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milliei's review against another edition
4.0
This was, hands down, the strongest one of the three in the trilogy. I think Bitterblue was a more relatable character than the other front females in the other books, even though I sometimes wanted to crawl inside the book and slap her. She was kinda mean sometimes, but that's a flaw I accepted. It was a bit slow in some parts, but overall I liked that the plot was a little calmer, a more political drama. I always like when you get to know the surroundings WITH your character, so for Bitterblue to see her castle with new eyes, and me being there experiencing it, was great.
I do think it was a little confusing, the relationship between Bitterblue and Saf, and I hoped to get a better closure. It kinda ended in thin air.
I do think it was a little confusing, the relationship between Bitterblue and Saf, and I hoped to get a better closure. It kinda ended in thin air.
abaugher's review
4.0
companion novel to Fire or Graceling. this one covers the struggle of the young queen Bitterblue to uncover her late father's secrets and to make amends for all his heinous deeds--those he committed directly and those he caused others to commit. Bitterblue is a very naive and confused young lady, but she has strength within her.
malinuknow's review against another edition
3.0
Skipped the most of the book and read a recap. I want to read the fourth in the series now
emmah_1845's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
hopeful
mysterious
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
I really liked this book! At first it was a little slow, but once the mysteries were brought up, it was very enjoyable! I loved how even though the readers had ideas about what happened before the events of the story, the reveals are really satisfying and make a bunch of sense. I think the author has gotten better at writing with each book and I love to see who the characters became. I also love how the book was centered around fixing a kingdom after the death of the king and how after all of these years, his existence still lingers.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Domestic abuse, Murder, Emotional abuse, Grief, Death, Sexual assault, Animal cruelty, Child abuse, Death of parent, and Suicide
Moderate: Suicide attempt and Suicidal thoughts
Minor: Rape
paigelamoureux's review
adventurous
emotional
mysterious
tense
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
4.0
alex_watkins's review
4.0
This book stacks up to the original, I found it much better than the Fire. I think in most cases it is due to sequels in general being superior to prequels (or maybe Star Wars ruined me), but I never finish a book and go "I have to know what happened before!" This book tackles the sequel with great aplomb but is also quite relevant to our modern world. Isn't that supposed to be a hallmark of fantasy? To comment on our own world through make-believe ones. Leck, Graceling's incredibly evil antagonist, has been vanquished, but the memory and effect of his horrible crimes live on. Bitterblue must confront the scars he left on her kingdom, fighting those who want to "move on," sound familiar? I was having some serious GWB torture and the post-election amnesia flashbacks. However, her prying into the past has some serious consequences.
The book kept me rapt with its mystery, what was really going on, what exactly did Leck do to leave everyone so damaged? Who is trying to prevent discussion of the recent past? By the time they unravel though they are mostly expected, and a bit of a disappointment for all the build up. Though big mysteries are often in reality quite pedestrian (but of course that's why we read fantasy)
The book though found a way to my heart with its portrayal of the irritable and morose but also incredibly gifted librarian, who loves nothing more than a good research problem. HIs dark mood is only lightened by his favorite cat. Bitterblue uncovers much of the mysteries in this same library, so besides the librarians foul (but amusing) temperament, a good plug for libraries.
Katsa joins the ranks of Tally from Uglies, as a character who becomes more of a caricature when she is sidelined in the sequels. Both of them become part of extra-governmental organizations fighting against tyranny. Of course bringing tyranny up in a fantasy novel is inherently problematic, they mostly cling to the enlightened monarch model, which when challenged can poke a great many holes in the story. If kings and queens are so bad, why do root for Bitterblue, who though a good queen, could easily have a bad son. It problematizes the whole idea of replacing a bad king with a good one, if in the story we know that other options exist.
Another lovely facet was how incredibly gay friendly the novel was. WIth a least 5 gay characters (I have my suspicions), though the main love story is straight. It was a love story that I didn't particularly care for, Bitterblue's interest was kinda an ass, and she passed over the much nicer guy for him (not that there was much of a love triangle, once again my suspicions). At least spoiler, they don't end up together, which is good because I find it so unrealistic for characters to end up with their first boyfriend when they are like 15.
The end was overly drawn out, with characters from a previous novel, which I had thought would wait for another book. Though it dragged on, it provided satisfying conclusions to all the plot-lines. My only complaint is the maps should have been in the front of the book so that I could have consulted them while reading.
The book kept me rapt with its mystery, what was really going on, what exactly did Leck do to leave everyone so damaged? Who is trying to prevent discussion of the recent past? By the time they unravel though they are mostly expected, and a bit of a disappointment for all the build up. Though big mysteries are often in reality quite pedestrian (but of course that's why we read fantasy)
The book though found a way to my heart with its portrayal of the irritable and morose but also incredibly gifted librarian, who loves nothing more than a good research problem. HIs dark mood is only lightened by his favorite cat. Bitterblue uncovers much of the mysteries in this same library, so besides the librarians foul (but amusing) temperament, a good plug for libraries.
Katsa joins the ranks of Tally from Uglies, as a character who becomes more of a caricature when she is sidelined in the sequels. Both of them become part of extra-governmental organizations fighting against tyranny. Of course bringing tyranny up in a fantasy novel is inherently problematic, they mostly cling to the enlightened monarch model, which when challenged can poke a great many holes in the story. If kings and queens are so bad, why do root for Bitterblue, who though a good queen, could easily have a bad son. It problematizes the whole idea of replacing a bad king with a good one, if in the story we know that other options exist.
Another lovely facet was how incredibly gay friendly the novel was. WIth a least 5 gay characters (I have my suspicions), though the main love story is straight. It was a love story that I didn't particularly care for, Bitterblue's interest was kinda an ass, and she passed over the much nicer guy for him (not that there was much of a love triangle, once again my suspicions). At least spoiler, they don't end up together, which is good because I find it so unrealistic for characters to end up with their first boyfriend when they are like 15.
The end was overly drawn out, with characters from a previous novel, which I had thought would wait for another book. Though it dragged on, it provided satisfying conclusions to all the plot-lines. My only complaint is the maps should have been in the front of the book so that I could have consulted them while reading.
calleyne's review
4.0
I think Bitterblue was not as good as the other books in the Graceling series, but it was still entertaining and unique.
emoser_9's review against another edition
4.0
These books are so whimsical and have such an interesting magic world that makes it even more jarring how evil and gross the bad guy is.
brianne_k's review
5.0
I believe that this third book encompassed characters I have loved from each of the previous two companion books. I feel like this book tied the three together beautifully. I thoroughly enjoyed reading all three of Kristin Cashore's book and loved her world. I loved Giddon in this book. I wish that Saf and Bitterblue had a better ending but I understand why it ended like it did.
I hope that we get more Graceling realm books.
I hope that we get more Graceling realm books.