Winterkeep

Five years after the events of Bitterblue, the Queen of Monsea sails to Winterkeep to investigate the disappearance of two envoys.

As a sequel about Bitterblue, this was pretty much everything I wanted. I particularly liked how, even during parts of the story when Bitterblue and Giddon are apart, there’s such a strong sense of what their relationship is like -- and how strong it is.

As for the other POV characters, I quite liked the blue fox and the ocean-dwelling Keeper. The chapters about Lovisa, the daughter of Winterkeep politicians, were compelling.
I was expecting more resolution from Lovisa’s story -- but it isn’t until the end that she properly has the space and the support to work out what she wants from her life and her show more relationships, or to come to terms with her past and her family’s legacy. (The sorts of things Cashore’s other heroines get to do during their books.) So although I didn’t find Lovisa very relatable nor her ending wholly satisfying, that’s very much a personal reaction. And it’s important that we also get stories which say, it’s okay if you’re sixteen and things are messy and you don’t know what you want!


[...] he saw that the dark marble stripes on the floor formed tentacles, belonging to yet another representation of that sea monster from the Keepish fairy tales.
“I think he’s called the Keeper,” Giddon said, saying the word in Keepish.
“She,” said Hava, with a small scowl.
“Okay, she. And this is the Keep, and the country is Winterkeep.”
“Wow, Giddon,” said Hava. “It’s like you have an advanced degree in etymology.”
“Not nearly as advanced as your degree in sarcasm,” he said, pretending to be less piqued than he was. show less

Immersive, adventure-filled fantasy, WINTERKEEP can be read as a stand-alone or after the first three Graceling books. Winterkeep begins five years after the end of BITTERBLUE; Queen Bitterblue of Monsea decides to travel to Winterkeep, a country on another continent, after becoming suspicious that the deaths of two of her envoys/advisers, Mikka and Brek, in a shipwreck was not an accident, but murder. Giddon, a member of the Council, travels with her, and each of them begins to realize, privately, their feelings for each other. But in their journey to Winterkeep, Bitterblue is washed overboard; she is rescued, first by silbercows, then by people - but the people kidnap her and keep her in their attic, while the rest of the Monseans, show more including Giddon and Bitterblue's Graceling half-sister Hava, believe Bitterblue to be dead.

Lovisa Cavenda is beginning to suspect that her parents are up to no good, but she doesn't know that the Queen of Monsea is in their attic. Her powerful parents are affiliated with opposite political parties - Benni Cavenda is an Industrialist, and Ferla Cavenda is a Scholar - but both are motivated by money more than any altruistic values. Ferla is also bonded to one of Winterkeep's telepathic blue foxes, though her fox is beginning to feel conflicted about Ferla's actions.

And beneath the ocean's surface, the silbercows - also telepathic - discover the giant creature they believe to be the Keeper, a figure from Winterkeep fairytales. The Keeper has discovered the shipwreck of the Seashell and Mikka and Brek's bodies, as well as Bitterblue's mother's ring, and therefore is in possession of important evidence, but is reluctant to get involved in any way.

Cashore's talent for world-building, character, and action is in top form in WINTERKEEP.

Quotes

"Have you ever been in love with someone, then realized they're not actually as kind or grown-up as you thought? And in fact, you were in love with an idea of who you thought they were, instead of who they actually are? And now you have to tell them so, but there's no point in being hurtful?" (Bitterblue to Giddon, 31)

"It's not your fault. It's your burden. But it's not your fault. There's a difference." (Giddon to Bitterblue, 37)

It made Lovisa wonder if a hero was ever anything more than a bully. (78)

When someone tries to press a story on you, you needed to be able to refuse. But it was also nice to know taht the story would be there again for you another day, if you changed your mind. If you were ready. (the Keeper, 110)

...but then she became afraid of what would happen if she learned more things. She didn't want to know any more things. (Lovisa, 233)

It was strange, the way she couldn't feel fear anymore. (Lovisa, 353)

It was interesting, the way humans could decide not to see the truth when it made them too uncomfortable. (the fox, 384)

She wondered how long she'd been walking through a world she knew nothing about. Her whole life? Was there a way to learn more than she'd been taught? (Lovisa, 459)

The problem...was that she wasn't ready to go back, but it hurt, terribly, to be left behind....It was a problem with no solution. Whichever path she chose would be harder than she felt she could stand. (Lovisa, 460) show less

After how gorgeous the rest of this series is, I was pretty let down by Winterkeep. Giddon, who was an asshole in Graceling and was redeemed in Bitterblue, seemed to have lost all character progress at the beginning of Winterkeep and a lot of gestures that seemed selfless previously felt more like entitled possessiveness and grooming in this sequel. I almost DNF’d this book around 30% in and while I’m glad I got some closure on this series there were definitely cringe moments further in as well (not all from Giddon, I would like to clarify that this is a more generic problem with the book). There were several oddly unpolished, clunky sections of dialogue that I found shocking, given where Cashore is in her career. While some scenes show more are diamonds in the rough, but I’m definitely glad I didn’t purchase this book and will not be re-reading it like I do with Graceling, Fire, or Bitterblue. show less

This was an interesting episode in the series, lots of politics and I adored the foxes.
Bitterblue is on a mission to a new land Torla and find out what some of it's secrets are. In a country with different rules and societal pressures and in that world is Lovisa Cavenda, the teenage daughter of a powerful Scholar and Industrialist, she wants to change the world and this might just be her chance. When her life and Bitterblue's become intertwined after Bitterblue is kidnapped, things get complicated, particularly when Bitterblue is actually assumed to be dead.

It's a complex story with messy politics and a different world with characters I really cared about, particularly Ad.

Audiobook Quality (5/5): This was an exquisitely done audiobook that I enjoyed immensely. The narration is beautifully done and really makes all the characters and the world come alive. I would highly recommend listening to this on audiobook if you enjoy audiobooks.

Story (5/5): The story introduces us to the land of Winterkeep. Bitterblue is drawn into some political troubles that involve Winterkeep when one of her ships (and two of her ambassadors) go missing in the region. There is a good mystery here, some adventure and action, and a bit of a love story as well. It was a very well balanced epic fantasy that I enjoyed a ton!

Characters (5/5): I am going to be honest, I only vaguely remembered a lot of the characters here since it’s show more been nine years since the last book in this series was published. This book does include a pdf list of all the characters, which was useless on audiobook (they read the list out at the end of the audiobook). However, I enjoyed the characters right away even if I couldn’t remember much of their history. They all have a lot of depth and are thoughtful and intriguing and just incredibly well done. The story switches between Bitterblue, Giddon, and Lovisa and I really enjoyed all of their viewpoints.

Setting (5/5): It was wonderful to journey back to this incredibly intricate and well done epic fantasy world. I again struggled to remember the history of Bitterblue’s rise to power in Monsea but there are enough reminders thrown in that I got the general gist of it. Most of the book takes place in Winterkeep and it was an intricate and interesting new setting for the story. Very well done world-building overall.

Writing Style (5/5): This is a long book but it never felt long to me. I enjoyed the different characters’ viewpoints so much that I never minded jumping between storylines. Everything wove together beautifully. This was a wonderfully balanced story and had excellent world-building, amazing characters, an intricate plot, as well as adventure and some romance. It was so fun to read another Graceling novel, Cashore is an amazing writer and I am glad she decided to continue the series.

My Summary (5/5): Overall this was an amazing read. I approached this book with a bit of trepidation since it had been so long since the last Graceling Realm novel. However, I shouldn’t have worried. Cashore has crafted another amazing Graceling novel with new locations and new characters, as well as some old favorites. I would recommend this whole series to fans of epic fantasy, although the later books were definitely more epic fantasy in tone than the earlier books were. show less

Winterkeep is the fourth Graceling Realm novel by Kristin Cashore.

Content Note: child abuse

Plot:
Bitterblue has been ruling her kingdom for five years. Years in which Monsea has drastically expanded its diplomatic relationships – now extending all the way to the continent Torla. The closest nation to Monsea on that continent is Winterkeep. Winterkeep is a wondrous lands to Monseans. A democratic republic where people can communicate telepathically with some of the animals. After the ship with her envoys sinks though, and Bitterblue receives intelligence that this may not have been an accident, she decides to visit Winterkeep herself, together with Hava and Giddon. But things don’t go exactly as planned. Meanwhile Lovisa Cavenda is show more the daughter of one of the most powerful families in Winterkeep. And she, too, wants to investigate some mysteries that happen around her family and that may also be key to Bitterblue’s mission.

Winterkeep is an exciting return to the Graceling Realm (after so many years, we get blessed again this fall with a fifth novel, so double yay) and I absolutely loved reading it. It was emotional and intriguing and expands the Graceling Realm in very interesting ways.

Read more on my blog: https://kalafudra.com/2022/08/05/winterkeep-kristin-cashore/ show less

Intriguing and entrancing, with some world-building (impressive in a 4th book of a series) and multiple perspectives. A strong mystery element as well as a lot of character development and emotional depth.