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Jan 06, 2012

Kira rated it:

I have some things to say.

Note: Not all of these things are complimentary.

So: Graceling. I resisted for a really long time. I read a review by the lovely Isis, and since I trust the opinion of the lovely Isis, I decided that perhaps this book wasn't for me. But then I noticed that the lovely Kat had rated it with four stars, and the seed of doubt was well and truly planted in the moist topsoil of my mulched brain.

Yes; this review may well have a strange plant/ More...

201 comments like (150 people liked it)

Dec 28, 2009

Miss Clark rated it:

This review has been hidden because it contains spoilers. To view it, click here

0 comments like (167 people liked it)

Jan 24, 2012

Tatiana rated it:

Update 1/24/2012. I probably should already stop being surprised by the fact that every time I reread a book, I come up with something new to say (or feel) about it. Looks like my previous reading of Graceling caused a lengthy rant. Yeah, no such strong feelings this time.

This time, I was able to appreciate the writing more. It's lovely. I really love how it flows, how the sentences connect. This book stands the test of time. And it's great that it stirs so much discussion and, often, More...

73 comments like (62 people liked it)

Jan 23, 2011

karen rated it:

it is so hard to write reviews for books i actually like. no, love.

talking about this book is like trying to describe to someone a relationship from long ago that was bittersweet and is now over, but i have never had a relationship that involved so many horses and swordplay, not even metaphorically. and fewer people care about my love life than about this book.

(i see you ariel - you are glowering at me with tiny slitted eyes)

but this book is like a wonderfull More...

63 comments like (79 people liked it)

Dec 29, 2009

Sean rated it:

[This is a review of an advance copy.:]

While Cashore shows herself to be a promising writer in many respects, this book could have used a better editing job, especially with the pacing, the climax and the dénouement. Other points:

1. The dialogue she put in the ten-year-old princess's mouth was not believable in the slightest; maybe Cashore should spend some time around pre-adolescent girls to get an idea of what they really talk like.

2. The psychology of sever More...

19 comments like (64 people liked it)

Sep 09, 2011

Lady Danielle "The Book Huntress" rated it:

This review has been hidden because it contains spoilers. To view it, click here

58 comments like (31 people liked it)

Jan 24, 2012

Amelia, the pragmatic idealist rated it:

EDIT: THIS REVIEW IS IN NEED OF A REWRITE.

I bumped this up to 3 stars. There's really only 1 thing about this book I didnt like. Katsa's attitude and some of her decisions.
Second review:

Main idea: My goodreads buddy Isis says it best on her review, and I'll echo her sentiments that "being an angry bitch doesn't give someone a strong constitution or character."

48 comments like (28 people liked it)

Jan 02, 2012

Lora rated it:

Born with an ability that is more of a curse than a gift, Katsa's life hasn't been an easy one. Katsa is Graced with the ability to kill. And when an accident causes her to kill a man at the age of eight, she soon realizes what her Grace really is.
Upon finding out Katsa's true Grace, King Randa of the Middluns, Katsa's uncle, quickly decides to utilize her morbid abilities rather than kill her for them as most would.
Wanting to harness her abilities and control them rather than be rul More...

23 comments like (18 people liked it)

Oct 31, 2011

Emily rated it:

First thing I need to point out is that I consider myself a feminist, even as far as to take an active role is such matters. Previously, I have written articles on Feministing and I honestly think so many of these issues are still very important in today's world. However you look at it, the battle for equality has not been won and has, in fact, become rather dormant.

On that note, I love reading fiction by feminist writers, Atwood never fails to deliver and The Handmaid's Tale is one More...

9 comments like (19 people liked it)

Sep 13, 2011

Penny rated it:

I read Graceling over a year ago and i feel it necessary to say: I don't like this book. The romance is incredibly unromantic and the rest of the story is some (crazy man-hating version of) feminist propaganda.

I happen to like books which feature feminist heroines and are light on the romance. So I should like this book, right? Yeah, but I didn't. First of all, Katsa acts like a petulant child throughout the entire book, not some feminist poster child. Also, I felt like the a More...

7 comments like (18 people liked it)

Dec 17, 2008

Lucy rated it:

In the seven kingdoms, there are some children who are born different. They are marked with eyes of two different colors, and they are called Gracelings. Gracelings have abilities beyond the natural, and they are feared and shunned by most people. There are many different Graces—some are benign, like the Grace to swim long distances, or to juggle. And some are deadly.

Katsa, niece to King Randa of Middluns, has a killing Grace. Since she was a small child she has been able to kill a g More...

6 comments like (29 people liked it)

Jun 06, 2011

Sarah rated it:

Excerpt: “And now I’m wondering,” he said, “how it is you don’t realize your eyes ensnare me, just as mine do you. I can’t explain it, Katsa, but you shouldn’t let it embarrass you. For we’re both overtaken by the same—--foolishness.”

CuteCat

That’s Katsa’s eyes. Kidding. But that quite explain the eyes of a Graceling, just imagine it 10 times fantabuluos.

A Graceling is a person with Graced. Being Graced is like having an exceptional talent. But it does not only refer to si More...

8 comments like (23 people liked it)

Dec 10, 2011

Lady Vale rated it:

Well, this book was definitely a huge surprise. I mean, I knew I would like it big time because there wasn't a single person who didn't give a 5 star review to this book, but I never though I would like it this much.

It was such a different and original world. I loved the idea of the Gracelings. Specially the heroine's grace. I had forgotten how a good YA's story should be like. This book had everything I usually look for in my reads covered: amazing world building, great plot develop More...

10 comments like (12 people liked it)

Aug 01, 2008

Diana rated it:

Gracelings can be identified by their unmatching eyes and when they are the king takes them into his service so he can use whatever unusual talent they manifest. Katsa, niece of the king has the grace of killing so she is forced to serve as her uncle’s assassin. Hating what she has to do she has started up an underground movement to save people when she can which is how she meets Prince Po who has one eye of silver and one of gold.
I'm really picky about giving 5 stars. Only the books tha More...

7 comments like (21 people liked it)

Feb 02, 2009

Beth rated it:

I came so very close to giving this one 5 stars. It was a great fantasy adventure with a strong female lead (perhaps too strong).
Katsa is a girl with extraordinary powers. When she meets Po, a young man with powers of his own, they strike up an unusual friendship and together set out to root out a growing evil.
This book had a great plot with some surprizing twists. It had great characters (I loved Po), and a slowly growing romance, but in the end I was expecting someting from Katsa t More...

6 comments like (31 people liked it)

Apr 22, 2011

Becky rated it:

I have to say that I loved this book. Once I started reading, I could barely put it down. The characters were fun and real, or as real as they could be in a world where extraordinary and almost supernatural talents are, maybe a little less than common, but not unusual. This is definitely fantasy, and the characters were fantastic, but still realistic.

Katsa was such a wonderful character. Graced with the ability to fight and kill with ease, she is used as a weapon and Royal Leg-Breake More...

15 comments like (9 people liked it)

Oct 14, 2008

Hayden rated it:

Katsa lives in a world where some people have Graces (i.e., super powers), and her Grace is that she is a badass fighting machine. The king who rules her country uses her as a hired thug to break the thumbs of people he doesn't like.

But then she meets this guy she likes, and decides that maybe she shouldn't be a thug anymore. Also, the guy, Po, has a lot of distant relatives who are in distress, so they have to spend a lot of time riding around trying to help those people.

More...

6 comments like (14 people liked it)

Nov 28, 2011

Mike (the Paladin) rated it:

I finished this book a couple of nights ago, and waited to review it. This is a pretty good YA and as I've said about other books, it gets 4 stars because I can't give it 3.5. I waited because I wanted to think about a couple of things. First as Lady Danielle "The Book Huntress" noted she "has an issue" with this book, I had a couple. I don't know if one of them is her's but we'll talk about mine in a second. One of them I can discuss in my general review, the other I'll men More...

39 comments like (8 people liked it)

May 13, 2011

Krystle rated it:

Graceling has a beautiful cover, great premise, and lots of hype, and would be a terrific novel if it weren’t for the terrible writing and atrocious main character.

What is with the awkward sentence structures and prose in this book? "In these dungeons the darkess was complete, but Katsa had a map in her mind." It should be "In these dungeons, the darkness was complete, but Katsa had a map in her mind." And look at the next sentence: "One that had so far prov More...

10 comments like (20 people liked it)

Jul 13, 2011

Kelsey rated it:

My journey into the world of the Seven Kingdoms began and ended in one day. That's right, one day- I started this book at about nine in the morning and finished it around five, and all I can say is wow. Just wow. I am completely blown away.

Let me explain something. I was intially disappointed when I started Graceling this morning- the first part of the story, although interesting, struck me as flat. The characters did not seem to be fleshed out and there seem to be very little plot o More...

2 comments like (6 people liked it)

Aug 06, 2011

Ryn rated it:

This was pretty much one of the most irritating books of all time - and consistent with my idea of YA fantasy. But I fought my way through it because, goshdarnit, I picked it up at the library, dragged it home with a load of other books and groceries, and renewed it the max number of times - I was gonna finish it.

You know the kickbutt heroine who is just totally kickbutt and doesn't need no one, no way, no how, and yet loves and feels and hurts deeply and yet keeps everyone away beca More...

1 comment like (7 people liked it)

Jan 20, 2011

Zeek rated it:

In Katsa's world, people are born with "graces"- a supernatural ability that sets them apart from the rest. Since a young age, when she accidentally killed an Uncle who threatened her, everyone has cut Katsa a wide berth because it was obvious her "grace" was killing. Everyone, that is, but another Uncle who happens to be the King of the Middluns.

A cunning man, he didn't have her put to death as some would have wanted. (For a grace such as Killing was indeed dangero More...

4 comments like (4 people liked it)

Jun 20, 2009

Allison (The Allure of Books) rated it:

This review has been hidden because it contains spoilers. To view it, click here

13 comments like (21 people liked it)

Jul 27, 2008

Lynn rated it:

Tamora Pierce blurbs this book saying, "Here's a WOW of a book," and that sums up my feelings pretty well. Kristin Cashore has created an intensely interesting world and peopled it with characters that sparkle with complexity and life. The terms fast paced and compulsively readable can't be used often enough here. There are moments in the plot that literally made me gasp out loud but the core of the book is the naturallly evolving development of the characters who take control of More...

3 comments like (13 people liked it)

Aug 28, 2011

Joyzi rated it:

SPOILER ALERT!!!

It's funny, action-packed, romantic and I was like a bit teary-eyed at the end when I learned that Po was blind that was really sad. It's a book that has a very sarcastic and humorous dialogue that I really loved. It got kind of boring and draggy when they were like traveling and stuff. And also I hate the part when Leck was killed I thought that was like rush and it wasn't described and explained longer, it's like the climax was like ended too quickly.

The More...

34 comments like (4 people liked it)

Feb 23, 2009

Candi rated it:

Hm. The hardest thing about this book is that it COULD HAVE BEEN SO GOOD. I started out loving everything about it and ready to recommend it to everyone. But then it started reading like a feminist/anti-marriage/anti-kids campaign platform (okay - that might be a little much, but you started to feel that the author had an agenda). It was just really disappointing, because I loved the characters so much. Oh well.
Also - even though it's considered a YA novel, there is sex in it. Pretty disa More...

11 comments like (32 people liked it)

Jul 23, 2010

Jasmin rated it:

Graceling. n. A person born with an extreme skill – called a grace. Identifiable by presence of mismatching color of eyes.

Seven Kingdoms. A place where gracelings are either laughed at or feared. But mostly, they are exploited and used for other’s personal gain.

Some gracelings are blessed with absurd graces, such as ability to hold breath for hours underwater. Some graced with practical skills such as cooking or combat skills. Some graced with powers to see the future. An More...

13 comments like (11 people liked it)

Feb 20, 2011

Jeneroso rated it:

This review has been hidden because it contains spoilers. To view it, click here

11 comments like (3 people liked it)

Nov 26, 2010

Lowed rated it:

♫♪ This is a story of a girl. Who cried a river and drown the whole world. ♪♫ Yup! this one book tells that even the mightiest and the strongest (and even the most intelligent of all)grovels in the name of LOVE!

18 comments like (8 people liked it)

Mar 23, 2009

Genevieve rated it:

This one has been getting a lot of praise, but it didn't do much for me. Although I liked the premise––a strong heroine with a moral dilemma! danger and intrigue!––and the first scene drew me in, I was disappointed by the execution. The world felt unimaginative and barely sketched-out (to the point that the names of five out of seven kingdoms are thinly disguised versions of North, South, East, West, and Middle); the plot was thin and most of the characters flat. The 'some people have specia More...

0 comments like (12 people liked it)