Teen Fiction

Finished July 13
Graceling by Kristin Cashore
This is a great fantasy novel for older teens. It takes place in a land of seven kingdoms, kingdoms that had mostly got along with each other, but where discord has arisen lately.
Katsa, the main character, is a young woman who is niece to the king of Middluns, an inland kingdom with four kingdoms adjoining it. Katsa's mother died when she was an infant and her father soon after, and she has grown up at court. Katsa is special in that she has a Grace. Everyone who has a grace has one eye that is one colour and one eye another, although the combinations of colours differ. Sometimes the Grace reveals itself at a very young age, but other times it takes awhile to discover what the grace or skill is for that individual. In Katsa's kingdom, those with a Grace are treated with a wary respect. Katsa's skill had revealed itself when she was eight when she killed a man she felt threatened by. She took several years to train herself to control her strength and intent and the king now uses her as an enforcer, hurting or killing those who cross him.
Katsa has worked with a few people she trusts to create a Council where she uses her power for good, to defend the weak and right wrongs in the kingdoms. It is in doing a rescue related to this that she meets another with Grace, a young man named Po. Po is graced with fighting skills and the two find each other helpful in training and honing their skills. As Katsa learns more about Po, she finds him a friend, something she has few of. As they unite to find the truth behind some strange events, they both learn more about their Grace and about themselves.
This is a gripping tale that I had trouble putting down. Katsa is an interesting character and she must recognize and control her emotions to become the person she is meant to be.
The writing is very good and as this is a first novel it will be interesting to see what else comes from this author.