Review of Bitterblue by Kristin Cashore



Synopsis: "Eight years after Graceling, Bitterblue is now queen of Monsea. But the influence of her father, a violent psychopath with mind-altering abilities, lives on. Her advisors, who have run things since Leck died, believe in a forward-thinking plan: Pardon all who committed terrible acts under Leck’s reign, and forget anything bad ever happened. But when Bitterblue begins sneaking outside the castle—disguised and alone—to walk the streets of her own city, she starts realizing that the kingdom has been under the thirty-five-year spell of a madman, and the only way to move forward is to revisit the past.

Two thieves, who only steal what has already been stolen, change her life forever. They hold a key to the truth of Leck’s reign. And one of them, with an extreme skill called a Grace that he hasn’t yet identified, holds a key to her heart."

My Review: Well hmmm, its hard to decide what to say about Bitterblue. It definitely won't be to everyone's liking. You will spend a good portion of the book as confused as Bitterblue, but what else should you expect when visiting a kingdom that was run by a mind altering mad man for years. I think it shows Kristin Cashore's talent for writing when you can feel so much a part of the story. I also think she has a fantastic talent for characters, each is so individual, has their own history and their own story line within the book. You also can't tell who is the "good" and who is the "bad" people. She also does a great job of making sure to bring all three books together in this final book of the trilogy. Bitterblue is a character that I have grown to love, she has such strength and determination, she could easily sit back and let things happen in her kingdom but she decides to take a more difficult and active role as queen. But of all the new characters in this book I have to say that I fell in love with Death, maybe its the book lover in me or maybe its the cat lover or maybe something different all together but I adore Death! All in all I thought it was a great story, difficult to take and confusing to muddle through but worth it in every way.

My Rating: As I said above, this book is not for everyone, its not a simple, easy, happy or romantic book that many YA readers enjoy.  As a HUGE Kristin Cashore fan I anxiously awaited this book for a few years and was not disappointed.  It was written more in the style of Fire, which is my favorite of the trilogy so I clicked with the book just fine.  I give it rating of Four Paws.