I Must Betray You
#1 NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER • A gut-wrenching, startling historical thriller about a young man in communist Romania who dared to resist the spy network that devastated a nation, from the award-winning author of Salt to the Sea and Between Shades of Gray.
* "Sepetys brilliantly blends a staggering amount of research with heart, craft, and insight in a way very few writers can. Compulsively readable and brilliant."—Kirkus Reviews (starred review)
WINNER OF THE CARNEGIE MEDAL
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 Ceaușescu 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: either 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.
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Readers say *I Must Betray You* is a powerful, well-written YA novel illuminating life under Romania’s communist regime. Reviewers agree it vividly po...
My 14 year old selected this book as his "free" read for ELA this past fall. He liked it so much that he asked me to read as well so we could discuss. Was so interesting to compare and contrast what I remember from that time (almost the same age he is now) with what they describe in the book and how he viewed the time period.
Overall, I was impressed with the writing and how she described the living conditions - I really felt I could see the bleak landscape of cement and grey. She also made the anxiety of all the characters almost palpable. A really good read that I wouldn't have picked up on my own - but glad that I did.
Overall, I was impressed with the writing and how she described the living conditions - I really felt I could see the bleak landscape of cement and grey. She also made the anxiety of all the characters almost palpable. A really good read that I wouldn't have picked up on my own - but glad that I did.