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4.02 AVERAGE
4.02 AVERAGE
Enjoyed the read overall, found the writing to be fun and whimsical which helped immerse me in the world. Katsa was an easy heroine to cheer for to me (love how blunt and matter-of-fact she is), and Po was a lovely complementary character (enjoyed his attitude and good-naturedness overall)- I
do wish there was a little more depth to him. My favourite moments were with the two of them together - I think the separation in the last third was important for their development & will likely read the next one to see how the story progresses.
do wish there was a little more depth to him. My favourite moments were with the two of them together - I think the separation in the last third was important for their development & will likely read the next one to see how the story progresses.
adventurous
mysterious
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
YEAH BABEY
4.5
probably havent read this book in about 14 years but after thinking abt it a lot i sat down and wound up rereading it in one session LMAO
it still holds up needless to say. i am still facinated by the graceling universe and think the concept of it is just SO much fun. i will say however that there are still things im neutral about, and even now a couple things im sort myeh about, but they by no means ruin anything at all for me.
the neutrals:
-the whole kings and queens stuff sorta never really does anything for me, it didnt before and it doesnt now. but its The Setting so like What Can U Do and it doesnt bother me like i said.
-leck is dealt with hilariously quick
-wish katsa and po's friendship couldve had just a Little bit more presence after the whole. U KNOW. also i didnt realize how often katsa cries but that's not a negative i just legitimately did not remember her doing that so much
the myeh:
-this time round i was abt 20% exasperated by how much the narration tried to drive home how women were treated in universe. it goes in hand w the kingdom shit and how dark i know the series gets but sometimes its like. man. cmon,
-im still not insanely jazzed about po's injury. ultimately its whatever hes the one character best suited for it (werid sentence) but it still feels very odd? idk
apart from that tho i <3 this universe so much. its also a rare occasion for me where i actually enjoy all of the main cast AND also am not annoyed even slightly by the main pairing LOL. katsa is my little meow meow i care her so much
4.5
probably havent read this book in about 14 years but after thinking abt it a lot i sat down and wound up rereading it in one session LMAO
it still holds up needless to say. i am still facinated by the graceling universe and think the concept of it is just SO much fun. i will say however that there are still things im neutral about, and even now a couple things im sort myeh about, but they by no means ruin anything at all for me.
the neutrals:
-the whole kings and queens stuff sorta never really does anything for me, it didnt before and it doesnt now. but its The Setting so like What Can U Do and it doesnt bother me like i said.
-leck is dealt with hilariously quick
-wish katsa and po's friendship couldve had just a Little bit more presence after the whole. U KNOW. also i didnt realize how often katsa cries but that's not a negative i just legitimately did not remember her doing that so much
the myeh:
-this time round i was abt 20% exasperated by how much the narration tried to drive home how women were treated in universe. it goes in hand w the kingdom shit and how dark i know the series gets but sometimes its like. man. cmon,
-im still not insanely jazzed about po's injury. ultimately its whatever hes the one character best suited for it (werid sentence) but it still feels very odd? idk
apart from that tho i <3 this universe so much. its also a rare occasion for me where i actually enjoy all of the main cast AND also am not annoyed even slightly by the main pairing LOL. katsa is my little meow meow i care her so much
adventurous
emotional
funny
hopeful
slow-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:
No
adventurous
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Plot
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
adventurous
emotional
hopeful
mysterious
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
N/A
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
adventurous
emotional
funny
medium-paced
adventurous
hopeful
inspiring
fast-paced
Klassisk fantasy uden så mange dikkedarer. Har læst den på dansk nu og ikke fordi oversættelsen er dårlig, jeg synes den var så god som den kunne være, men glæder mig til at læse den på engelsk for tror bare det er bedre.
Three star books are often the most difficult to write reviews for because they're books that didn't completely work for me and yet I still enjoyed them overall. Graceling is one of those books. I'll start by saying that when it comes to high fantasy I tend to prefer political intrigue over adventure stories, and while Graceling is a mix of both it definitely leans more heavily on the latter. The long stretches of time spent traveling were a bit tedious for me. Those who love adventure fantasy stories will probably enjoy this more than I did.
My feelings towards Katsa are mixed. I love her strength, which is manifested both physically and mentally. She is well-versed in the fighting arts, she's confident in her physical abilities and she is a survivor. She's also a determined character who fights for what she wants, and unlike so many other YA protagonists, she doesn't become a doormat once she falls in love. Additionally, I appreciated her desire not to have children because it's a rarity among female characters in nearly all media. There is still a real stigma against women who don't want to be mothers in our society and it's important for girls to get the message that wanting children is a choice not a requirement.
Where Katsa lost me was with her views on marriage, not that she didn't want to get married, but her rationale behind it, which was basically that marriage robs women of their independence. This view would have been more understandable if marriage in the book was shown to be nothing more than a way to oppress women and take away freedoms they had when they were unmarried, however, this was not the case. There was one marriage that was shown in a negative light and the situation wasn't even known to Katsa when she formed her opinion. Also, the romantic storyline itself didn't support Katsa's unwavering beliefs about marriage.
Although my feelings about Katsa were middling, I really did like her love interest, Po. He is the antithesis of the abusive, brooding male trope. He knows what he wants and he goes for it. He's open and honest, although not unrealistically so. He never tries to control Katsa and he loves and supports her unconditionally but this love doesn't cause him to forsake all others. If I have any complaints about him at all it's that he was a little too perfect in his role as a love interest. I would have liked it more if he were less of a push over when it came to Katsa's demands about the terms of their relationship.
Aside from the uneven pacing, the biggest problem I had with Graceling was the world-building, which I thought was entirely too shallow. With the exception of Lienid, the other kingdoms didn't seem to be very distinguishable from each other in terms of culture, and the social structure was underdeveloped. Lienid was far better explored and distinguishable from the other kingdoms, however, I was still left with a lot of questions about the specific physical characteristics that made them unique. Katsa indicates that the Lienid people look different from people of the other kingdoms but it's unclear how. The only physical traits mentioned are their dark hair and gray eyes but these are also found in the other five kingdoms according to Katsa. There have to be some differences (skin color, eye shape, hair texture, etc.) because Katsa knew Bitterblue was part Lienid by looking at her but Cashore never comes out and says it, which led to some difficulty in picturing the characters.
The magic system was also a little too haphazard for me. I like rules when it comes to magic and the Graces really don't have any in terms of what powers a person has and who receives them. Katsa's power was almost limitless and there were no real consequences to balance out her power. In the beginning people feared and hated her because of her Grace, and she was also used as a tool, but these consequences were minor compared to the power she had and they were easily remedied.
Overall, I enjoyed Graceling but my enjoyment was as uneven as the pacing. I'm still debating whether or not I should read the sequels.
My feelings towards Katsa are mixed. I love her strength, which is manifested both physically and mentally. She is well-versed in the fighting arts, she's confident in her physical abilities and she is a survivor. She's also a determined character who fights for what she wants, and unlike so many other YA protagonists, she doesn't become a doormat once she falls in love. Additionally, I appreciated her desire not to have children because it's a rarity among female characters in nearly all media. There is still a real stigma against women who don't want to be mothers in our society and it's important for girls to get the message that wanting children is a choice not a requirement.
Where Katsa lost me was with her views on marriage, not that she didn't want to get married, but her rationale behind it, which was basically that marriage robs women of their independence. This view would have been more understandable if marriage in the book was shown to be nothing more than a way to oppress women and take away freedoms they had when they were unmarried, however, this was not the case. There was one marriage that was shown in a negative light and the situation wasn't even known to Katsa when she formed her opinion. Also, the romantic storyline itself didn't support Katsa's unwavering beliefs about marriage.
Although my feelings about Katsa were middling, I really did like her love interest, Po. He is the antithesis of the abusive, brooding male trope. He knows what he wants and he goes for it. He's open and honest, although not unrealistically so. He never tries to control Katsa and he loves and supports her unconditionally but this love doesn't cause him to forsake all others. If I have any complaints about him at all it's that he was a little too perfect in his role as a love interest. I would have liked it more if he were less of a push over when it came to Katsa's demands about the terms of their relationship.
Aside from the uneven pacing, the biggest problem I had with Graceling was the world-building, which I thought was entirely too shallow. With the exception of Lienid, the other kingdoms didn't seem to be very distinguishable from each other in terms of culture, and the social structure was underdeveloped. Lienid was far better explored and distinguishable from the other kingdoms, however, I was still left with a lot of questions about the specific physical characteristics that made them unique. Katsa indicates that the Lienid people look different from people of the other kingdoms but it's unclear how. The only physical traits mentioned are their dark hair and gray eyes but these are also found in the other five kingdoms according to Katsa. There have to be some differences (skin color, eye shape, hair texture, etc.) because Katsa knew Bitterblue was part Lienid by looking at her but Cashore never comes out and says it, which led to some difficulty in picturing the characters.
The magic system was also a little too haphazard for me. I like rules when it comes to magic and the Graces really don't have any in terms of what powers a person has and who receives them. Katsa's power was almost limitless and there were no real consequences to balance out her power. In the beginning people feared and hated her because of her Grace, and she was also used as a tool, but these consequences were minor compared to the power she had and they were easily remedied.
Overall, I enjoyed Graceling but my enjoyment was as uneven as the pacing. I'm still debating whether or not I should read the sequels.