I'm so excited that Cashore is diving back into the Graceling universe. I read these books many years ago and I loved the world she built. I'm sure any Graceling fan would agree that we need more good books to get us through 2021.

An enjoyable addition to this wonderful, fantastical series. Brings up the question of how far would you go for money and power? And how can you overcome being raised by immoral people?

#Winterkeep #NetGalley I will say there is passages in this book I don't feel are 100% needed, but for the most part this was actually a very enjoyable book..

*** Partial Review *** I will update the review once I have finished the book in its entirety.

I received a partial eARC of this book in exchange for an honest review.

Have I been waiting YEARS for another book in the Graceling Realm??? YES!!!! Did I still squeal with excitement when I saw this??? YES!!!!

The little that I was able to read via this partial eARC was just enough of a tease. It was like taking one square of a Hershey bar and having the rest of the bar stolen from you!! I cannot wait to read the rest of this book. Being back in this world is amazing and this story is going to be one full of adventure and new dangers! I cannot wait!!!

This excerpt brought me right back to how much I loved the first three books in the series.

I can't wait to read the entire thing!

I received the physical copy upon requesting the digital copy so I read the physical form.
This book was EVERYTHING! I was immersed in the world once again, after waiting so long to be here again. Winterkeep was exciting, adventurous and vivid! I hope there would be a 5th installment because I think I would never be able to leave the Graceling world.

Winterkeep is the fourth book set in Kristin Cashore’s fantasy world, the prior novels being Graceling, Fire, and Bitterblue. The first was a five-star, best-of-the-year choice for me, and Fire was nearly as good. The third book was a bit of a drop off, though not far. Unfortunately though, Winterkeep continues that downward trend, leaving me I confess, more than a little disappointed, though the book does end well.

In the past, Cashore has eschewed the traditional sequel mode of following the same characters shortly after the prior book ends, choosing instead to introduce new main characters, send familiar characters to the background, and change settings. That same pattern repeats here, with the setting shifting to a new continent/nation and the book’s focus centering on a young woman named Lovisa, though Bitterblue and Giddon (from the prior novel) also get their own POVs, along with a telepathic fox and a group of sentient sea creatures.

Bitterblue, Queen of Monsea, has been engaged in trade and exchanges with the more technologically advanced Torlan continent, in particular its closest nation Winterkeep, ever since a storm had shipwrecked a Torlan fishing vessel on Monsea’s coast three years ago. But when two of her advisors drown in suspicious circumstances, and a former lover also goes missing in the new continent, Bitterblue, Giddon, and Kava (a graceling with the ability to hide herself from others) travel to Winterkeep to investigate. A journey that does not go as expected.

In Winterkeep itself, we’re introduced as noted to Lovisa, a student at Winterkeep’s academy and daughter to two high-status parents. Her mother is President and her father a legislator, albeit the two belong to opposed parties, the Scholars and Industrialists respectively (currently locked into a fierce debate over approval of a useful but environmentally unfriendly fuel). Her family also has the monopoly on the Winterkeep airships. Meanwhile, Cashore offers up several non-human characters, all telepathic: a blue fox named Adventure who has bonded with Lovisa’s mother; a massive, multi-tentacled creature who likes shiny things and isolation, and a group of silbercows wounded by some strange explosion.

To be honest, for much, possibly most, of the novel I actually found the non-human characters more interesting and fully realized. Cashore does an excellent job putting us into their different frames and for not being human, their storylines are some of the most emotionally fraught and moving. These sections also felt more smoothly written, tighter, and more evocative. In fact, I wish we had spent even more time with them as I felt there was even more to mine there.

The human narrative was problematic for me thanks less to any major issue with something being “bad” and more due to a cumulative impact of a number of not-quite-good-enough issues. For instance, while the transitions between the various POVs were smooth enough, overall the plot felt choppy and scenes felt unbalanced, with many of them not having a sense of drive or tension. Political, sexual, and environmental themes felt too bluntly delivered and didactic. There seemed an inordinate amount of time spent on sex,
not its depiction but in thinking and talking about it, often awkwardly inserted (again, not in depicting the actual act) and at times implausibly so. Issues of toxic family life, something we’ve seen before in this series, were also unsubtle, and while they had some strong, more complicated impact toward the end, the lack of full characterization of the two parents meant they felt more like props constructed for the purpose of the theme rather than like fully realized characters. Something exacerbated by some off-the-cuff sort of back history for one of the parents they felt too pat/trite. And finally several major plot points either felt greatly implausible in their action or were predicated on greatly implausible actions (or non-action).

Outside of those implausibilities, none of these issues as noted were “bad,” but they were relatively weak and when combined led to a novel that didn’t match its own potential, nor the level of its predecessors. Fans of the series will still want to read it. There are, after all, good elements here, and the ending is particularly strong. And it is nice to see what happens to some of the characters from prior books as they continue to grow into themselves and in their relationships with each other. But Winterkeep so far is clearly the weakest of the series.

This excerpt just made me even more excited for Winterkeep (which I didn't think was possible!) This was the follow-up I never expected but dearly hoped for.

Graceling and Fire were amazing books and so was the third book Bitterblue. However, Bitterblue always felt a little... incomplete? Or at least to me it did. Graceling and Fire left me very satisfied but Bitterblue left me wanting more.

I am so happy that finally this series is getting continued. It is one of my all-time favourites and definitely one of my most anticipated releases of 2021.

This little bite-size introduction has me spinning! I absolutely cannot wait to dive back into this amazing world...

The preview we got here made me super excited for this new book in the series. Reading bitterblue and seeing everything muddied because of Leck and Bitterblue trying to figure out the truth of the matters was incredible. I can’t wait to read winterkeep and see how Bitterblue comes into her power as queen and deals with all the new issues present in this book.

The preview was the perfect way for me to get totally sucked into the Graceling world again. This book is already out and I got the audiobook. I can't wait to listen to it!

I am so excited that the author went back to this world to write another book! The book starts fast and quickly sets out the mysteries our main characters will pursue during the book. It is so great to read about some of my favorite characters again, and I hope that more of them appear later in the book. The sneak peak that I received made me even more motivated to get this book as quickly as possible so I can finish it!

Thank you for the opportunity to read a sample of the book!

This teaser was everything I needed to know that I wanted to both reread the entire Graceling series, but to read Winterkeep. I fell in love with this series over 10 years ago and I'm so excited to dive back into this amazing world.

I was given the chance to read an excerpt of this book from NetGalley and I can't thank them enough.
Kristin Cashore is a great storyteller, I loved the Seven Kingdoms Trilogy and when I heard she was writing a new book I was ecstatic!
I was immediately drawn into this story form the very first page, and there is no time wasted in reintroducing characters we have met before. I have to admit I was getting pretty nostalgic at every mention of characters from the previous three books. (Graceling was released in 2008!! I honestly can't believe that).
The excerpt wasn't as long as I would have liked (ok.. nothing short of the full book would have been enough) but it was long enough to let me know that Kristin has definitely not lost any of her storytelling skills.

I cannot wait to read this book in it's entirety!!

I thoroughly enjoyed the latest addition to the Graceling Realm series! This story takes place in Winterkeep, which is a technologically advanced land with something evil lurking just beneath the surface. Fabulous world-building with fascinating new characters and familiar, well-loved characters as well. I loved getting to see another side of GIddon, but my favorite character is Lovisa. Such a strong young woman and my heart went out to her for the abuse she endured.

Definitely a fast paced, must-read for fans of the Graceling Realm

This sample has left me begging for more!! I can’t wait to get the entire book and finish this series.

thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for this sampler of Winterkeep
This preview made me really excited about reading this book and others in the graceling realm. I was told one could read this book as a standalone and Cashore piqued my interest in just about 50 pages which is an amazing sign. Can't wait to read the full book

This preview of Winterkeep is definitely just the thing to get someone excited and ready for this long-awaited release! Releasing years after the most recent installment, this first look at Winterkeep gives just enough information to remind old fans about the world of Graceling, as well as provide context to new readers picking up this series for the first time! This preview introduces what promises to be a wonderful and new adventure in yet another world to be explored by our favourite familiar faces.

I'm so excited to read this whole book! I love stepping back into this universe and learning more about what is going on in their world. I was immediately into and ready to know more!

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for this short chapter sampler of Winterkeep by Kristin Cashore. Winterkeep is book number four in the Graceling realm books.
In Winterkeep we find Gideon helping Gracelings escape Estill for the freer Monsea as the militarized Estill considers those with powers are property of the government. It is dangerous and difficult work but Giddon is part of the council which is now an important and large network stretching across many countries.

Upon returning to Monsea Giddon passes a mysterious message to Queen Bitterblue about a powerful mineral it’s connection to the loss of her envoy sent to a country across the sea called Winterkeep. Soon it will become clear that the Queen will have to visit Winterkeep herself to discover the mystery of the mineral zilfium and what it means to the people of Monsea.

This was a exciting opener to the latest book in the Graceling saga. I’m excited to see where the story takes us next and I appreciate the more adult tone (Bitterblue and Giddon are both in their twenties) that Winterkeep takes.

Noo I didn't realize this was only a preview! I can't wait to read the full book. I love this world and this series.