Review: The Betrayal of Natalie Hargrove - Lauren Kate

Where I got it: ARC from Princess Bookie's Around the World Tours
Rating: 3.5 stars
Cover Rating: 4 stars (I really like it, the characters look pretty perfect.)
Genre: Young Adult
Publication Date: November 12, 2009
Publisher: Razorbill
Page Count: 245 p.


Natalie Hargrove wasn't always Queen bee at Palmetto high. At one point in time she was on the wrong side of the tracks in this small Southern town. When her father went away and her mom moved them over the tracks and into a new life, Natalie took control. She had everything, the perfect boyfriend, the power, and a past she tries so hard to forget. Now Natalie and her boyfriend running for Palmetto Prince and Princess and there is only one person standing in their way to the top. At a Mardi Gras party Natalie convinces her boyfriend to help her play a prank on J.B., but when that prank goes horribly wrong Natalie has to try to pick up all the pieces.

This book was so much better than I thought it was going to be. I had read only a couple reviews about it and none of them praised it too highly. Honestly though, this book was quite a read. It remind me a bit of the Blue Bloods series from Melissa de la Cruz, minus the vampires (but still bloodthirsty). Mind you I didn't technically finish Blue Bloods, but from what I did read these seem like a similar class of people. Natalie is so driven by her need to win Palmetto Princess that she gets so wrapped up in things when they don't go according to plan. I loved hearing about Natalie and all she overcame to get to where she was and I appreciate that she didn't turn out a necessarily "good person". The fact that she wasn't inherently good added greatly to the story and turned it away from being a sob story about how a person can never be more than they were. The writing was a bit more flowery than it needed to be especially at the beginning of the story. Lauren used a lot of descriptive words that didn't really add to the situation or to the story. Also, Tracy seemed a little bit above and beyond. I guess she was part of that good 'ole Southern mystery; the wise oracle. She didn't really seem to fit in on a high school level, though I did enjoy her, she just seemed a little out of place. I didn't really like the ending. It seemed too sudden and too unresolved, but I guess it's the only way that it could have ended. For those of you who did not notice all the chapter titles (Something Wicked this Way Comes, Thriftless Ambition, More Potent Than the First) are all lines from Macbeth. So, in keeping with Macbeth I'd say it worked out quite nicely with the twist and turns, Tracy (the oracle) and the way the story ended. All in all I was impressed with this story. It had the right levels of betrayal, desire, and secrets.

First Line:
"Once upon a time, you knew nothing."

Favorite Line:
"A cheer rang out across the party for the green-faced victor."