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kellyroads's review against another edition
challenging
dark
emotional
mysterious
reflective
sad
tense
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
5.0
Content Warnings
Moderate: Child abuse, Rape, Sexual violence, Suicide, and Violence
cgnollreads's review against another edition
All I can say is one; it's as good as the others and two; I LOVE Saf!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
peytonm's review against another edition
5.0
A gorgeous tale with so many twists and turns that even though I was questioning everyone, it still surprised me! Breathtaking work by Kristin Cashore.
theevilcactus1's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
emotional
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.5
Not quite as perfect as Fire, but still a solid addition to the series. Bitterblue feels like a very distinct character from Fire and, although politics and mind control are major themes in both books, they are explored in very different ways here, and I appreciated that they felt like very different stories (while still belonging in the same universe).
Content Warnings
Graphic: Child abuse, Domestic abuse, Pedophilia, Sexual assault, and Suicide
Moderate: Animal cruelty, Child death, Self harm, Torture, and Medical trauma
The main character’s father, who is already deceased prior to the start of the book, was a psychopath with mind control abilities who hurt a lot of people in a lot of ways, including sexually abusing both adults and children, and mind-controlling others into participating in this abuse. This is a major plot-point and we read several journal entries written by said psychopath about these abuses.lovisareads's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
emotional
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
5.0
THIS BOOK WAS SO GOOD it definitely has to be my favorite book in this series so far, plot wise
oddio's review against another edition
1.0
Bitterblue was actually one of my most anticipated books of 2012. I liked [b:Graceling|3236307|Graceling (Graceling Realm, #1)|Kristin Cashore|http://d.gr-assets.com/books/1331548394s/3236307.jpg|3270810] and [b:Fire|6137154|Fire (Graceling Realm, #2)|Kristin Cashore|http://d.gr-assets.com/books/1331535456s/6137154.jpg|6128277]. Not only were they beautifully written, but they were entertaining and set up worlds that I could become engrossed in. Bitterblue just ruined it all for me. Thanks very much Kristin Cashore.
This book is the reason I made an entire Goodreads shelf for boring books. This book's plot is ultimately pointless. I thought it would be a good idea to expand the Graceling universe beyond one book, and as soon as I heard this book was centered around Bitterblue I immediately got hyped. The sad thing was, this book was just a massive missed opportunity. Also, this review may or may not be packed with spoilers, but I hid the review anyway.
The book centers around queen Bitterblue, her troubles running a kingdom, her finding out about her father and her nightly outgoings out of the castle. Of course, these stop when Sapphire finds out Bitterblue is the queen about halfway through, and about 95% of the book afterwards is centered around the castle. FUN. That's pretty much it. Although we do learn more about Leck's rule and Fire's part of the "world", that's it. The plot is basically...
Bitterblue sneaks out of the castle and makes it a regular thing.
She finds books and stuff that reveal more about her parent's past.
She falls for Sapphire.
Political stuff happens that I don't care about.
More backstory.
Bitterblue is confused.
More backstory...
MORE BACKSTORY....
Normally, I don't mind when characters have mysterious pasts, but this is just overdoing it. Oh yeah, other characters make appearances, but was it just me, or did Katsa and Po seem really off-character? Like, their characters are extremely exaggerated. Maybe it was just me, but Katsa seemed much peppier than normal. : / This has to be one of the most slow-moving books I've ever read, and for what? seriously, the whole book is 563 PAGES LONG. Ihe author probably made made the plot as lengthy as possible on purpose, but this is going to far.
Also, something that bothered me. The whole book takes place in Bitterblue City (very creative there.) I have an idea Cashore, maybe Bitterblue could actually LEAVE her kingdom, or run away for some reason, and learn more about her parents on her journey as well as meet Fire while travelling. I don't see why'd she would leave her kingdom, but the plot would be much more entertaining that way.
Also, that way you could actually get Bitterblue to do something. She seems like a pretty smart queen, but she spends the whole book contemplating. There's only one scene in the whole 563 page book where she actually is involved in action, and she's just kind of boring.
As with Sapphire, I felt like he was only tacked onto the book to add some romance to the already lengthy plot. I mean, come on. Why else would he be dumped by the main character? He felt really pointless, but I guess his relationship with Bitterblue added some suspense to the plot. By "suspense", I mean very little. It's a sad thing when your romantic interest is very obviously added in to make your book more entertaining.
Positives? Kristen Cashore is no doubt a lovely writer, she just needs a more coherent plot to write. The pictures and cover were gorgeous. I also liked the character descriptions "written by Death" at the end and how ink "was conveniently knocked over by Lovejoy" where Madlen lived. Very subtle there Cashore. Seriously, with characters as forgettable and numerous as this I'm not afraid to admit I had to look at it several times while reading the book.
This book is the reason I made an entire Goodreads shelf for boring books. This book's plot is ultimately pointless. I thought it would be a good idea to expand the Graceling universe beyond one book, and as soon as I heard this book was centered around Bitterblue I immediately got hyped. The sad thing was, this book was just a massive missed opportunity. Also, this review may or may not be packed with spoilers, but I hid the review anyway.
The book centers around queen Bitterblue, her troubles running a kingdom, her finding out about her father and her nightly outgoings out of the castle. Of course, these stop when Sapphire finds out Bitterblue is the queen about halfway through, and about 95% of the book afterwards is centered around the castle. FUN. That's pretty much it. Although we do learn more about Leck's rule and Fire's part of the "world", that's it. The plot is basically...
Bitterblue sneaks out of the castle and makes it a regular thing.
She finds books and stuff that reveal more about her parent's past.
She falls for Sapphire.
Political stuff happens that I don't care about.
More backstory.
Bitterblue is confused.
More backstory...
MORE BACKSTORY....
Normally, I don't mind when characters have mysterious pasts, but this is just overdoing it. Oh yeah, other characters make appearances, but was it just me, or did Katsa and Po seem really off-character? Like, their characters are extremely exaggerated. Maybe it was just me, but Katsa seemed much peppier than normal. : / This has to be one of the most slow-moving books I've ever read, and for what? seriously, the whole book is 563 PAGES LONG. Ihe author probably made made the plot as lengthy as possible on purpose, but this is going to far.
Also, something that bothered me. The whole book takes place in Bitterblue City (very creative there.) I have an idea Cashore, maybe Bitterblue could actually LEAVE her kingdom, or run away for some reason, and learn more about her parents on her journey as well as meet Fire while travelling. I don't see why'd she would leave her kingdom, but the plot would be much more entertaining that way.
Also, that way you could actually get Bitterblue to do something. She seems like a pretty smart queen, but she spends the whole book contemplating. There's only one scene in the whole 563 page book where she actually is involved in action, and she's just kind of boring.
As with Sapphire, I felt like he was only tacked onto the book to add some romance to the already lengthy plot. I mean, come on. Why else would he be dumped by the main character? He felt really pointless, but I guess his relationship with Bitterblue added some suspense to the plot. By "suspense", I mean very little. It's a sad thing when your romantic interest is very obviously added in to make your book more entertaining.
Positives? Kristen Cashore is no doubt a lovely writer, she just needs a more coherent plot to write. The pictures and cover were gorgeous. I also liked the character descriptions "written by Death" at the end and how ink "was conveniently knocked over by Lovejoy" where Madlen lived. Very subtle there Cashore. Seriously, with characters as forgettable and numerous as this I'm not afraid to admit I had to look at it several times while reading the book.
oliviaschmit's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
emotional
funny
hopeful
mysterious
reflective
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.5
megosline's review against another edition
adventurous
challenging
dark
emotional
hopeful
mysterious
sad
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
jenni_elyse's review against another edition
5.0
I was a little worried I wouldn’t like Bitterblue very much because of all the mixed reviews I’d read. Reading these reviews kind of disappointed me because I loved both Graceling and Fire so much. Fortunately, I had nothing to worry about because I ended up loving Bitterblue.
I felt like Bitterblue was so much deeper than Graceling and Fire. Sure, both Graceling and Fire had awesomely strong female protagonists, but I felt like Katsa and Fire did everything they did for love, which isn’t necessarily a bad thing. Whereas, Bitterblue did everything she did because she wanted to help her people heal, become a better queen, and subsequently a stronger person. Her journey for self-awareness and empowerment was very moving and powerful.
If I remember correctly, the reason so many people didn’t like Bitterblue was the lack of romance. I actually really enjoyed that. There was enough to satiate my need for romance, but it didn’t impede Bitterblue in any way. Bitterblue realized that with or without man, she could be a whole person. I think more YA novels need to set that example. Too many novels scream that girls can’t be whole unless they have a boyfriend, which just isn’t true. Even married women can be whole and their one unique person. Their husband, or boyfriend in the case of YA novels, (or even children) aren’t the only reasons a woman has any purpose in this life. And, I really liked that Bitterblue portrayed that.
I loved the characters. I loved seeing Bitterblue older. I loved seeing her grown up. I loved seeing how she fared after being given such a monumental task at such a young age. I loved seeing my old favorite characters again, especially Katsa and Po. And, I loved seeing them from a different point-of-view. I also loved that all three novels were tied together; it brought things full circle. And, while Leck was creepy, horrible, evil, etc., I enjoyed learning more about him and what happened during his reign. Learning about his atrocities and what the kingdom and its people had overcome helped make their happiness and sorrow feel more powerful.
I’m really glad I finally took the time to read Bitterblue. It was well worth the wait. I look forward to reading anything else Kristin Cashore publishes. And, I hope she continues to explore the world she created in the Graceling Realms in future novels.
I felt like Bitterblue was so much deeper than Graceling and Fire. Sure, both Graceling and Fire had awesomely strong female protagonists, but I felt like Katsa and Fire did everything they did for love, which isn’t necessarily a bad thing. Whereas, Bitterblue did everything she did because she wanted to help her people heal, become a better queen, and subsequently a stronger person. Her journey for self-awareness and empowerment was very moving and powerful.
If I remember correctly, the reason so many people didn’t like Bitterblue was the lack of romance. I actually really enjoyed that. There was enough to satiate my need for romance, but it didn’t impede Bitterblue in any way. Bitterblue realized that with or without man, she could be a whole person. I think more YA novels need to set that example. Too many novels scream that girls can’t be whole unless they have a boyfriend, which just isn’t true. Even married women can be whole and their one unique person. Their husband, or boyfriend in the case of YA novels, (or even children) aren’t the only reasons a woman has any purpose in this life. And, I really liked that Bitterblue portrayed that.
I loved the characters. I loved seeing Bitterblue older. I loved seeing her grown up. I loved seeing how she fared after being given such a monumental task at such a young age. I loved seeing my old favorite characters again, especially Katsa and Po. And, I loved seeing them from a different point-of-view. I also loved that all three novels were tied together; it brought things full circle. And, while Leck was creepy, horrible, evil, etc., I enjoyed learning more about him and what happened during his reign. Learning about his atrocities and what the kingdom and its people had overcome helped make their happiness and sorrow feel more powerful.
I’m really glad I finally took the time to read Bitterblue. It was well worth the wait. I look forward to reading anything else Kristin Cashore publishes. And, I hope she continues to explore the world she created in the Graceling Realms in future novels.