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Graceling

(Graceling Realm #1)

Kristin Cashore

4.07 · Rating details · 426,408 ratings · 24,316 reviews

Katsa has been able to kill a man with her bare hands since she was eight—she’s a Graceling, one of the rare people in her land born with an extreme skill. As niece of the king, she should be able to live a life of privilege, but Graced as she is with killing, she is forced to work as the king’s thug.

She never expects to fall in love with beautiful Prince Po.

She never ex ...more

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Hardcover, 471 pages

Published October 1st 2008 by Harcourt

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Aug 18, 2009 Krystle rated it did not like it

Graceling has a beautiful cover, great premise, and lots of hype, and would be a terrific novel if it weren’t for the 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 proven to be correct, as Oll's maps tended to do." ...more

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Sep 22, 2008 Miss Clark rated it it was ok

Recommends it for: Mature Readers

Shelves: adventure, fairytale-fantasy-sci-fi-mythology

This review has been hidden because it contains spoilers. To view it, click here. I wanted so badly to like this book. It has so much going for it. It is original and inventive. I never once caught myself thinking, "Now, where did I read that before? Oh, right, in the last three books!" The idea of the graced, their skills and their mismatched eyes; of the seven kingdoms; of the characters themselves. All of them were uniquely Cashore's own. Her prose was clear and lucid, though there were passages that dragged and made me want to skip ahead. So, pacing was occasionally a pro I wanted so badly to like this book. It has so much going for it. It is original and inventive. I never once caught myself thinking, "Now, where did I read that before? Oh, right, in the last three books!" The idea of the graced, their skills and their mismatched eyes; of the seven kingdoms; of the characters themselves. All of them were uniquely Cashore's own. Her prose was clear and lucid, though there were passages that dragged and made me want to skip ahead. So, pacing was occasionally a problem, but not the actual words themselves. I thought it quite notable, especially as a debut.

However. Yes, that dreaded however.

But before we get to that, a quick disclaimer. I certainly have no say on what Cashore did or did not intend the book to say. I only can say with certainty what I find in the book and I hope you can agree that if, in addition to great writing and engaging stories, one desires one's reading material to have at the very least some simple ethics, it is more than reasonable that some readers will discuss and debate the ethics and social mores that certain features of this book present. Personally, I appreciate being able to discuss something that a book mentions and which allows me to think of it in an entirely different light.

I am fully aware that many might feel that this review is biased and unfair, written from a narrow-minded, hidebound mentality. How dare I allow my personal convictions to color my view of a book I read? Especially a fantasy book that clearly takes place in a world that is not this one. But before you comment to let me know that I am a horrible disgrace and disappointment as a human for allowing my personal convictions to color my view of a book that I have read, please take a moment to know that I am not allowing any comments on this review. I had nearly 50 comments on this review and I ultimately chose to delete them when the vitriolic, contemptuous comments kept coming. For those of you whose opinions differed, but who chose to share that contrary opinion with civility and tolerance, I would like once more to extend my sincerest thanks, especially to Ariel and Angie. For the others that commented to agree or say thanks for the review, I hope it helped.

So, back to that however. My issue is that firstly, what Po and Katsa have is not love. Infatuation? Certainly. Affection? Sure. But love, "true love," is wanting what is best for the other person and doing whatever one can so that the other is able to move toward the best. Thus, love is at its core sacrificial and giving. What is the purpose of Katsa's and Po's sexual relationship? It is of transient emotional and physical benefit, but how does it benefit them ultimately? I don’t believe that love equals sex, and the book seemed to infer just that.

But say she did love him. I'm all for girl power and females don't need a guy to be fulfilled. All for that. I even understand that at that point in Katsa's life she had just claimed her freedom and could not imagine entering any other station of life that would in any way limit or curtail her personal liberty. All well and fine. But then she goes ahead and enters into a physical relationship with a guy because she "loves" him, but just can't ever be "married" to him because that would limit her sense of self and her own freedom to come and go as she pleased. Granted, the concept of marriage within the confines of that secondary world might differ, it could be a total abnegation of self, but I never got that sense when they talked about marriages in their society. In fact, at its core, marriage (in our world) is a contract of personal commitment between two people, but Katsa, while perhaps legitimately shunning marriage in her world, still has no desire to ever commit to Po in any way. So it would seem that Katsa's issues had way more to do with herself and her own flaws and insecurities than the idea of commitment or even Po. Given his affection for her, he would never have limited her freedom. But flip the coin. What if it was Po who “loved” Katsa, but refused to marry her because then he would not be free? Where he was the one who would take whatever Katsa had to offer, but did not care enough to actually make any sort of commitment to her? That likely would not go over as well. It is strange what a double standard we have in relationships, esp. in a "feminist" age. We praise novels that show females as strong, independent individuals, even if that means they are also selfish and controlling, while we quite rightly condemn that sort of behavior in male protagonists. But then not only are we giving a sad view of a "strong" woman, as if that is the only way to portray a vibrant and intelligent female, we are also touting a weak and ineffective masculine image that indicates that no male can be resourceful or a leader or else he is preventing the girl from being who she ought to be free to be...etc. When we did we stop striving for an ideal where both men and women complimented each other, each being allowed their own strengths, and being equals rather than always rivals and competitors?

So, again, a talented new author, but I have deep reservations about some of the messages in this book and I doubt I will recommend it to many people. Which is a shame considering the quality of the rest of the story, which is easily three stars for the prose, though the plot had a few spots that seemed out of place.

Graceling never seemed like it should have been a love story (much less a hook-up), and I was loving it as a fine fantasy/ personal growth novel, but once they brought in the romantic/ anti-romantic elements, it lost me. ...more

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Mar 26, 2010 Kat Kennedy rated it really liked it

Shelves: kat-s-book-reviews

Graceling by Kristin Cashore follows in a burgeoning market for strong female characters.

Katsa is much like Katniss from The Hunger Games in her naive perception of the world, her coldness and tendency towards pragmatic practicality. She is similar to Xhex from the Black Dagger Brotherhood in her disgust of all things "feminine".

The story is well written, with engaging, fun characters. Katsa is fun to read about. The plot may be a little predictable at times but it did throw me a curve ball tow ...more

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Mar 19, 2018 Miranda Reads rated it really liked it

Shelves: absolute-favorites, audiobook

When a monster stopped behaving like a monster, did it stop being a monster? Did it become something else?

Authors, take note: This is YA Lit done right.

Katsa is a monster. She's been one ever since she discovered the power of her killing Grace. Only...she starts to wonder, does she have to be?

In the Graceling Realm, those born with heterochromia (different colored eyes) are blessed with a Grace.

A Grace can be anything from the mundane (i.e. holding your breath indefinitely) to the cruel ( ...more

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Feb 14, 2011 Emily May rated it liked it · review of another edition

Shelves: fantasy, young-adult, 2011

July 2020: I cannot look at my original review for this book anymore. It's time it went under a tag. I won't delete it because it's sorta fun (and deeply embarrassing) to look back on the silly things I thought when I was younger. But I don't believe almost all of the things I wrote 9 years ago. If I ever do a reread, I'll write an updated review.

Old review posted 7th May 2011:
(view spoiler) ...more

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Sep 07, 2016 Elle (ellexamines) rated it it was amazing

Shelves: sff-high-fantasy, x-coverporn, she-did-that, favorite-characters, z-2015favs, z-2015reads, humanity, made-me-cry, 5-star, favorite-relationships

When a monster stopped behaving like a monster, did it stop being a monster? Did it become something else?

When I was ten through when I was twelve, I used to travel to see extended family multiple times a year, flying across the U.S. to do it. I owned Graceling, and a collection of other YA fantasy books, on Kindle. I would reread this book every single time I flew because it meant so much to me. This is one of my most reread books of all time, and it was such a big influence on bot ...more

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Feb 13, 2013 Rhea rated it it was ok

Shelves: young-adult, 2-stars-meh, genre-fantasy, morris, mythopoeic

What I think about when I hear the name...

Po:
- Po the Panda
- Po from Telletubbies
- A crazy guy (like Edgar Allen Poe)
- Poo

Katsa:
- Ketchup
- Mutant Katniss

Ror:
- Roar! I'm a T-Rex!

Tealiff:
- Tea Leaf

Skye:
- Skype
- A modern name, which you will NOT find in a medieval place.

King Randa:
- Ranting + Panda. King Ranting Panda!

Drowden:
- Drowsy
- Drowning

Thigpen
- Pig pen
- Thinking pen

Leck
- Lick
- Peck
- Neck
- Smack
- Some other variation

Lienid:
- An insult. ("Hey, you Lienid!")

By the way, Po's real name is Green ...more

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Apr 17, 2011 Penny rated it it was ok

Shelves: disappointing, grrrl-power, ya-fiction, fantasy, crazypants-protagonist, blerg, meh, it-s-maaaaaaagic

Updated 04/01/14:

I happen to like books which feature kick-ass feminist heroines and are light on the romance so I should like this book, right?

Yeah, but I don't.

First of all, Katsa acts like a petulant little girl throughout the entire book, not some strong feminist poster woman. Katsa shows very little, if any, personal growth over the course of this novel. Also, I felt like the author spent too much time trying to sell us on the following ideas: femininity is an idea forced upon women by t ...more

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Oct 03, 2010 karen rated it really liked it

Shelves: why-yes-i-ya, and-so-this-is-grad-school, favorites

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 wonderfully sweet relationship. at the beginni 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 wonderfully sweet relationship. at the beginning, you can't even imagine how you ever got along without it.and your friends (ariel) try to talk you out of it "oh, don't get with that guy, he gave me herpes" or whatever... but at the beginning everything was shiny and magical and when things started to go a little bit awry, i wrote it off as a glitch - a bad day that didn't necessarily mean that we weren't super awesome soulmates.

(because it's true - the "girl time in the mountain" sequence was the weakest, but i really thought the book rebounded to perfection afterward. we can forgive one drunken dalliance, can't we? one lapse in judgment?? what happens n graceling stays in graceling? yes?)

i just loved so much about this book - i never ever get invested in the love story side plots of these teen fiction books - i have yet to be on a "team". but this time, i fully believed in their attraction, and i really wanted these crazy kids to get together and kick ass together forever. their fighting scenes, when they were fighting each other, were hugely erotic,and for once the male lead seemed worthy in a way that others have not been. their shyness, their tenderness.... i found it very sweet. and if i was a crying type of girl, i would definitely have cried at this one.

so i am seriously bummed that the sequel is about the early life and times of king lamewad and not about anyone i actually cared about. but i will probably read it anyway, completist that i am.

and eventually, because i think i have largely abandoned this metaphor, and it is very important to follow through, even though there were bumps in the road and people got hurt and friends were less free with advice in the future, the experience was a generally positive one, and the memory lives on as an Important Time where everything seemed possible. even liking a book ariel said was bad...

come to my blog! ...more

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Sep 01, 2015 Melissa ♥ Dog/Wolf Lover ♥ Martin rated it it was amazing

Shelves: favorites, young-adult, fantasy-all, library-book

Okay, so this was a re-read on audio and I thought it was really cool with the multiple narrators and music and stuff. But sometimes one of the voices rubbed me the wrong way and the music went from fantasy to what sounded like western music. Lol. Maybe it was just me! I still loved the book though =)

I am in love with Katsa! She is an awesome inspiration for women warriors in a book. She kicks arse and takes names. I love the fact that she doesn't care anything about marriage or having kids. Sh ...more

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Jul 15, 2017 ❀ Lily ❀ added it · review of another edition

Watch my review here:
https://youtu.be/4h7n2qCWtlQ ...more

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Apr 24, 2009 Tatiana rated it really liked it · review of another edition

Shelves: morris, ya, 2020, 2009, fantasy, 2012, mythopoeic, locus

This is why it's so fun to revisit and reread an old book. It's amazing to remember the discourse around this novel 12 years ago. A revolutionary teen fantasy with a heroine who doesn't want to marry! and have kids! also periods and birth control are mentioned! So much debate and ranting, in which I participated too, to my embarrassment. (Should I delete my ramblings or leave my stupidity for posterity?) Does anyone care about people not committing to marriage or childbearing anymore? Certainly ...more

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Sep 08, 2018 Melanie rated it really liked it

Recommended to Melanie by: Elle (ellexamines)

Shelves: young-adult, read-in-2019, fantasy

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Apr 23, 2020 jessica rated it liked it · review of another edition

this is a really good 'in the moment' kind of story. i felt pretty present and engaged whilst reading it, but i havent thought about this once since ive finished it... which makes me kinda question what i actually liked about it.

the concept of the graced is cool, but i couldnt really tell you anything about them other than they exist. the writing itself is decent, but the pacing is slow and the story drawn out. there is a satisfying ending, but the climax happens within the blink of a sentence a ...more

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Nov 04, 2012 Wendy Darling rated it really liked it · review of another edition

Shelves: crush-worthy-boys, fantasy, historical-fantasy, read-2012, audio, young-adult, survival, favorite-ya, mature-ya

Loved it. Except for the raging feminist agenda.

NOTE: Since these two brief, flippant sentences have gotten so many trolls over the years, I'll just add that I support the book's feminist ideals 100%.

What I do not like is the way we're hammered over the head with the message. (The "raging" part, if you will.) It's inelegant, tiresome soapboxing that managed to annoy someone who actually agrees with the principles, so I don't know how it's going to persuade anyone who does not. Katsa's views als ...more

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May 16, 2010 Vicki rated it it was amazing

Shelves: novels, young-adult, library-books, part-of-a-series, feministy-goodness, fantasy, favorites

Gah sooo good!

Okay, I read some of the other reviews and now I feel the need to defend this book. Basically, I think it's completely hilarious how many people are shocked and appalled that 1) there is sex in this book, and 2) the heroine does not desire to get married or have children. Guess what? Young adults *do* have sex. And the idea that it's not love if you don't want to marry them, or that you shouldn't have sex until you're married is why all the poor children in your congregation are ma ...more

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May 30, 2017 Kaylin (The Re-Read Queen) rated it really liked it

Recommended to Kaylin by: Elle (ellexamines)

Shelves: memorable-male-characters, fantasy, recommended-to-me, young-adult

4 Stars

Overview:

“When a monster stopped behaving like a monster, did it stop being a monster? Did it become something else?”

I honestly didn’t know anything about this, but I'd seen it around and finally it was recommended enough. I was really surprised by the depth of this story and the characters.

The story revolves around Katsa, who lives in a world where people can be born with a ‘Grace.’ Meaning, aside from two-different eye colors, they have an exceptional skill. Katsa’s grace is kill ...more

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Jul 30, 2008 Sean rated it liked it

Shelves: fantasy, ya-books

[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 several of the characters (including Kats ...more

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Jan 01, 2021 Era ➴ rated it it was ok

Shelves: full-reviews, old-reviews

I tried to read this twice and failed. The third time, I made myself read it.

Still didn't actually care, but I did it.

Let's see. Katsa was literally just a piece of cardboard who didn't care about anything expect beating stuff up and walking though a mountain range. Oh, also, she has speshul abilities that make her able to live through literally everything. So she's not as fragile as cardboard, which is therapeutic to stab. Katsa is immune to being stabbed. So I guess she's a rock.

Po was useless ...more

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Jul 19, 2011 Ryn rated it did not like it

Shelves: young-adult-fantasy

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 because she is b 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 because she is baaaaaad? Yeah, that one. I hate her.

You know the quiet, loving hero who worships the ground his heroine walks on and yet is reasonably kickbutt himself, while at the same time deferring to the heroine's wishes and not fulfilling any of his own? I hate him, too.

Katsa was a child, and I hated that she and Po meandered their way into a sexual relationship because of 'twu wuv' and the fact that she would be tied down if she married. By golly, dontcha know you don't have to be married to have sex and lead a wonderful, fulfilling life? Now imagine the situation reversed - if Po had fallen in 'twu wuv' with Katsa, but would never contemplate marriage because he thought it would tie him down and keep him from true freedom... Wow, that would be really, really sexist. And lame. But if a woman does it to the man whom she loves (and who loves her in return), it's a point for us rockin' feminists.

Please. Please. For the love of good fantasy fiction, let's write and read about realistic characters and remember that what's good for the goose is good for the gander. I would have hated it if Po had refused to marry Katsa for the reasons stated above, but neither do I enjoy it when the poor guy's just supposed to be some worthless blob waiting for her to come home from her adventures, beat him at fights, and then run off into the wild blue yonder again. Isn't marriage/love supposed to be a give-and-take between equals? If Katsa had scorned marriage in the beginning and rethought her view after learning that Po's love would never keep her bound, there would have been something to say in defense of this novel.

I suppose the idea of the Grace and the Kingdoms, etc. was good, but the childish, flat chracters and overdone prose made it a difficult, boring read that could have been halved and still felt too long. And best wishes to the youth who read this and decide that sex isn't a big deal, that it can happen as long as you KNOW you're in love (because, obviously, it's easy to know when you're that age), and that 'marriage' is a synonym for 'slavery'. ...more

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Apr 12, 2017 sunny rated it it was ok

Recommended to sunny by: Elle (ellexamines)

Shelves: literal-garbage, romance, young-adult, boring-af, i-dont-get-the-hype, endless-pain, fantasy, cringe-romance, recommended-to-me, shawty-so-bad

2.5 stars.

This started off really well and I was actually enjoying it, but around page 230 I started to drift away from the plot and (view spoiler) really annoyed me because I did not like their romantic relationship. The plot started to bore me and I suddenly disliked Katsa's character after page 230 or somewhere around that.

◆I love love LOVED Katsa's character in the beginning. She's graced with the power to fight and kill unlike any huma 2.5 stars.

This started off really well and I was actually enjoying it, but around page 230 I started to drift away from the plot and (view spoiler) really annoyed me because I did not like their romantic relationship. The plot started to bore me and I suddenly disliked Katsa's character after page 230 or somewhere around that.

◆I love love LOVED Katsa's character in the beginning. She's graced with the power to fight and kill unlike any human. She's a strong, badass character and I really loved and connected to her. I, too, am a tomboy who wrestles and it was nice to read about a relatable character. She was interesting and I really saw her develop throughout the novel from interesting to boring. :)

◆I loved the killing. Seriously, it's the best thing about this book.

○Spoiler??? I hated Po and Katsa's romance. I really liked them as friends, but when Po suddenly declared his love for Katsa, I MAY HAVE SCREAMED IN MY HEAD AND STARTED SWEARING ANGRILY BECAUSE NO. THEY ARE THE WORST COUPLE EVER. I saw no development in their relationship. I was just reading, ~~then dozing off bc #bored~~ AND BOOM, all of a sudden Po is like "I LOVE YOU" *tears stream down Katsa's face*. Literally, hated them as a couple. I HATED IT.

○Like I mentioned, this started off really well, but then around page 230 I started to drift away from the plot and started losing interest big time. The next 250? pages were a big blur of what-the-fuck-is-happening and I'm-seriously-fucking-bored. I literally tried so hard not to fall asleep, like,I WAS SO FUCKING BORED.

○The plot.
...
Lol, what.

Overall, I have no idea of what i just read and I'm tired as fuck right now.

------------------------------------
5-ish years ago when I was discovering YA novels, I came across this book. I read two pages of this and then DNFed it. I don't even know what was wrong with me because this book sounds so awesome and I really hope it turns out good. (ELISE, I'M LOOKING AT YOU, lol!) ...more

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Oct 11, 2016 Wren (fablesandwren) rated it really liked it

Shelves: 04-stars, ya-sf-fantasy

If you know anything about me, you’ll know that Shannon Hale and Gail Carson Levine are two authors that have dreamed up books that made a handprint on my childhood. They are lively and they are uplifting and they shine girls in a light that the media and history turn a blind eye to.

Well, now I am going to add Kristin Cashmore to that list.

She writes exactly like those two ladies mentioned about, but for a slightly older age group. She grasps the fairytale feel by the hand and wrote this story a ...more

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Aug 15, 2021 Ashleigh (a frolic through fiction) rated it really liked it · review of another edition

Shelves: physically-own

Something about this book really pulled me in and made me feel all sorts of squishy emotions, despite the grit and gore of the plot. The characters won me over so quickly and I think ultimately that’s what did it for me. Combined with some of my favourite tropes and a story I was invested in, I ended up loving this one even more than expected. I can see why it’s been a favourite of so many for years now.

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May 28, 2017 may ➹ rated it it was amazing

Shelves: young-adult, rep-bipoc, fantasy, rereads, pov-female, 5-star, my-heart, buddy-reads, read-2020

get you a friend who drops everything to reread this with you because you’re sad and need the serotonin

(update: I binged this in 2 days but now I have no serotonin anymore)

// buddy read with my favorite person ever

...more

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Jul 16, 2011 carol. rated it liked it

Shelves: young-adult, female-lead, awards, fantasy

Ambivalence: the coexistence within an individual of positive and negative feelings toward the same person, object, or action, simultaneously drawing him or her in opposite directions (Dictionary.com). Thus ends my Graceling review.

Kidding! But it does sum it up nicely.

On the one hand, I found it a fast, engaging read that was hard to put down. As a favorite tale states, there is "fencing, fighting, torture, revenge, giants, monsters, chases, escapes, true love, miracles..." Alright, maybe not Ambivalence: the coexistence within an individual of positive and negative feelings toward the same person, object, or action, simultaneously drawing him or her in opposite directions (Dictionary.com). Thus ends my Graceling review.

Kidding! But it does sum it up nicely.

On the one hand, I found it a fast, engaging read that was hard to put down. As a favorite tale states, there is "fencing, fighting, torture, revenge, giants, monsters, chases, escapes, true love, miracles..." Alright, maybe not the giants or monsters, at least in chimera form, but as human allegories they exist. It was particularly easy to get lost in reading with so many developments and the drive to know the ending. I sat down with it on a rainy day and finished it with a few hours. A few criticisms of the book center around the "Mary Sue" main character; a description I would have to dispute. Although Katsa seems invincible because of her Grace, she is emotionally stunted and out of touch with her own feelings, and the two together is what helps to make her character flawed and accessible. Katsa and Po are taken in interesting directions emotionally as they awaken to the greater application of their talents. I also give kudos to Cashore for not following the obvious and traditional ending, and for raising the marriage issue in a way that has potentially offended many readers.

On the other hand, a central problem was a lack of audience definition. I don't read a great deal of young adult, but the writing style seemed particularly Spartan with frequently repeated phrases, simplistic characterizations and a generally stripped-down format that I associate with books targeting younger readers (or authors tired of their adult series--hello, Evanovich-- bad Carol!). I tend to love word-smithing, and there were a bit many eyes flashing and scowling expressions for my taste. The most lavishly described section occurs late in the book when Katsa climbs a wintery mountain pass, almost as if either Katsa or Cashore was finally settling into her world and looking around at the scenery. World-building was somewhat scant and characterizations somewhat simplistic (evil is really evil because it controls people, abuses animals and scares young girls), which again I can't fault if a younger audience is the target. The challenge comes with a romance that (view spoiler) --probably removing it from the 10 year-old audience I had thought intended--or at least the less precocious ones.

One of the most fascinating things about this book is the gender reversal. When discussing it in group, I realized that I likely would have disliked this book immensely had the talents of the two main characters been reversed. And there is one of the lynchpins of the book--had it been reversed, this book might have passed under the radar of most readers. As it was, I thought Katsa and Po were done well enough in the reversal to be believable.

Conclusion? I wouldn't mind my niece or hypothetical daughter reading, but it's not present-worthy. Three reversed stars

Cross posted at http://clsiewert.wordpress.com/2013/0...

...more

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Mar 08, 2013 Tadiana ✩Night Owl☽ rated it liked it

Shelves: kinda-steamy, fantasy, all-aboard-the-superpowers-train

My teenage daughter brought this home from the library and didn't get to it soon enough, so I swiped it from her and read it in one day. It was a fun read for the most part and certainly kept my attention; I found myself making excuses to my visiting relatives in the evening so I could hole up in my bedroom and finish this novel in peace (in my defense, it was 11:30 pm and they'd been talking my ears off for two hours). That said, I have some qualms about recommending this book.

A lot has been sa My teenage daughter brought this home from the library and didn't get to it soon enough, so I swiped it from her and read it in one day. It was a fun read for the most part and certainly kept my attention; I found myself making excuses to my visiting relatives in the evening so I could hole up in my bedroom and finish this novel in peace (in my defense, it was 11:30 pm and they'd been talking my ears off for two hours). That said, I have some qualms about recommending this book.

A lot has been said about Katsa, the heroine who swears never to marry or have children (but decides it's okay to take a lover). Whether or not that bothers you in a YA book is your decision, but it left me uncomfortable enough that I sat down with my daughter to have a chat about it, if she decides to read the book. Katsa's anti-marriage, anti-children attitude seemed unnecessarily stringent, and unlikely to be such a completely final decision in a very young woman, maybe 20 years old. As a result, it struck me as something that was inserted by the author for her own reasons, not as a trait that is truly integral to Katsa's character.

A few other quibbles: The kingdom names showed a dearth of creativity: Wester, Nander, Estill, Sunder and Middluns are the names for the kingdoms in the west, north, east, south and middle of the peninsula. I guess Cashore didn't want us to have to over-exert our imaginations. Some of the traveling scenes went on too long--I found myself paging ahead to see how many more pages of this misery I had to slog through. The final confrontation with the bad guy (who is really sadistic and evil; sensitive readers beware) was done and over a little too quickly for me. And finally, the "Graces" or superpowers that some of the characters have were more creative than usual, but I thought the idea that anyone blessed (or cursed) with these powers always has eyes of different colors was a little bit too cutesie and improbable. Still, I wouldn't say no to a nice pair of silver and gold eyes staring into mine.

description

I did like the idea of the unofficial "Council" (view spoiler). I also liked (view spoiler).

Content advisory: Sex scene with mild explicitness. Heroine kills and injures several people. There is a sadistic character who does horrible things and wants to do them to his own young child. Not recommended for younger teens or "clean reads only" readers. ...more

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Sep 01, 2018 mark monday rated it really liked it

Shelves: fantasy-modern, teenworld

about six times a year, I facilitate a weekend training on being a peer support volunteer. our volunteers are often very, very different from our clients, so our training often focuses on how to bridge those differences and build a empathetic and supportive relationship. we go over many topics, include what we call "Cultural Awareness". this is a catch-all phrase and not simply about culture per se - although of course everyone hails from a particular culture, one that helps form who that person about six times a year, I facilitate a weekend training on being a peer support volunteer. our volunteers are often very, very different from our clients, so our training often focuses on how to bridge those differences and build a empathetic and supportive relationship. we go over many topics, include what we call "Cultural Awareness". this is a catch-all phrase and not simply about culture per se - although of course everyone hails from a particular culture, one that helps form who that person is, and that culture is a part of their personal context. but we like to move beyond that, using the concept of "Cultural Humility": approach another person's identity with the intention of learning and in the spirit of humility; a person should define their own identity because that person is the one who is most familiar with their own reality; an individual should not automatically be seen as emblematic of their culture or race or ethnicity or gender or sexual orientation or class or age or whatever. a person's perception of who they are may not parallel what other people automatically perceive about them, based on their appearance or casual, passing interactions. that difference in perception can be annoying and painful. I like to have trainees go through an exercise where they consider who they are and then consider how they have been incorrectly perceived. I use myself as an example before having them do the exercise, like so:

what I loved most about this book is that it is all about this idea. this is a young adult novel, and even though this issue of perception versus reality is something that everyone at every age can wrestle with, it is of special importance to young adults because that's a particular time period of self-searching, figuring out your identity, and reacting to whatever box you may be in or whatever box others may be trying to put you in. like so:

I really appreciated Cashore's message. it's so simple and yet so important. and that message is woven throughout the book, through most of its characters, from its protagonists to the two probably-gay characters to the foolish guy who loves Katsa to the fascinating and horrendous villain. Cashore hits that message again and again; it's a message worth hitting hard. everyone has to deal with being put in a box despite knowing that their reality is not simply that box. reality is so much more than boxes and other people's perceptions of who and why you are. like so:

the story itself is fun and the book was pure pleasure to read. the writing was clean and efficient. the emotions on display were resonant. the love story was actually pretty cool and not annoying. I was impressed with how Cashore illustrated her message not just with Katsa's experiences, but with what eventually happens to Po (i.e. it's not all about what you see; there's more to see than what's right in front of you). I didn't mind the unimaginative place names because it gave the book a rather timeless quality. the three powers most on display were very interesting; I particularly liked how the villain's power parallels the power many politicians have over people who just automatically buy their bullshit messages, and who then deliver that fake message to others as if it were actually the truth.

I really, really liked how Katsa's antipathy to marriage and having children, and Po's willingness to meet her halfway, were portrayed in a positive light. I am by no means anti-marriage (and neither is this story), but it was such a different sort of message for young adults that was being conveyed here. a girl (or a boy) doesn't actually have to settle down in a traditional way. a relationship does not have to be sanctified by a title to be real; you can connect deeply with someone, love someone, without being married to them. you can be your own person and that includes not being with another person for the rest of your life. you are who you are; being different and having a different kind of relationship and not subscribing to cultural norms that you aren't feeling is perfectly okay. great message... great book! ...more

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Dec 21, 2008 Candi Stephenson rated it it was ok

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 disappoint ...more

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Feb 24, 2009 Danielle The Book Huntress rated it liked it

Recommends it for: recommended for adventure aspects, not interpersonal/relationship aspects

Shelves: young-adult, kickbutt-heroine, reluctant-heroine, assassin, fantasy, superhuman, psychic, fantasy-romance, warrior-woman, no-longer-own

This review has been hidden because it contains spoilers. To view it, click here. Review Update: 9/9/11
I am going to do something I don't do when it comes to reviewing/rating books. I have thought about this book a lot, and the fact that I really disagreed with the message about women, what empowers women, how they show that they are 'strong' and 'independent' women. I am going to downgrade my rating because I felt like the message in this book was too blatant and leading. It feels manipulative to me, and that's an issue I can't get past. Ultimately an author has a choice of ...more

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Feb 04, 2018 Holly rated it did not like it · review of another edition

Shelves: young-adult, dnf, fantasy, books-i-own, 2018

DNF.

This book was not for me. It has a very pretty cover and an interesting premise, but sadly, that is where my admiration for it ends.

I really hated this author's writing style. The sentence structure and dialogue felt very juvenile to me -- at one point I checked to see if it was actually a children's book instead of YA. The writing style bothered me the most when it came to scenes involving fighting. The descriptions of the characters' actions were very clumsily written, and I had a hard ti ...more

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What's the Name o...: SOLVED. Children/YA Fantasy. Main character is female teen & love interest is named Po(?). He goes blind sometime in the book because he gets injured. Also, every person in this books world has a special ability or something to that effect. [s]	5	18	Sep 30, 2021 02:01PM
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YA Buddy Readers'...: Graceling (Graceling Realm #1) by Kristin Cashore - Restarting May 24th 2021	129	150	May 27, 2021 03:22PM
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About Kristin Cashore

Kristin Cashore

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Kristin Cashore grew up in the northeast Pennsylvania countryside as the second of four daughters. She received a bachelor's degree from Williams College and a master's from the Center for the Study of Children's Literature at Simmons College. She currently lives in the Boston area. ...more

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