Cashore, Kristin Bitterblue, 539 p. Dial (Penguin), 2012.
$20. Violence: PG-13 (lots of fighting,
some death); Mature Content: PG-13 (mention, without description of King Leck’s
perversions, off page sexual encounter).
It has been eight years since Bitterblue’s king, her own evil, mind-controlling
father, was killed and dethroned. From
10-18, Bitterblue has let her advisor’s run the kingdom, as they bury her under
a mountain of paperwork, never giving her time to ask questions. One day, however she wakes up a realizes that
her kingdom is in shambles and that she had better find some answers, if only
she knew what to ask. Her royal cousins
– Po, Katsa, Raffin (last seen in Graceling)
have also come to visit, telling her about their plans to rid others of the
Seven Kingdoms from evil overlords, and their various talents can help
Bitterblue as she begins to unravel a long trail of lies and betrayal. Besides several old friends, we meet spies,
thieves, revolutionaries and a love interest for Bitterblue.
Most of the characters from the two previous
novels make reappearances, each playing a special role, though the action
revolves around Bitterblue. Just like
her own confusion, we are also confused at first – and as Bitterblue’s mind
clears, so does more of our understanding.
While this is not the swashbuckling action of the first novel, it does
carry satisfaction at a deeper level, for those readers who have matured.
MS, HS – ADVISABLE. Cindy, Library Teacher
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