Graceling by Kristen Cashore Review

Reading Level: Young Adult
Publisher: Harcourt
Source: Bought
First book in Graceling Realm series
His eyes, Katsa had never seen such eyes. One was silver, and the other, gold. They glowed in his sun-darkened face, uneven, and strange. She was surprised that they hadn't shone in the darkness of their first meeting. They didn't seem human....
Then he raised his eyebrows a hair, and his mouth shifted into the hint of a smirk. He nodded at her, just barely, and it released her from her spell.
Cocky, she thought. Cocky and arrogant, this one, and that was all there was to make of him. Whatever game he was playing, if he expected her to join him he would be disappointed.
In a world where people born with an extreme skill - called a Grace - are feared and exploited, Katsa carries the burden of the skill even she despises: the Grace of killing. She lives under the command of her uncle Randa, King of the Middluns, and is expected to execute his dirty work, punishing and torturing anyone who displeases him.
When she first meets Prince Po, who is Graced with combat skills, Katsa has no hint of how her life is about to change.
She never expects to become Po's friend.
She never expects to learn a new truth about her own Grace - or about a terrible secret that lies hidden far away...a secret that could destroy all seven kingdoms with words alone.


Review
I tried to read this awhile back and didn't finish it. I told myself I would try again. I must not have been right in the brain when I told myself not to finish this. I'm so happy I gave it another shot. I ended up loving it(as Marissa predicted). My love for historical fiction just keeps growing.

The great thing about historical fiction is they have amazing characters. Kasta is an amazing heroine. I loved her. I loved how fierce she was. Even though she's crazy kick ass she still had her caring, loving moments. I loved that she wasn't what people expected her to be. I didn't expect Kasta and Po to be capable of being so adorable. I was surprised. They were so cute. I loved it. Po was an amazing character also. He had a great personality. He was pretty fierce himself. I like how the relationship between Kasta and Po was slow then fast. There was no insta love. Another character I loved was Bitterblue. I cannot wait to read her story. I'm super curious about her life now. I love these characters so much. I can't wait to fall in love with another set of characters.

This had an amazing storyline. I loved all the action and the different settings. It was like one big adventure with twists and turns. There were torture moments when I was screaming my head off. There was tons of aw how cute moments. There was just such a perfect mix of everything. Overall I loved this with all my heart. I cannot believe I waited so long to read it. I think everything about it was great. It was impossible to put down. You just had to know what was going to happen. This has everything I think a great book needs. I can't wait to read Kristen Cashore's other books and I highly recommend. 5/5 stars

Jasmine <3