***The Starry-Eyed Revue***: kristin cashore

Title: Fire
Author: Kristin Cashore
Narrator: Xanthe Elbrick
Series: Graceling Realm, book #2
Publisher: Penguin Audio
Publication Date: October 5, 2009
Source: purchased audio
Purchase: Amazon | Barnes & Noble | Audible

It is not a peaceful time in the Dells. The young King Nash clings to his throne while rebel lords in the north and south build armies to unseat him. The mountains and forests are filled with spies and thieves and lawless men.

This is where Fire lives. With a wild, irresistible appearance and hair the color of flame, Fire is the last remaining human monster. Equally hated and adored, she had the unique ability to control minds, but she guards her power, unwilling to steal the secrets of innocent people. Especially when she has so many of her own.

Then Prince Brigan comes to bring her to King City. The royal family needs her help to uncover the plot against the king. Far away from home, Fire begins to realize there's more to her power than she ever dreamed. Her power could save the kingdom.

If only she weren't afraid of becoming the monster her father was.

I might be on a bit of a fantasy kick these days. Okay, okay...I'm totally on a fantasy kick, but I haven't been disappointed by a book in a few weeks, so I must be doing something right...right?

No, I didn't enjoy Fire as much as I did Graceling, nor did I expect to. I mean, Graceling had Katsa and Po. And though I do seem to like my fictional men in positions of authority -- Captain Chaol Westfall in the Throne of Glass series, Hector as Elisa's guard in the Fire and Thorns series, and now Brigan as head of the military in King City -- Brigan just couldn't compare to the warm and fuzzy feelings I still have toward Prince Po.

The world-building was much improved upon in this companion novel, but being a companion novel (and prequel story), I felt that I rather missed the world I knew in Graceling, especially since this story takes place on the other side of the divide. There are no graces here, only monsters of great beauty, and Fire is the last human monster. Not only is she almost too beautiful to behold, but she also has a special ability, one to rival all other graces.

This makes Fire an outcast and yet also much sought after. Even her best friend is in love with her, though he can't quite stop his philandering ways long enough to prove it to her. {SPOILER}(By the by, why must all characters named Archer die...or nearly die? Luckily, in the one I'm reading now, the main character's alter ego is named Archer, so I doubt death is in her/his imminent future. :P) {/SPOILER} Not that that's what she truly desires, anyway. She can't get past who she is and what she's done, and I often loathed her self-imposed misery. Fire is strong in many ways, but she is also lonely, and where Katsa wanted to be tied to no one, Fire wishes for children of her own. That aspect of her story is very emotional and trying, but it still didn't help me understand the choices she made, even knowing that they were all derived from her aversion to turning into the monster that her father had been.

I liked Fire's story. It was full of political intrigue and war, with bits of magic and beauty thrown in. And of course a little romance, though that was long coming to fruition. And after that prologue, I expected to meet young Leck much sooner, and I expected to see how his story led him to the position of power he held in Graceling, but I was disappointed on both accounts where it came to this character. Not that I'm really complaining, since he was a tyrant and a monster to rival Fire's father.

Fire is good as a companion novel and great as a prequel story. Though, I might suggest starting with Fire if you're considering this series. It's the general consensus that Fire is the weakest of the three books, and though I've yet to read Bitterblue, I'm inclined to agree. Also, I hear tell that Katsa and Po make an appearance in the final novel, so it would seem more fitting to read the books starting with the prequel novel first and then introduce yourself to Katsa and Po. Oh, and the narrator for this audio is rather good, though I did miss the Full Cast audio performance that made revisiting Graceling so wonderful for me earlier this year.

Rating:

1/2

About the author:

So, here's the short tale of me: I grew up in the countryside of northeastern Pennsylvania in a village with cows and barns and beautiful views from the top of the hill and all that good stuff. I lived in a rickety old house with my parents, three sisters, and a scattering of cats, and I READ READ READ READ READ. I read while brushing my teeth, I read while chopping parsley, the first thing I reached for when I woke up in the morning was my book; the only two places I didn't read were in the car and in bed. What did I do then? The one thing I liked even more than reading: I daydreamed.

Find Kristin:

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Labels: audiobooks, graceling realm, high fantasy, kristin cashore, penguin, reviews

Title: Graceling
Author: Kristin Cashore
Narrator: David Baker, Chelsea Mixon, Zachary Exton
Series: Graceling Realm, book #1
Publisher: Full Cast Audio
Publication Date: June 24, 2009
Source: purchased
Purchase: Amazon | Barnes & Noble | Audible

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.

**This review is kinda spoilery, but I'm late to this party, so you've all probably read it, anyway...**

This audiobook was really pretty awesome. It was the first one I listened to where there was a different voice for each character. Really nice to hear the age appropriate voices for the characters as well as correct sexual orientation. Sometimes, I can overlook it, but there have been other audiobooks that just made me cringe the whole time when the woman tried to sound like a dude or vice versa.

Those who are gifted are called “Gracelings.” That’s pretty cool. Better than “Superman” or “The Hulk.” I like how Katsa and Po meet…..by fighting. Where I come from, people get divorced for that type of thing. But luckily, Katsa has no plans to marry, ever. Except she does fall in love with her Chris Brown and they later seemingly adopt Po’s relative, Princess Bitterblue. I mean, really, if this Leck guy was so big and bad, how did he manage to let his own daughter escape? I like how Leck is pretty much in the distance the whole book. Of course they’re talking about him, what to do when they are face to face with him, but it’s not just fighting the whole time. The whole story is leading up to the big fight, which actually turns out not to be much of a fight at all. Go, Katsa! One strike, heeeeeee’s out!

Thankfully, Katsa and Po are not all kissy kissy the whole time. Mr. Clumsy himself takes a pretty bad tumble and gets left in a cave to fend for himself. Love it! She had trouble leaving him, which kinda grossed me out, but he finally convinced her to go on without him.

Fighting. Gramps was kidnapped. Po and Katsa have to figure out who the captor is. Then they hunt the guy. Meet cute little girl. Kill bad guy. Live happily ever after. Yeah, I’ll take it. It was a pretty awesome book.

I'm not sure that the next book in this series will be my next read/listen, but I am looking forward to reading the others!

Rating: