Bitterblue: Graceling, Book 3

Yes, well spent, it was entertaining.

Unknotting the plot on why the charectors were acting so strange.

Not sure.

No.

Out of the three books, this one was my least favorite.
I really enjoyed Fire and Graceling better.

It just wasn't as exciting.

I'm not completely finished with this book yet (just started Part IV), but I have some issues I feel the need to voice.

#1. When did Katsa and Po become Irish? I get that Xanthe Elbrick did not narrate Graceling, but she did narrate Fire. And I understand different narrators are not going to have the same exact accents or voices as prior narrators. However, I think it's a narrator's responsibility to try to be somewhat consistent with character voices, whether or not they did the original book's narration. I find it very distracting that Katsa suddenly sounds like a middle-aged Irish woman and Po suddenly sounds like a teenage Irish boy-man. Luckily, they aren't the main characters of this book, so I can block it out somewhat, but it's totally distracting. I do like her interpretation of Bitterblue, though.

#2. On the part of the author, I get that Bitterblue is the main character of this story, but she has so much of Katsa and Po in this story as supportive characters that you'd think she'd stay consistent with their personalities. It's been 9 years. If anything, Katsa and Po should have matured more. Instead, I feel like they've backpeddled and act more like children than the 18 year old Bitterblue. And when did they both become so whiney?

#3. I like Bitterblue's character, alot. She does take some stupid risks with her own safety, but I am enjoying following as she matures both emotionally and intellectually as a queen, not just a girl. She's not physically bad a** like Katsa or Fire (afterall, Bitterblue is merely human), but I respect her as a maturing woman much more.

#4. The story definitely drags on during Part III. I felt this way through a chunk of Fire as well. I hope Part IV really picks up alot. Not only in the action department, but also in the romance department.

#5. I don't feel the same for Bitterblue and her romantic interest as I did in Graceling for Katsa and Po, and in Fire for Fire and Brigan. In both of the prior books, I was rooting for the romance. In Bitterblue's case, I don't really feel the same development or yearning for Bitterblue and her love interest to be together. Actually, I'm rooting for Bitterblue to fall for someone else who isn't the obvious match.

#6. I do really like how the author is weaving the world of Graceling and the world of Fire into this third book. Bitterblue's world definitely is tying the two worlds of the prior books together. Like I said, I haven't finished this book yet, but I'm hoping for another installment where these two worlds collide head on.

I picked up a shiny new copy of Graceling from the library shelf, and was enthralled from page one. The novel pulled me in so fast and hard that I did not spend much time looking for flaws, but I remember feeling at the time that this might a first novel phenomenon - glowing with passion and maybe the desperation of years of trying to publish. On one hand there is the author who seasons and deepens with age, and on the other there is the author who has a single story to tell and then, finding fortune, continues writing.

Perhaps that is too harsh, but that is how I feel about both Fire and Bitterblue. Bitterblue was rambling, the story set up as a puzzle but without any of the sense of mystery and discovery, or movement, that a puzzle should have. While the subject matter is adult - sexual and psychological abuse, espionage, politics, sexual relationships, self injury, suicide, etc. - the tone is simplistic and juvenile.

The character Bitterblue was more a conduit for events around her than an individual personality - a relatable but bland character. She did not comport herself with any of the subtlety or circumspection I would expect from someone raised to be a queen. Her love interest, Sapphire, was constantly dragged into the story without actually being relevant to it, and that felt forced. When, in the end, his Grace is discovered and he suddenly becomes very relevant to Bitterblue and her reign, the story doesn't even touch the possibility of his use/abuse by the crown. I assume this is because Bitterblue is too compassionate and high-minded to use the people around her, but that really doesn't help me see her as a queen.

A number of the peripheral characters seemed placed mainly to interact with Bitterblue, rather than to have their own lives and motivations. While her advisers did have their own lives, they were so cripplingly broken by their past that I wonder who has been running the kingdom for the past 10 or so years since the King's death. Some of the peripheral characters were characters from previous novels, and as another reviewer has commented, I was disappointed at the lack of growth in Katsa and Po.

The huge exception to this rule was Giddon, whom readers will remember (none too fondly) from Graceling. He had obviously grown up between that book and this, and was dealing with his own life. The moments when his story intersected with the novel were the most gripping and heartbreaking of the book, but those moments were all too brief.

Graceling, Fire and Bitterblue are all excellent books if you enjoy books that have a twist to life as we know it. The place where all of these books takes place is a world not unlike ours in the Middle Ages, only there is something different about the inhabitants (and even some of the animals). I love the twist and how the cultures and peoples deal with it. Also very strong female characters make it a wonderful read!

Do yourself a favor though and start with Graceling. All the books stand along but build beautifully upon one another.

I have only done the audio version

They were all entertaining

She does a great job for all

I was very absorbed in the story and when it ended I wanted more by the same author

The whole series is very good, not quite along the lines of Hunger Games but still a great story.

Frankly, if I had been reading the book it would have been tossed into a corner--compared to the previous two books in the series this was a serious snoozefest. It wasn't a bad story if you were looking for a long (long) process of internal growth and endless questioning of self. But as the conclusion of a somewhat action-packed trilogy, I can only say Ugh.

I am 75% finished and only the voice of Xanthe Elbrick is keeping me going.

I would definitely recommend this audiobook. Kristin Cashore writes wonderful stories that are much more thoughtful and insightful than a lot of the young adult fiction out there. The issues being dealt with in this book are serious, but that is one of the things that I like about Cashore and other writers such as Melina Marchetta. These authors take events and issues from the real world, and write about them in a fantasy setting that makes the stories feel timely and even more worthwhile. There is a great deal of mystery in this book, which makes for an involved and lengthy story, but I thought the complexity was great, and kept me wanting to listen to a little more, and then a little more....

Xanthe Elbrick is hands down one of the best narrators I have ever heard. She gives so much personality and life to each character, and differentiates them all to a remarkable degree. I loved Saf, but also loved Teddy and Katsa, and many others.

Bitterblue is another great book by Kristin, and Xanthe brought Bitterblue to life for me! Good listen/read!

The story was good although it was really drawn out. I kept wanting Bitterblue to get a hold of her self and just "make it happen" so it was really annoying that it wasn't until the end that she got herself together. The horrible accents for Poe and Catness were also really annoying. It was an okay book but definitely the weakest of the series

I loved the first two titles in the Graceling series, but this was this first in the series that I listened to rather than read. I enjoyed it so much that I listened to it twice and have decided to purchase the first two titles in audible format to listen to.

There were so many great moments in Bitterblue, but what I really enjoyed about the audio version is that the narrator really helped the listener understand the frustration and anguish Bitterblue suffered while trying to rule her kingdom as a young queen.

I believe this is the first time I listened to Xanthe Elbrick perform. I thought she was wonderful! Not only is her voice pleasant to listen to, it is so regal that it fit the part perfectly.

This book took me through many emotions from happiness to fear. It was fun to hear Bitterblue as a young adult since I last knew her as a small child. The characters from the earlier books seemed more lifelike since I could hear them. Many times throughout the story I was afraid for her life and felt just as betrayed as Bitterblue was betrayed.

This is a story I will listen to over and over. It reminds me of the importance of friends, old and new.