I Must Betray You by Ruta Sepetys

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Web ID: 16748407

A gut-wrenching, startling historical thriller about communist Romania and the citizen spy network that devastated a nation, from the #1 New York Times bestselling, award-winning author of Salt to the Sea and Between Shades of Gray. Romania, 1989. Communist regimes are crumbling across Europe. Seventeen-year-old Cristian Florescu dreams of becoming a writer, but Romanians aren't free to dream, they are bound by rules and force. Amidst the tyrannical dictatorship of Nicolae Ceau escu in a country governed by isolation and fear, Cristian is blackmailed by the secret police to become an informer. He's left with only two choices- betray everyone and everything he loves or use his position to creatively undermine the most notoriously evil dictator in Eastern Europe. Cristian risks everything to unmask the truth behind the regime, give voice to fellow Romanians, and expose to the world what is happening in his country. He eagerly joins the revolution to fight for change when the time arrives. But what is the cost of freedom? Master storyteller Ruta Sepetys is back with a historical thriller that examines the little-known history of a nation defined by silence, pain, and the unwavering conviction of the human spirit.

  • Product Features

    • Suggested age range- 12-17 years
    • Format- Paperback
    • Product dimension- 8.1" W x 5.4" H x 1.2" D
    • Genre- Fiction
    • Publisher- Penguin Young Readers Group, Publication date- 05-02-2023
    • Page count- 336
    • ISBN- 9781984836045
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4.6/5

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5 months ago

What a journey. What a story. What a book!

โ€œ๐˜๐˜ฐ๐˜ธ ๐˜ค๐˜ฐ๐˜ถ๐˜ญ๐˜ฅ ๐˜ธ๐˜ฆ ๐˜ฆ๐˜น๐˜ฑ๐˜ฆ๐˜ค๐˜ต ๐˜ฐ๐˜ต๐˜ฉ๐˜ฆ๐˜ณ๐˜ด ๐˜ต๐˜ฐ ๐˜ง๐˜ฆ๐˜ฆ๐˜ญ ๐˜ฐ๐˜ถ๐˜ณ ๐˜ฑ๐˜ข๐˜ช๐˜ฏ ๐˜ฐ๐˜ณ ๐˜ฉ๐˜ฆ๐˜ข๐˜ณ ๐˜ฐ๐˜ถ๐˜ณ ๐˜ค๐˜ณ๐˜ช๐˜ฆ๐˜ด ๐˜ง๐˜ฐ๐˜ณ ๐˜ฉ๐˜ฆ๐˜ญ๐˜ฑ ๐˜ธ๐˜ฉ๐˜ฆ๐˜ฏ ๐˜ข๐˜ญ๐˜ญ ๐˜ธ๐˜ฆ ๐˜ค๐˜ฐ๐˜ถ๐˜ญ๐˜ฅ ๐˜ฅ๐˜ฐ ๐˜ธ๐˜ข๐˜ด ๐˜ธ๐˜ฉ๐˜ช๐˜ด๐˜ฑ๐˜ฆ๐˜ณ?โ€ ๐—ช๐—ต๐—ฎ๐˜ ๐—ฎ ๐—ท๐—ผ๐˜‚๐—ฟ๐—ป๐—ฒ๐˜†. ๐—ช๐—ต๐—ฎ๐˜ ๐—ฎ ๐˜€๐˜๐—ผ๐—ฟ๐˜†. ๐—ช๐—ต๐—ฎ๐˜ ๐—ฎ ๐—ฏ๐—ผ๐—ผ๐—ธ! Ruta Sepetys delivers yet another unforgettable masterpiece with ๐™„ ๐™ˆ๐™ช๐™จ๐™ฉ ๐˜ฝ๐™š๐™ฉ๐™ง๐™–๐™ฎ ๐™”๐™ค๐™ช, plunging us into the heart of 1989 communist Romania. This isnโ€™t just historical fictionโ€”itโ€™s an emotional rollercoaster, a thriller, and a sobering look at a regime built on fear and betrayal. ๐ŸŽง The audiobook? Absolutely phenomenal. Edoardo Balleriniโ€™s narration brought every character to life with so much depth, it felt like I was right there in Cristianโ€™s world. โ€œ๐˜‰๐˜ฆ๐˜ต๐˜ต๐˜ฆ๐˜ณ ๐˜ต๐˜ฐ ๐˜ฅ๐˜ช๐˜ฆ ๐˜ด๐˜ต๐˜ข๐˜ฏ๐˜ฅ๐˜ช๐˜ฏ๐˜จ ๐˜ต๐˜ฉ๐˜ข๐˜ฏ ๐˜ต๐˜ฐ ๐˜ญ๐˜ช๐˜ท๐˜ฆ ๐˜ฌ๐˜ฏ๐˜ฆ๐˜ฆ๐˜ญ๐˜ช๐˜ฏ๐˜จ.โ€ ๐—ช๐—ต๐—ฎ๐˜ ๐˜๐—ผ ๐—Ÿ๐—ผ๐˜ƒ๐—ฒ ๐Ÿ•ต๏ธ Historical Thriller Vibes: Think spies, secrets, and constant suspenseโ€”every chapter leaves you guessing who you can trust. ๐Ÿ“ Powerful Writing: Rutaโ€™s words hit like a punch to the gut and linger long after youโ€™ve closed the book. โค๏ธ Heart-Wrenching Relationships: From Cristianโ€™s bond with his grandfather to the tension in his friendships, the emotional stakes are sky-high. ๐Ÿ›‘ Unseen History: A shocking glimpse into the brutal realities of communist Romania that you probably didnโ€™t learn about in school. โ€œ๐˜›๐˜ฉ๐˜ฆ ๐˜ธ๐˜ข๐˜ญ๐˜ญ๐˜ด ๐˜ฎ๐˜ช๐˜จ๐˜ฉ๐˜ต ๐˜ฃ๐˜ฆ ๐˜ญ๐˜ช๐˜ด๐˜ต๐˜ฆ๐˜ฏ๐˜ช๐˜ฏ๐˜จ, ๐˜ฃ๐˜ถ๐˜ต ๐˜ต๐˜ฉ๐˜ฆ๐˜บ ๐˜ค๐˜ข๐˜ฏ๐˜ฏ๐˜ฐ๐˜ต ๐˜ด๐˜ฑ๐˜ฆ๐˜ข๐˜ฌ. ๐˜›๐˜ฉ๐˜ฆ๐˜บ ๐˜ค๐˜ข๐˜ฏ๐˜ฏ๐˜ฐ๐˜ต ๐˜ต๐˜ฆ๐˜ญ๐˜ญ ๐˜ฐ๐˜ถ๐˜ณ ๐˜ด๐˜ต๐˜ฐ๐˜ณ๐˜บ. ๐˜›๐˜ฉ๐˜ข๐˜ตโ€™๐˜ด ๐˜ถ๐˜ฑ ๐˜ต๐˜ฐ ๐˜ถ๐˜ด.โ€ ๐— ๐—ผ๐—บ๐—ฒ๐—ป๐˜๐˜€ ๐—ฌ๐—ผ๐˜‚ ๐—–๐—ฎ๐—ปโ€™๐˜ ๐— ๐—ถ๐˜€๐˜€ ๐Ÿ” Cristianโ€™s chilling discovery of whoโ€™s spying on himโ€”prepare for your jaw to drop. ๐Ÿ“ The heartbreaking letters and notes Cristian writes that capture his desperation and hope. 1๏ธโƒฃ That last chapter, numbered โ€œ1,โ€ symbolizing a new beginningโ€”itโ€™s perfection. ๐Ÿง‘โ€๐Ÿง‘โ€๐Ÿง’โ€๐Ÿง’ The epilogue where Cristian uncovers the truth about his life and the people around him. โ€œ๐˜›๐˜ณ๐˜ถ๐˜ด๐˜ต ๐˜ช๐˜ด ๐˜ด๐˜ถ๐˜ค๐˜ฉ ๐˜ข ๐˜ง๐˜ณ๐˜ข๐˜จ๐˜ช๐˜ญ๐˜ฆ ๐˜ต๐˜ฉ๐˜ช๐˜ฏ๐˜จ. ๐˜๐˜ต ๐˜ต๐˜ข๐˜ฌ๐˜ฆ๐˜ด ๐˜บ๐˜ฆ๐˜ข๐˜ณ๐˜ด ๐˜ต๐˜ฐ ๐˜ฃ๐˜ถ๐˜ช๐˜ญ๐˜ฅ ๐˜ข๐˜ฏ๐˜ฅ ๐˜ฐ๐˜ฏ๐˜ญ๐˜บ ๐˜ด๐˜ฆ๐˜ค๐˜ฐ๐˜ฏ๐˜ฅ๐˜ด ๐˜ต๐˜ฐ ๐˜ด๐˜ฉ๐˜ข๐˜ต๐˜ต๐˜ฆ๐˜ณ.โ€ โš ๏ธ ๐—–๐—ผ๐—ป๐˜๐—ฒ๐—ป๐˜ ๐—ช๐—ฎ๐—ฟ๐—ป๐—ถ๐—ป๐—ด๐˜€ This book deals with oppression, betrayal, violence, starvation, illness, and death. Itโ€™s raw and real, but never gratuitous. โ€œ๐˜๐˜ฐ๐˜ฑ๐˜ฆ ๐˜ช๐˜ด๐˜ฏโ€™๐˜ต ๐˜ต๐˜ฉ๐˜ฆ ๐˜ด๐˜ข๐˜ฎ๐˜ฆ ๐˜ง๐˜ฐ๐˜ณ ๐˜ฆ๐˜ท๐˜ฆ๐˜ณ๐˜บ๐˜ฐ๐˜ฏ๐˜ฆ. ๐˜๐˜ฐ๐˜ณ ๐˜ด๐˜ฐ๐˜ฎ๐˜ฆ, ๐˜ช๐˜ตโ€™๐˜ด ๐˜ข ๐˜ญ๐˜ถ๐˜น๐˜ถ๐˜ณ๐˜บ. ๐˜๐˜ฐ๐˜ณ ๐˜ฐ๐˜ต๐˜ฉ๐˜ฆ๐˜ณ๐˜ด, ๐˜ช๐˜ตโ€™๐˜ด ๐˜ด๐˜ถ๐˜ณ๐˜ท๐˜ช๐˜ท๐˜ข๐˜ญ.โ€ ๐Ÿ’ญ ๐—™๐—ถ๐—ป๐—ฎ๐—น ๐—ง๐—ต๐—ผ๐˜‚๐—ด๐—ต๐˜๐˜€ This isnโ€™t just a storyโ€”itโ€™s a wake-up call. Itโ€™s a reminder of how fragile freedom can be and the bravery it takes to fight for it. Sepetys masterfully balances heartbreak with hope, leaving you sobbing one moment and inspired the next. โ€œ๐˜‹๐˜ฐ ๐˜บ๐˜ฐ๐˜ถ ๐˜ด๐˜ฆ๐˜ฆ ๐˜ฎ๐˜ฆ? ๐˜ˆ ๐˜ฃ๐˜ฐ๐˜บ ๐˜ธ๐˜ช๐˜ต๐˜ฉ ๐˜ธ๐˜ช๐˜ฏ๐˜จ๐˜ด ๐˜ฐ๐˜ง ๐˜ฉ๐˜ฐ๐˜ฑ๐˜ฆ ๐˜ด๐˜ต๐˜ณ๐˜ข๐˜ฑ๐˜ฑ๐˜ฆ๐˜ฅ ๐˜ต๐˜ฐ ๐˜ฉ๐˜ช๐˜ด ๐˜ฃ๐˜ข๐˜ค๐˜ฌ ๐˜ต๐˜ฉ๐˜ข๐˜ต ๐˜ฏ๐˜ฆ๐˜ท๐˜ฆ๐˜ณ ๐˜ฉ๐˜ข๐˜ฅ ๐˜ข ๐˜ค๐˜ฉ๐˜ข๐˜ฏ๐˜ค๐˜ฆ ๐˜ต๐˜ฐ ๐˜ฐ๐˜ฑ๐˜ฆ๐˜ฏ.โ€ If you love historical fiction that hits hard and teaches you something new, this is the book. Plus, the short chapters make it impossible to put down. 5+ stars for both the book and the audiobookโ€”absolute must-read (or must-listen). โ€œ๐˜›๐˜ฉ๐˜ฆ ๐˜ธ๐˜ข๐˜บ ๐˜ต๐˜ฐ ๐˜ค๐˜ณ๐˜ถ๐˜ด๐˜ฉ ๐˜ข ๐˜ณ๐˜ฆ๐˜ท๐˜ฐ๐˜ญ๐˜ถ๐˜ต๐˜ช๐˜ฐ๐˜ฏ ๐˜ช๐˜ด ๐˜ต๐˜ฐ ๐˜ฅ๐˜ฆ๐˜ด๐˜ต๐˜ณ๐˜ฐ๐˜บ ๐˜ช๐˜ต๐˜ด ๐˜ฉ๐˜ฐ๐˜ฑ๐˜ฆ.โ€ ๐—ฅ๐—ฎ๐˜๐—ถ๐—ป๐—ด: ๐Ÿฑ/๐Ÿฑ ๐—ฆ๐˜๐—ฎ๐—ฟ๐˜€: Compelling historical depth. Emotional resonance. Masterful storytelling. Complex characters. Relevance and timeliness. Itโ€™s rare for a book to balance history, heart, and suspense so seamlessly, and this one does it brilliantly.

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Customer review from barnesandnoble.com

1 year ago

Amazing Plot Twist!!

The way this story was told kept readers guessing to find out who the culprit was. This in my opinion did not have a predictable twist which made it more enjoyable to read. Cristian takes us on a journey to learn about the dangerous task he is roped into and the further the story develops, the more that there is at stake for Cristian as he navigates right from wrong without betraying the people closest to him. Prior to reading this novel, I did not know much about Romania other than the fact that it was in Europe, however, this book gives a little bit of background on the history of Romania through the lens of Cristian's story. The story is one to keep you on your toes and one that is unputdownable. It involves student revolution, which I think is always interesting to read about especially when it comes to conflict of political regime. I would recommend this book just for the plot alone and Sepetys' writing greatly portrays the struggle of a young boy's story in the midst of chaos and political conflict.

Customer review from barnesandnoble.com

1 year ago
from Florida

A good read, but...

The book is a good read, however, when compared to SALT TO THE SEA (excellent +) or OUT OF THE EASY, this one falls short of her capabilities.

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Customer review from barnesandnoble.com

2 years ago

Best book Iโ€™ve read

Iโ€™ve read a lot of books. My favorite genre is romance and tragedy. When I was assigned this historical fiction in my English class, I was slightly annoyed because I usually donโ€™t like historical fictions. However this book was truly OUTSTANDING. The wording and descriptions were so relatable and beautifully written. This book was a beautiful mix of history, romance, and tragedy. It truly made me more grateful for what I have. Itโ€™s heartbreaking but also inspiring. This book is truly one of my favorite reads and I LOVE how it is accurate and includes words from the Romanian language. The writing was so beautiful that I decided to read another historical fiction from Ruta Sepetys (Between Shades of Grey). She is truly an amazing and extremely talented author.

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Customer review from barnesandnoble.com

2 years ago
from Kansas City, MO

I learn so much from this author's books!

Iโ€™ve only read/listened to one other book by this author, but I know that at some point I need to read them all. What I liked about this one, as I did about her first book, is that she takes a time period and place in history that isnโ€™t as well known as so many other historical events and places, and brings it to life. And that she used teens to do it makes it so perfect for me to share with my students. This was something going on during my own teen years. I recognized the name of the gymnast they talked about escaping the country. But you know what, I donโ€™t remember hearing about anything else with this when it was going on. Such a great story, so much emotion and intense events, such great description of a way to try to understand just what the people in this country had to go through. I also love the authorโ€™s extra note at the end about what got her to write the story.

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Customer review from barnesandnoble.com