Mortal Heart was one of my most anticipated books of 2015. After loving the first two novels in the His Fair Assassin series with all my heart, I couldn't wait to get my hands on this. After finishing it, I have to say that my favorite of three is definitely Dark Triumph, because Sybella's story was the most compelling and her narration gripping. Ismae was a little less so, but she was still very interesting. Annith is a lot different than the previous two protagonists; her background is not quite as dark. She grew up in the convent, unlike most of the others who arrived later on, and has spent the majority of her life training to do Mortain's work. But for reasons unknown to her, she is never sent out on a mission and begins to grow tired of basically watching everyone else get all the glory, including her best friends Ismae and Sybella. 
 Mortal Heart was harder to get into than the other novels because for the first hundred pages or so, I wasn't getting any new information and Annith spent most of her time fretting about her future and training. I definitely felt sorry for her in the beginning - for a while, it looks like she's going to be condemned to living out the rest of her years as the convent's seeress, which means she'll never be allowed to leave the island. But I admit I did get a little bored. Things began to pick up somewhat after that and it became a lot more engrossing. I really enjoyed meeting with all the old characters again and loved how things in the plot were slowly revealed over time. LaFever's writing is still stunning, and I am more than happy to pick up whatever she decides to pen in the future. Ismae and Duval are probably my favorite of the three couples, but I enjoyed the progression of the romance between Annith and Balthazaar. They seemed to compliment each other nicely. 
 (view spoiler)[I was extremely surprised to learn that Balthazaar was actually Mortain. I don't know if there were some clues about it hidden somewhere in the first half of MH, but if there were, I missed them. I was completely blindsided by the sudden fact, and at first it was a little hard to get on board with the idea. I mean, Annith has been raised her entire life thinking that this man is her father, but it turns out he's not, so now he can be her lover? It was just a weird think to think about, but if you can get past that their chemistry is great. I found it especially sweet how he gave up being a god to be mortal so they could have a life together. I wasn't surprised in the least about the reverend mother's treachery. She's always been a somewhat slippery character, and on some level I sympathized with her for wanting to keep her child safe, but at the same time she murdered three people and put others in danger because of it. I was pretty thrilled at the end when she was sentenced, but also slightly touched by her display of affection right before she was led away. (hide spoiler)] 
 The climax of the story was another surprise. Honestly the big solution seemed to pop out of the blue, but it was still an intriguing idea. I feel like I didn't enjoy this book as much as I should have, because I wasn't quite as invested in Annith as her sisters, nor did I feel as passionate about the romantic relationships. After all, I felt terrible when Duval nearly died in Grave Mercy and Dark Triumph made me cry towards the end of the novel. So I was a little disappointed about that, but this is still an amazing story. The whole series is one of my all-time favorites with its vivid setting, rich characters and gorgeous writing. 
 (view spoiler)[I wish the book hadn't ended before Ismae and Duval's wedding. I was really hoping it would happen sometime before the book ended. Oh well, I guess I can hope for a novella. Please, Robin LaFevers? (hide spoiler)] 
 4.5 stars