BITTERBLUE by Kristin Cashore Book Review
Series: Graceling Realm, #3
Publication Date: May 1st 2012 by Dial
Rating: 
– Exceeds Expectations | 
Book Summary: Eight years after Graceling, Bitterblue is now queen of Monsea. But the influence of her father, a violent psychopath with mind-altering abilities, lives on. Her advisors, who have run things since Leck died, believe in a forward-thinking plan: Pardon all who committed terrible acts under Leck’s reign, and forget anything bad ever happened. But when Bitterblue begins sneaking outside the castle–disguised and alone–to walk the streets of her own city, she starts realizing that the kingdom has been under the thirty-five-year spell of a madman, and the only way to move forward is to revisit the past.
Two thieves, who only 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, with an extreme skill called a Grace that he hasn’t yet identified, holds a key to her heart.
Bitterblue by Kristin Cashore Book Review Overview:
- Kristin Cashore will not disappoint fans of the Graceling Realm
- This can be read as a standalone but it’s really a lot better if you read the other two books first
- The romance is not as epic as the Fire or Graceling but it’s still pretty sweet
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.
About the AuthorKristin Cashore wrote the New York Times bestsellers Graceling and Fire, both of which have been named ALA Best Books for Young Adults. Graceling is the winner of the 2009 Mythopoeic Fantasy Award for Children’s Literature and Fire is the winner of Amelia Elizabeth Walden Award. The books are world travelers, currently scheduled to be published in thirty languages. |
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