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A review by mkat1580
Winterkeep by Kristin Cashore
challenging
emotional
reflective
- 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
5.0
Winterkeep gave me such a good book hangover.
The first three Graceling Realm books are among my absolute favorites, and I've read them all countless times (especially Fire and Bitterblue). When I heard Kristin Cashore was finally writing another one, nine years after Bitterblue came out, I was ecstatic, and Winterkeep did not disappoint.
Cashore is a masterful writer, and once again her character development and world building stood out to me. Some people may have thought a fourth Graceling book was just her milking her previous success, but Winterkeep doesn't feel unnecessary at all -- plus, if an author has created a world as amazing as the Graceling Realm, I don't blame them for wanting to return to it again! The world has so much potential, and there are countless more stories I could imagine her telling within it.
Winterkeep is different from the previous three books because it has five different POV's: Bitterblue and Giddon (characters we already know), Lovisa (a wonderful new character who is canonically dark skinned and is attracted to both men and women - yay for representation!), and a mythical sea creature and a telepathic fox (it sounds weird, but it works). Cashore's writing feels a bit more simplified in this one as well, but not necessarily in a bad way. She uses more modern language, which contributes to making Winterkeep more digestible. It's 500 pages, but it didn't drag at all for me. Bitterblue didn't either, but that one was still a dense book, and I know some people found it more tedious. I don't think they'll find Winterkeep that way.
Each POV was unique, and I still don't know which one was my favorite. I loved all the characters, both new and old (some fans might be disappointed that there are no appearances by Katsa and Po -- I was a bit bummed, but Cashore has a unique way of making me equally love every character she writes). I love love loved Lovisa's journey in this book. I think there were a lot of parallels with Bitterblue's story (no spoilers, but why does everyone have to have such shitty parents!?), and while Bitterblue also had an important role in Winterkeep, it very much feels like Lovisa's book. It was really interesting to see Bitterblue again, five years later; we first met her in Graceling as a 10 year old, then got to know her as the 18 year old protagonist of Bitterblue, and now we see her as a mature queen who helps Lovisa process her own trauma.
Winterkeep definitely deals with very mature themes, and also talks about sex in the most frank way of all the books (some adults might be bothered by the amount of sex 16 year old Lovisa has, but it is a YA book, after all - it's fine that one of the protags is a teenager, and it's realistic that a teenager would have sex). Winterkeep deals with a lot of the same things the previous books deal with, and which Cashore is always amazing at depicting: grief, trauma, child abuse, sexuality, and believing you deserve love. It tugged at my heartstrings just as much as the other books. Cashore is without a doubt one of my favorite authors, and I look forward to reading whatever she writes next.
(Note: My review is by no means a comprehensive analysis of the book, especially since I didn't include spoilers. The book addresses really serious stuff that may trigger people, so readers should look into that in more depth before deciding to read. I've also read some criticisms about Lovisa, who is a young woman of color, being hypersexualized, which is a common stereotype for WOC, especially black women. I personally don't think Cashore meant any harm with this, and I don't think Lovisa is that much more sexualized that any of Cashore's other leads, but I am by no means the final authority on that, so I wanted to mention this so that people can decide for themselves. Some people might also be bothered by the age gap between SpoilerBitterblue and Giddon.)
The first three Graceling Realm books are among my absolute favorites, and I've read them all countless times (especially Fire and Bitterblue). When I heard Kristin Cashore was finally writing another one, nine years after Bitterblue came out, I was ecstatic, and Winterkeep did not disappoint.
Cashore is a masterful writer, and once again her character development and world building stood out to me. Some people may have thought a fourth Graceling book was just her milking her previous success, but Winterkeep doesn't feel unnecessary at all -- plus, if an author has created a world as amazing as the Graceling Realm, I don't blame them for wanting to return to it again! The world has so much potential, and there are countless more stories I could imagine her telling within it.
Winterkeep is different from the previous three books because it has five different POV's: Bitterblue and Giddon (characters we already know), Lovisa (a wonderful new character who is canonically dark skinned and is attracted to both men and women - yay for representation!), and a mythical sea creature and a telepathic fox (it sounds weird, but it works). Cashore's writing feels a bit more simplified in this one as well, but not necessarily in a bad way. She uses more modern language, which contributes to making Winterkeep more digestible. It's 500 pages, but it didn't drag at all for me. Bitterblue didn't either, but that one was still a dense book, and I know some people found it more tedious. I don't think they'll find Winterkeep that way.
Each POV was unique, and I still don't know which one was my favorite. I loved all the characters, both new and old (some fans might be disappointed that there are no appearances by Katsa and Po -- I was a bit bummed, but Cashore has a unique way of making me equally love every character she writes). I love love loved Lovisa's journey in this book. I think there were a lot of parallels with Bitterblue's story (no spoilers, but why does everyone have to have such shitty parents!?), and while Bitterblue also had an important role in Winterkeep, it very much feels like Lovisa's book. It was really interesting to see Bitterblue again, five years later; we first met her in Graceling as a 10 year old, then got to know her as the 18 year old protagonist of Bitterblue, and now we see her as a mature queen who helps Lovisa process her own trauma.
Winterkeep definitely deals with very mature themes, and also talks about sex in the most frank way of all the books (some adults might be bothered by the amount of sex 16 year old Lovisa has, but it is a YA book, after all - it's fine that one of the protags is a teenager, and it's realistic that a teenager would have sex). Winterkeep deals with a lot of the same things the previous books deal with, and which Cashore is always amazing at depicting: grief, trauma, child abuse, sexuality, and believing you deserve love. It tugged at my heartstrings just as much as the other books. Cashore is without a doubt one of my favorite authors, and I look forward to reading whatever she writes next.
(Note: My review is by no means a comprehensive analysis of the book, especially since I didn't include spoilers. The book addresses really serious stuff that may trigger people, so readers should look into that in more depth before deciding to read. I've also read some criticisms about Lovisa, who is a young woman of color, being hypersexualized, which is a common stereotype for WOC, especially black women. I personally don't think Cashore meant any harm with this, and I don't think Lovisa is that much more sexualized that any of Cashore's other leads, but I am by no means the final authority on that, so I wanted to mention this so that people can decide for themselves. Some people might also be bothered by the age gap between SpoilerBitterblue and Giddon.)