Mortal Heart is the third book in the His Fair Assassin series by Robin LaFevers.

Annith has trained as a handmaiden of death all her life. She wants nothing more than to be sent on an assignment so that she will have a chance to serve Death.  However, she eventually learns that the Abbess doesn’t plan to send her out on assignment…ever.   The Abbess plans for Annith to become the next Seeress, an individual who can never leave the convent.  Annith struggles to determine if these plans for her future come from St. Mortain or the Abbess. How much of what she knows is a lie?

While Mortal Heart has an interesting premise, I found that about halfway through the book it got a lot more political (and less people-oriented) than others in the series.  This book is told from Annith’s point of view and it explores much of her past at the convent. I just didn’t find her as interesting a character as Ismae or Sybella.  I would recommend this book to people who have read the first two books in the series and really enjoyed the political element, since this book seems to have less of a focus on the people side of the story.  If you enjoy both the political element of this story and the strong female characters I would recommend the Nine Kingdoms series by Lynn Kurland.