14+

Okay so first I LOVE the covers. ‘dont judge a book by its cover’ may be apt but i certainly do judge the cover if it doesnt fit the book. Both the first and second versions of the covers really fit the essence of this story and I love how they are both on opposite style sides. I first read it with the cover with her standing against a gray background which really captures the characters internal separation from the people around her but the latest cover is more of a traditional fantasy vibe with just a few simple elements tied together that really scream the book.

I have just reread this book for the third time and to my delight the plot still holds up. I dont know quite how to describe the plot. The book is split up into three different sections, The Lady Killer, The Twisted King and The Shifting World and they all have their own plots and storylines within the overarching story which keeps it from dragging and becoming boring.

Katsa is a truely strong heroine and I enjoyed how Cashore showed us that she still has her limits, (especially emotionally and psychologically) but despite that she does choose to do the right thing. I almost feel like there could have been a book before this about how Katsa slowly realised just how much the king was using her but this story launches us right in at the perfect point as the seven kingdoms change forever. I found it a quick paced read, especially in the later two sections which improved massively. In the beginning I felt it lagged a little but gave us some interesting world-building details.

The world premise is a fantasy/historical feel with the fantasy Graces. People (seemingly at random but i am hoping we learn more in the next book!) are Graced with supernatural abilities, some relitavely innocent like being able to hold your breath for a very long time and some very dangerous like strength, perfect aim, heightened senses and in Katsa’s case a Killing Grace. Gracelings are easily picked out because they have different coloured eyes, like Katsa’s blue and green, and Po’s silver and gold. I also enjoyed seeing how Katsa’s relationship with her power changed as she used it further and further out of her uncle’s control and it struck a very delicate balance; having an assassin/kings executioner as the main character means the reader expects them to already have a lot of training and have a firm grasp on their power but Cashore also balanced that with Katsa’s power being stretched in other ways.

World – 4.5/5 – Love the concept of the Gracelings, we get a good look at different kingdoms and different types of people in it.

Characters – 4/5 – I do love Katsa’s strength and resilience, and Po is a very sweet cinnamon roll of a love interest even through he can hold his own. Bitterblue is a character we have only just started to explore (and one of the books on my TBR is titled Bitterblue so I can guess we’ll be seeing more of her!) but the rest of the supporting characters felt a little flat. I enthusiastically loathed King Leck but I did wish we learnt a bit more about his backstory as the main antagonist.

Romance – 4/5 – Swoony Romance A – I enjoyed it again! Their romance is somehow deeply entangled in the story and yet barely a subplot. They do sleep together on page, but it is barely anything and I honestly think it could have been removed or you could skip it (its only about half a paragraph) and it isnt graphic at all. It does push up the rating a little but I would say you could read it a little earlier if you dont mind/skip that.

Plot – I have gushed about it up there so I’ll just say 4.5/5 stars!

Things to be aware of: There is a bit of violence – it is quite a high tension novel and several people do die. There are a few sexual innuendos and threats as well as mentions of SA. Power being exploited and a very potent form of propaganda/metal control is explored (i am trying really hard not to give a spoiler here) but all of that only makes it up to about a 3/5 of violence. Two very vanilla sexual scenes that border on fade to black (click on the orange link to see what I mean by Sexy Romance).