Graceling by Kristin Cashore

In the land of the seven kingdoms, there are rare humans Graced with special skills. Gracelings, as they are called, are both feared and exploited for their abilities. But perhaps there is none more feared than Katsa who is Graced with the special ability to kill.

Forced by her uncle, the King Randa, to torture and execute his enemies, Katsa struggles to retain her humanity while reconciling herself to her deadly Grace. When she runs into a mysterious Graced fighter from the kingdom across the sea, she finally meets her match. For the first time in her life, Katsa has found someone who can challenge her in a fight. For the first time in her life, Katsa has found someone who can challenge her perception of herself.

As their friendship develops, the two Gracelings stumble upon a terrible and unknown danger that threatens the seven kingdoms. It is a danger that knows no bounds, and as the two risk their lives to eliminate it, they will also have to come to grips with the surprising truths they have learnt about each other.

Kristin Cashore’s debut novel, Graceling, is an action-packed book that kept me up at night trying to finish the story. Full of interesting twists and turns, Graceling made it impossible for me to put the book down. The developing relationship between Katsa and Po, the Graceling fighter, is believable and well-developed, and their characters complex and interesting.

Readers of fantasy will particularly like Graceling and it is a nice addition to genre. With its strong female protagonist, Graceling reminds me of some of Tamora Pierce’s better books. I recommend this highly entertaining book.

Cashore, Kristin. Graceling. United States: Graphia, 2009. Print.

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Lips Touch: Three Times by Laini Taylor

“Kizzy was so busy wishing she was Sarah Ferris of Jenny Glass that she could scarcely see herself at all, and she was certainly blind to her own weird beauty: her heavy spell-casting eyes, too-wide mouth, wild hair, and hips that could be wild too, if they learned how. No one else in town looked anything like her, and if she lived to womanhood, she was the one artists would want to draw, not the Sarahs and Jennys. She was the one who would some day know a dozen ways to wear a silk scarf, how to read the sky for rain, and coax feral animals near, how to purr throaty love songs in Portuguese and Basque, how to lay a vampire to rest, how to light a cigar, how to light a man’s imagination on fire.

If she lived to womanhood.”

Laini Taylor’s intensely beautiful short stories about, superficially speaking, the dangers of kissing are exquisitely written. Dark, terrifying, and mysterious, Taylor’s three modern fairy-tales will make you shiver in delight and despair.

The first, “Goblin Fruit”, is about Kizzy, the girl whose wanting is so strong, the Goblins scent her longing and come slavering for a taste of her soul.

“Spicy Little Curses Such as These”, the second in the book, tells the parallel stories of Estella and Anamique, two cursed women. Estella is the unfortunate woman charged with playing Ambassador to Hell. Amanique is the girl cursed by Estella to have the most beautiful voice in the world. But any sound she makes will be deadly.

Taylor ends the collection with her longest story, “Hatchling”. Complex and layered despite its brief length, “Hatchling” tells the tale of Esmé, Mab and the Druj, a sinister race of blue-eyed creatures. Without souls, the immortal Druj are fascinated by the life-cycle of humans, their ability to grow and to die, to love and to have children. This fascination leads the Queen Druj to keep a pet of her own in her lair: a human girl she calls Izha. One day, the Izha runs away and that's where the true story begins.

Taylor’s short stories are paired with Di Bartolo’s remarkable illustrations that not only enhance the beauty of the stories but also provides nuance. In fact, the stories would lose some of their power if the illustrations had not been included, not because the stories are lacking, but because Di Bartolo’s work is such an integral part of my understanding of the stories.

I highly recommend the book to all readers, young and old. The book is a collection of true gems, and I will not be surprised if it becomes a future award-winner. I think it will appeal to a broad audience, but for those who especially enjoy reading modern fairy-tales or light fantasy, Lips Touch: Three Times should definitely not be missed.

Taylor, Laini. Lips Touch. New York: Arthur A. Levine Books, 2009.

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The Lightning Thief by Rick Riordan

Percy (short for Perseus) Jackson is a troubled 12-year-old. He can’t seem to last more than a year in any (and all) of his schools. He knows it’s because he’s special—ADHD and dyslexia cause most of his problems in school—but he never knew how special he was until the end of his sixth-grade year, the year he finds out he’s a descendant of the Greek gods. And that’s when his real troubles start. Accused of stealing Zeus’s master lightning bolt, Percy must go on a journey across America to find and return the bolt before a devastating war breaks out between the Gods. The summer solstice deadline looms ever nearer, but Percy is only beginning to master his newly discovered powers. To help Percy succeed on his dangerous quest, he will need to rely on the help of his friends, Grover (a tin-can-eating satyr) and Annabeth (the daughter of a rival Goddess). Traveling cross-country from New York to Los Angeles, Percy will meet charmingly modernized characters from Greek mythology, outwit monsters, and even battle Gods. Most importantly, Percy will also have to come to terms with his real father.

The first in a series of five books, The Lightning Thief is a clever mix of modern and classic worlds, all the more appealing for its likable characters and light humor.

I would recommend the book to younger readers because its conversational tone can occasionally come off to more mature readers as juvenile. That said, the story is fun and exciting, and will almost certainly arouse readers’ interests in Greek mythology.

Riordan, Rick. The Lightning Thief. New York: Hyperion Books for Children, 2005.

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