alindstadtcorbeax
Written on Jan 27, 2021
I'm blown away by this series.
IT. IS. SO. GOOD!
The long-awaited companion to the New York Times bestsellers Graceling and Fire
Eight years have passed since the young Princess Bitterblue and her country were saved from the vicious King Leck. Now Bitterblue is the queen of Monsea, and her land is at peace.
But the influence of her father, a violent psychopath with mind-altering abilities, lives on. Her advisers, who have run the country on her behalf since Leck's death, believe in a forward-thinking plan: to pardon all of those who committed terrible acts during Leck's reign; and to forget every dark event that ever happened. Monsea's past has become shrouded in mystery, and it's only when Bitterblue begins sneaking out of her castle - curious, disguised and alone - to walk the streets of her own city, that she begins to realise the truth. Her kingdom has been under the thirty-five-year long spell of a madman, and now their only chance to move forward is to revisit the past.
Whatever that past holds.
Two thieves, who have sworn only to steal what has already been stolen, change her life forever. They hold a key to the truth of Leck's reign. And one of them, who possesses an unidentified Grace, may also hold a key to her heart ...
- ISBN10 0575097175
- ISBN13 9780575097179
- Publish Date 1 May 2012
- Publish Status Out of Print
- Out of Print 27 November 2016
- Publish Country GB
- Imprint Gollancz
- Format Hardcover
- Pages 576
- Language English
Reviews
I'm blown away by this series.
IT. IS. SO. GOOD!
tweetybugshouse
Written on Jan 11, 2021
KitsuneBae
Written on Feb 7, 2016
Kristin Cashore and I, we're not really meant to be. I really didn't enjoy books 1 and 2 so why the hell did I even pick up this one? Not crazy, just simply suffering from OCD. I can finally tick off this series from my list.
Ok, I didn't wholly hate this book. As a matter of fact, I enjoyed this more than the first two. I enjoyed how it tackled Bitterblue's struggles in becoming queen. But then, after 50%, I was already convinced that this book is out to annoy the hell out of me. Bitterblue is a fucking incompetent Queen and only relies on people who are not even Monsean. And the way she handled Saf's theft of her crown, that was just so fucked up in the most negative way. I can't even. There are still so many thing that I want to say about this book but I don't think that I can still spare another precious moment writing about this book. >,
Leigha
Written on Jan 26, 2016
I walked into this book prepared to love it. One of my all time favorite books is Fire, and Graceling is just marvelous too. However, I left this book feeling very dissatisfied. The plot meandered from one point to another in a cumbersome way. The characters felt very two-dimensional, even the returning characters from previous books. The romance, such a strong element in her past books, was subpar at best.
This book dealt with a lot social issues, which I do not mind at all. However, the story (plot, characters, etc.) really needed to flesh out these issues or integrating them more fully into the story. The book had too many ingredients, and not enough time to integrate them well. Finally, the best part of the book was Death. Maybe I'm biased because he is a librarian, but he was the only real enjoyable new character to the Graceling realm. Can I have a book solely on him?
tl;dr A really disappointing conclusion to the Graceling Realm trilogy with depthless characters, world building issues, and a boring plot.
Sam@WLABB
Written on Sep 19, 2014
Katie King
Written on Mar 15, 2014
The plot never seemed resolved to me. Bitterblue searches for answers fervently yet so easily she gives up at the end. I wanted answers too. There was a great opportunity for Cashore and in the end she decided to put in some vague filler. I'm not impressed. I felt as though the whole time I was being led up to something so grand that I had no idea what it was, and then....nothing. Disappointing. I wish she had tied up even one of her loose ends.
Vicki
Written on Oct 3, 2013
Jordon
Written on Jan 18, 2013
Bitterblue. Bitterblue. Bitterblue.
Wow. After having read Graceling and Fire I thought I was all set for Bitterblue, I thought I would know the structure of this story, I thought this one would be a little tougher for me love. Well. Goes to show Kristin Cashore expected this of her readers. Because this book was practically hardly anything like the books before it yet it was subtly the same in a way and still, I absolutely loved it! It was very different to Graceling and Fire yet it completely held its own.
The book Bitterblue is set in the ‘City of Bitterblue’ in Monsea. Bitterblue is Monsea’s Queen and has been since her father was killed eight years before. This meaning she is young, still learning and trying to pull her country together after the reign of her psychotic father.
This story is a lot more political than Graceling and Fire yet at the same time it is still very exciting, wonderful and I couldn’t put this book down. Seriously. I spent a good eight hours in one night reading a large part of this book. And this book is huge. I love how we’re taken along on Bitterblue’s journey to becoming a better queen and to figuring out how she can help the citizens of the City of Bitterblue get over the traumatic years that her father reigned.
I loved the rebelliousness of Bitterblue, how she refused to completely believe that everything she was told was correct. This led to her going out into the city disguised to truly find out how her city was coping. Here she meets Teddy and his friend Saf, a couple of thieves. I loved the relationship between Bitterblue and Saf, it developed over time. The relationship with Teddy was sweet, Teddy was a very fun character and I found I liked him just because he was so likeable and caring.
I do have to say that I was very confused for the most of this book but only because everything that was going on was confusing and no one had any inkling of what exactly was going on. The plot line for this story felt very complex because once Bitterblue stumbled over one clue this led her to even more clues which led to more questions and still no definitive answers. It was fun trying to figure out what on earth was going on. And still I had no idea right up until Bitterblue finds out herself.
I was hooked from page one of this book. I never once got bored, I found it very difficult to put this down and even though it isn’t packed with action or adventure this book was still very exciting and a definite page turner.
Bitterblue was definitely a very good ending to the Graceling Realm. I am very sad that this series has ended and I will not get to read more stories about the fascinating gracelings!
Always,
Jordon
This review was originally posted on Simply Adrift
rakesandrogues
Written on Dec 9, 2012
BITTERBLUE by Kristin Cashore is technically the third book in the Graceling Realm series, but the publisher insists that you can read this as a standalone. True, you probably can; it's been a while since I've actually read Graceling and Fire so my memory is fuzzy on what had happened in those books. So prior knowledge really is not required to read Bitterblue. But at the same time, you probably won't appreciate it as much. The beauty in BITTERBLUE is partially based on all three stories finally coming together cohesively. You'll read about all your favorite characters from previous books and see them in a new light from Bitterblue's perspective.
Like any subsequent book by any author, I was a bit worried when I started to read BITTERBLUE by Kristin Cashore. A big fan of the first two, I was worried that this one would not live up to the epic fantasy world. I had nothing to be worried about; Cashore continues to weave beautifully written stories set in a magical realm. She knows how to write fantasy.
There's just a touch of romance in BITTERBLUE by Kristin Cashore, and I was a bit disappointed that it wasn't as epic as the romances in Graceling and Fire. Okay, let's face it: Bitterblue has a lot of problems that she has to deal with first, so romance can't be her top priority. Still, I enjoyed the chemistry even if I wanted a little more.
BITTERBLUE by Kristin Cashore will delight fans of the Graceling Realm series. And readers who discover BITTERBLUE first will definitely be convinced to pick up the other two books.
clementine
Written on Oct 11, 2012
I guess I'll start there: I love this world. I love that it feels simultaneously modern and ancient. It obviously has a very medieval feel, what with the monarchical system, lack of modern technology, and general setup of society. The people in this world haven't quite latched onto the idea of democracy (though it's implied to be in the works), so they aren't as progressive as us in that sense... yet the medieval aspects of their society do not match up with how socially progressive they are about other issues. They seem to be about as accepting of same-sex relationships as the place I live (as in, many/most people accept it, but a significant amount are uncomfortable with it or just plain don't like it), women seem to be regarded much more highly than they were in actual medieval times, and sexual relationships outside of marriage aren't seen as THE MOST HORRIBLE SINFUL THING A PERSON CAN DO. For example, everyone in the seven kingdoms knows about Katsa and Po's relationship, and everyone seems reasonably cool with it. Man, I feel like I could write essays about these things. I want somebody to write something about Cashore's books and feminism, because there is so much there. Maybe I'll do it someday.
As with both of Cashore's other books, I absolutely loved the heroine. Bitterblue is badass to her core, just like Katsa and Fire. She knows what she wants, and she goes after it. Most importantly, I think, she's tough and strong without eschewing femininity, or essentially acting "male" while being female. I think this is so important, because it shows that you can be feminine (and female) while still being strong and in charge. Bitterblue also had her share of flaws. I especially appreciated how Cashore turned her erudite, high class status (well, I mean, she's the Queen) into a flaw. It's so easy for a character of Bitterblue's status not to have to acknowledge the painful reality of what their class means, but Cashore showed how being the Queen affected her relationships with others and her perception of the world, instead of just letting her live a blissful, cushy life.
As for the plot, I loved it. We got a nice mixture of action and explanation, and the world we see in Graceling and Bitterblue was very nicely tied to the Dells (which we saw in Fire). Some of what we found out Leck did made me feel sick, and I really felt for Bitterblue, having to find out the kinds of things her father did to her subjects. If I had that reaction as an outsider, I can't imagine what it would be like to find out your own father had done such things.
One thing I want to point out that I really liked is that all the drama didn't seem contrived. In the hands of a less skilled writer, I think that some of it, such as Thiel's suicide or the fact that Hava was Leck's daughter would have seemed really... after school special-y, I guess. But these events all fit with the story. And, related - I loved that I actually felt so much compassion for the people who lied to Bitterblue for all those years. No character was black and white good or evil, except for Leck, I suppose.
One last thing: I almost screamed when Fire appeared. I wish she'd had a bigger part because I LOVE HER SO MUCH. I was hoping she'd make an appearance, and EEEEEE.
So, yes, I loved it, I hope she writes more, I hope we get a sequel to Fire because YES, and... yeah. Very good.