Graceling
by: Kristen Cashore

Challenges: 1st in a Series Challenge

Published: 2008

# of pages: 471


For some reason I had The Hunger Games in mind when I started to read this. It must be because in my LibraryThing account it always shows this as a recommendation right next to The Hunger Games. Anyway, I couldn't help but compare the two for the first few chapters, but eventually I separated them in my mind and then enjoyed this book more. I did find the similarity in the main characters' names annoying. Katniss is the heroine of The Hunger Games and Katsa is the heroine of Graceling.

Katsa lives in a world where certain people are born with a grace. It could be the grace of cooking, the grace of fighting, the grace of drawing...or the grace of killing. The last is Katsa's grace. The people with graces are called Gracelings and they are the property of the land's many rulers. Katsa may be able to kill without effort, but it doesn't mean she enjoys it. She finds ways to rebel against her uncle the king, but until she meets another Graceling one fateful night, she doesn't do anything to change her situation.

Katsa's world is turned around when she meets a handsome Graceling who invades her world. He's mysterious and is on a mission, one in which Katsa is soon caught up in. The two Gracelings seem unstoppable, but can they survive traveling across the country's rugged terrain and becoming involved in a horrifyingly evil plot?

Like I said, I had a hard time enjoying the novel at first because I kept comparing it to one of my all time favorite books, but after awhile it seemed more individual and unique. I didn't enjoy it as much as I could have if Katsa was a little more open to love. I think her romantic decisions made the book less romantic. That's not necessarily bad, but I think I would have enjoyed it more if it had a little more traditional romance. :-)

This is appropriate for adult lovers of fantasy and possibly some young adults as well. There's mild sex scenes and maybe some mild language (I can't remember for sure). There's obviously some violence since Katsa is skilled in killing, but it isn't descriptive or overwhelming. Overall this was a unique and interesting read, I can't wait to read the sequel (Fire).



Have you reviewed this? Let me know and I'd be happy to post yours as well.