through events. She also uses the "throw problems in their way" technique quite well.

There weren't many images or beautiful lines in the novella so there aren't any quotes – there were a few lines but they are mostly spoilers, so I'm not going to quote them.
Quick-paced and exciting, Betrayed by Blood is a suspense-filled urban fantasy novella.

Overall rating: 3.5 stars

(Note: I received a free copy of Betrayed by Blood from the author Tiffany Shand in exchange for an honest review)

[Sapphyria · Rating 4 out of 5]

Kaylan, Geth, Sierra, and Elijah are members of the Amaranthine, an underground group trying to keep the Order in check. When tragedy strikes, Kaylan walks away from everyone and everything. One year later, Sierra requests that Kaylan return home, only, when Kaylan arrives she learns that someone she thought was dead is very much alive and that the disappearance of her sister is much more treacherous than she could ever imagine.

Betrayed by Blood is engaging from the start. Full of action and mystery, the reader will become fully immersed in the world created by Tiffany Shand. The author does a fantastic job weaving the books full of twists and turns. I enjoyed the characters and world building that takes place throughout the novella. The character interactions are realistic. The magical abilities that each of the friends possess are unique and explained well. The author did a remarkable job writing a story filled with action, adventure, romance, suspense, treachery, and more.

This book ends on a cliffhanger so make sure you have book 2 handy.

I voluntarily reviewed an uncorrected ARC of The Amaranthine Chronicles.

[Shayne · Rating 4 out of 5]

I'm glad this is a box set as book one ends quite suddenly in a cliffhanger of epic suspense. I had a little trouble getting started but once i did i was engrossed in learning why Freya disappeared, what Kaylan could do to solve it, the fate of her mate Elijah and their friends. There's some decent backstory and character building though the person you think is the villain (the High Lord) has very little actual effect on the story. Honestly the first book could use an overhaul to add some more meat to a few scenes that seemed they would be crucial but were just rushed over. Great concept, great story but could use a prequel or some more meat in spots to give it the full shine this story deserves. Maybe book two will fill these gaps while continuing to build the story.

[Christy · Rating 4 out of 5]

A great start to a shifter/ magic series. My only fault was that it was too short. It definitely left me wanting more. I liked the main characters and hope they continue to grow in the next installment. The main female character is confident and loyal. The male a little broken but strong. Excited to see what happens next. This is definitely a good story in the making!

[J. Woods · Rating 3 out of 5]

I was a fan of Tiffany Shand's first series, Denai Bound and I wasn't disappointed with this series at all.
I read all three one right after the other; the novels definitely read more as parts of one whole novel as opposed to three separate which I found myself enjoying as each flowed nicely into the next.
Shand never disappoints when it comes to suspenseful paranormal; I do wish that each novel built a little more on the characters and this world filled with good vs evil, magic, alchemy, and the tug of rope love story simply because I was so drawn in I wanted to know more.
There were some small editing/grammatical errors however were small compared to the overall body of the story.
I love a story where the female lead is a strong on, a woman who can hold her own, and Kaylan Avilion is a woman with a backbone.
I enjoyed how the suspense level remained relatively linear throughout each novel, starting with the return of Kaylan and her reunion with Ethan as her sister goes missing and then in the 2nd novel when the truth comes to light and the search for a book that is a vessel holding dark magic fuels a greed for power and finally in the third when the fight between family and sacrifice, good vs shapeshifters and the ultimate fight for happily ever after.
A capturing and thoroughly enjoyable series from the start.

[Teresa · Rating 5 out of 5]

Let me start by saying you will want to have all 3 books when you start this series. Each of the books basically stop in the middle of the story. They are short books, the whole series took me about 6 hours to read in total.

The main characters are Kaylan Avilion she is a part of the Amaranthine people and also a healer. Elijah is her fiancé and partner. Geth and Sierra are their friends and also their partners. The 4 are trying to stop someone from using a drug to turn people into unnatural creatures akin to werewolves all over the city. When they zero in on the culprit things start to go wrong and Elijah is caught in a blast.

I am giving this series a 5* rating as well as each of the 3 books. I really enjoyed this set. It kept my interest all the way through. The series is fast paced and you never know what is going to be hiding out on the next page.