layawaydragon
Written on Sep 16, 2022
In a world where people born with an exceptional skill, known as a Grace, are feared and exploited, Katsa carries the burden of a skill even she despises: the Grace of killing.
She lives under the command of her Uncle Randa, King of the Middluns, and is expected to carry out his dirty work, punishing and torturing anyone who displeases him. Breaking arms and cutting off fingers are her stock-in-trade. Finding life under his rule increasingly unbearable, Katsa forms an underground Council whose purpose is to combat the destructive behaviour of the seven kings - after all, the Middluns is only one of the Seven Kingdoms, each of them ruled by their own king and his personal agenda for power.
When the Council hears that the King of Liend's father has been kidnapped Katsa investigates ... and stumbles across a mystery. Who would want to kidnap him, and why? And who was the extraordinary Graced fighter who challenged her fighting skills, for the first time, as she and the Council rushed the old man to saftey?
Something dark and deadly is rising in the north and creeping across the continent, and behind it all lurks the shadowy figure of a one-eyed king ...
- ISBN10 0575085304
- ISBN13 9780575085305
- Publish Date 3 September 2009 (first published 1 October 2008)
- Publish Status Out of Print
- Out of Print 7 January 2022
- Publish Country GB
- Imprint Gollancz
- Format Paperback (B-Format (198x129 mm))
- Pages 400
- Language English
Reviews
alindstadtcorbeax
Written on Jan 23, 2021
I very, VERY much enjoyed this— no actually, I LOVEDDDDD THIS!
Don't know why I waited so long to read it, but the new GORGEOUS paperback covers for the series, and the new book made me finally take the plunge!
I. Am. So. Glad. That. I. Did.
Seriously, it was a fantastic read.
Ayy on to Fire! Series with different protags for the different installments are hit or miss with me, so fingers crossed it is just as good!!!
writehollydavis
Written on Jan 16, 2021
Jo
Written on Sep 16, 2020
Review to come.
Amber (The Literary Phoenix)
Written on Jun 11, 2018
I find the variety of reviews on this one *really* interesting. From people loving the world to hating the pacing to being unhappy it isn't feminist enough to hating the audiobooks - people have a lot of feelings about Graceling.
I have a lot of feelings about Graceling, too. They're overly positive.
High fantasy is my jam. I love reading it, I love writing it. If I had my own personal portal into any genre where I could step in and have my own novel-worthy adventures, it would unquestioningly be high fantasy. And Graceling does it all. So. Well.
Starting with the characters - they feel real. They're not too big, not too small, not too easily changed. They defy certain expectations of traditional fantasy character but still fit perfectly in their world. The romance is beautifully done and it's so different. Not just for YA, not just for fantasy, but for just about anything I've ever read. I think the discussion about feminism is really interesting (I wouldn't call this a feminist book by any means - I don't think that was Cashore's intent? Or if it was, it didn't come off well to me). I think the blurred line between YA and adult in this book is fantastic.
I love the depth of description. I could *feel* Katza and Bitterblue's cold. I could taste the terror as they ran. And my heart broke near the end, when Po reveals his secret. The consistency in the world is really great as well - guess what? They hunt, they eat, and it's not pretty but it's correct within the setting.
I feel utterly robbed that I can't go grab book two and pick up this story right where they left off. Because that's not how this trilogy works.
Like so many other readers, I am ravenous for more. I recommend this book wholeheartedly, doubly so if you enjoy high fantasy.
nannah
Written on Aug 17, 2016
Content warnings
sexual harassment
pedophilia mention
animal abuse
In the seven kingdoms, having heterochromia means one is Graced . . . and being Graced either means working for the Kingdom or being treated as a lower class citizen. When Katsa’s eyes changed color, her Grace gave her better advantage in fights, and she became known as the “lady killer (unfortunately not as gay as it sounds)”.
Katsa can be described in two simple, stereotypical tropes: the “I’m not like other girls!” and “the TOUGH girl but not strong girl”. Now to address the first, it’s not even because she’s Graced. It’s more like internalized misogyny - in the character and in the author. It’s sad female authors write this so particularly well.
“A girl who didn’t want the husbands Randa pushed on her, perfectly handsome and thoughtful men, a girl who panicked at the thought of a baby at her breast, or clinging to her ankles.
“She wasn’t natural.” p.32-33
YIKES. ok this is TERRIBLE to tell young adults. First of all, we have lesbophobia, and then calling women who didn’t want children “unnatural”. Sure, it’s character-appropriate thinking, but you can’t say it’s Katsa’s PoV, because this book is written in omniscient tense . . . this wouldn’t make sense. It’s the omniscient narrator calling women like Katsa unnatural, which is . . . really offensive and harmful to young women.
There’s also this gem: “Katsa had no reason to interact with a woman servant.”
This is such a prime example of internalized misogyny and it’s never corrected in-book. :/ Just sticking “the queen was more than capable” or something in the text later . . . doesn’t quite do it. Especially if the PoV is omniscient . . .
God, Katsa even “refuses to have an opinion on the matter” of the color of tapestry in her room. I’m pretty sure you don’t have to be a man, woman, or otherwise to be able to like a color but what do I know? This is ridiculous, Katsa is ridiculous, and the fact I’m supposed to like her character is ridiculous. In the same vein, soft pillows and chairs are also out for her. Too girly. So if she has backaches, she probably still sits on concrete. Or maybe backaches are girly, too. Then again, her Grace apparently helps her to not feel pain like other people. But pain is also a signal of survival and damage, so if she doesn’t feel pain, it’s actually not a good survival tactic.
TOUGH girl but not strong
Katsa is the epitome of this awful trope, female characters who are obnoxiously physically strong . . . and that’s all there is to them. There’s no depth to their character. They typically hate anything feminine, hate other women, especially hate other feminine women, and look down on feminine traits. Because they’re TOUGH.
The moment I died?
When she began hating herself for feeling attraction to Po, for no other reason that “OMG but OTHER GIRLS feel attraction to boys! and I’M not like other girls!” I mean, if she hates liking boys so much, then why doesn’t she just start liking girls instead?
She also compared a sixteen-year-old girl getting harassed by a bunch of men “too much like a dumb, confused rabbit caught in a trap.” I swear, the internal sexism in this book is so difficult to bear. And to think it’s so highly recommended!
One more slash at Katsa, and then I’ll be done. The way she treats horses is absolutely abysmal. She runs them beyond ragged, with no care to their well-being, only that she gets to her destination as soon as possible, and that whoever can’t keep up with her is lazy. I’m ashamed this book is for young adults! Katsa actually lames a horse and doesn’t care! She says the horse can go on anyway, because she wants to go on. Of course, it’s said later the horse is actually lame. With no hard feelings towards Katsa. I just can’t believe it.
The writing isn’t much better than Katsa’s character, and I’m not surprised. There’s so many simple grammatical errors and awkward writing that I feel like Graveling is either horrendously edited or a rough draft that somehow got published. Somehow. Here are some marvels:
- Introducing a subject in a paragraph and switching it in the middle without introducing the new subject: “Katsa stared other plate. He was talking about brothers . . .” Katsa’s the subject here, and this is an entirely new scene! The HE here is finally introduced by name THREE pages later!
- Hundreds of incorrect commas used as pauses
- This ridiculous dialogue:
“Katsa, a man would be a fool to try to keep you in a cage.”
“But that doesn’t tell me how you’ll feel, always to be subject to my whim.”
“It isn’t your whim. It’s the need of your heart.”
- “I’m ever so slightly dizzy.”
- Strange sentence structures like “And that was enough of that, for it was Po she wanted to fill her eyes with” that fill the entire book.
- An incredible amount of summary over action/interesting areas, which just makes me feel cheated.
Now when it comes to Po and Katsa . . . things just aren’t that much better. They’re so plastic with each other. There’s no real emotion! It’s just we’re being told there’s emotion, so we’re supposed to feel it? Plus, Katsa is abusive. When Po’s grace improves, she gets SO angry, even though her Grace and talents are immense (she can start a fire with icicles, can hunt better than anyone, fight better than anyone, doesn’t feel pain/cold). Yet he improves on one aspect and bam! How dare he?! She’s literally abusive but it’s presented as a romantic relationship.
The character Bitterblue doesn’t feel real, either. She’s simply a plot device. No ten-year-old would be so calm in the face of her mother’s murder or all of the terror she’s facing! I don’t care if she’s “special”, it just doesn’t happen! It all just adds up to the book not feeling real. It’s just a series of bullet points playing out.
Now, to what I did enjoy: the bit in part three after Katsa and Bitterblue got through the mountain pass and reached the ship. It was entertaining, despite the awkward prose and dialogue. I’ll give it that, but I can’t say I enjoyed much more.
I’ll only read Fire because it’s part of a reading challenge I’m working on.
neddieb
Written on Jun 20, 2016
angelarenea9
Written on Jul 19, 2015
I'm very late to the game here, but when it comes to this book it's most defiantly better late than never! I know that the book world and the world of young adult has been raving about this book for, well, forever. I myself have had it on my to-read shelf since September of 2011! Well I finally got around to reading it and let me tell you, it is marvelous!
Right off the bat you get thrown right into the middle of a world, and in the middle of the excitement! There is no winding up period in this book, you learn about the world, and the political situations on the fly! As you race around with Katsa, you begin to learn about Gracelings and how this beautifully crafted world functions. There is something wonderfully realistic about a society that would fear and hate these gifted individuals, and their mismatched eyes, and it allows the book to have the touch of fantasy, while the majority of the world is carrying on as normal.
Katsa reminded me of a more likable Katniss Everdeen from The Hunger Games. I particularly loved that she focused on the important things going on in the world, and was not immediately swept away by a man. Although there is eventually a romance that unfolds, it is not overwhelming, and it does not eclipse the overall plot of this book. It felt more like a story of building trust, and a true relationship, than the terrifyingly unhealthy obsessions that I am seeing more and more.
I am really looking forward to the sequel, especially because this book actually contained what I would have thought would be the climax to this series, so I can't even begin to imagine what is coming next!
What's a book that everyone read long before you did, and are you feeling like you missed the excitement train?
tweetybugshouse
Written on Jul 5, 2015
Sam@WLABB
Written on Jul 17, 2014
A Graceling is identified by their two colored eyes and a special talent or "grace" they possess. Katsa, our kick-ass heroine, possesses a grace that allows her to be an outstanding fighter. However, she is claimed by her uncle, the king, to do his dirty work. This troubles Katsa, so she puts together and leads a council to help protect the people of the seven kingdoms.
The mystery unfolds while on one of these council missions. Enter Po, a prince and a graceling, and the love story begins.
What is so great about this book? Katsa -- she is a strong, female lead, who strives to control her grace and her life in a time when women were expected to bear children, sew and throw parties. Katsa is a well crafted character, who is strong, but still has a sense of femininity. Although Katsa denies such womanly wants, you see her growing throughout the story -- becoming a little softer when it comes to Po and Bitterblue. Then, there is Po. His adoration for Katsa and his real desires are always obvious. I hope to see this play out to a greater extent in the next book.
The author delivers a solid story, with a solid plot and paints a beautiful picturesque background for us to enjoy.