i do not know how this book was allowed to get made in its current state, nor do i understand the conditions of its making. (publishing is an upside-down town, but cashore thanks her longtime editor, the same as its prior books.) the quality of the prose drops off a sharp and immediate cliff and remains in a freefall no one caught. a character says "creepy" as a scene-setting descriptor at least five times—different characters, i mean. residents of a medieval-esque fantasyland that has always been casually, unstiltedly a convincing medieval-esque fantasyland will just be, like, "my boyfriend." The ocean had shared a secret with her. A monster had reached out and delivered a miracle. This world kept wanting to be bigger than she was letting it. Why did she keep trapping herself inside small things?” P.S. As a little aside, they’re some changes to this story than what happened in Bitterblue. Keep the 5 years in mind because of course nothing is the same as it once was. People growth, mature, etc.

I like the way it breaks the whole "your first love is your forever love" trend that we tend to follow in this kind of books, and it shows that mature relationships build over years of trust and friendship can also be a beautiful thing. I think there was potential here, for sure, and I definitely maybe had too high a set of expectations after revisiting and rediscovering my love for books one to three all over again, but.. this just didn't work for me. Not as a fan of the series or as just a reader of fantasy. I couldn't love it, could barely like it, and it seemed to take me way too long to get through. I'm sad. The fact that there is a pretty significant age gap between them made me, well, uncomfortable. Usually, I can get behind that fact since both characters are adults and all but the fact that one of the parties had known the other since they were children, and they were already basically adults at that point, did give me pause and left me reeling.This book left me with the same questions I had about the earlier books in the series, but more so. Who is the audience for this book? The world building is ok, but the elements, especially the political elements that drive the plot, are very simplistic -- which makes you think of middle grade fiction, as do the telepathic purple dolphins and blue foxes. And then there is the explicit and promiscuous sex. So not so middle grade. And then there is a sadism that is a feature of the series. I understand that, especially in a quest book, the children or young adults need to be on their own, but every parent in this series is a true sadist, or a homicidal maniac, or dead, often at the heads of their spouse. The story has no moral center, for any of the characters -- their motto is survival at any cost. I also loved the exploration of a new setting with different political issues that were still reminiscent of problems in the previous books, with the ever familiar political corruption simmering underneath. The themes of this book (and series) are brilliant and all too recognizable in our own world, from the varying impacts of abuse and trauma, on children and animals and kids long grown up but still learning how to cope with the lingering effects—to the endless, cyclical fight to detect and stop corruption from blooming where there is power (and someone, somewhere, always has power). In Winterkeep specifically, I was also pleasantly surprised to see environmentalism and the effects of irresponsible governments on nature. Cashore always delves into these issues with so much nuance, grace, and care for the characters who are at the heart of it, while balancing some of the darker content with other lighter moments, and Winterkeep is no exception.

Anyway, I really enjoyed Winterkeep. I loved the Graceling series in general although my least favourite was Bitterblue, which just didn't land for me when I read it. Winterkeep moves on around five or six years after Bitterblue. The queen of Monsea has adjusted well to ruling and despite her country's financial troubles, has helped people to move forward and heal after the tyrannical rule of her father. After the discovery of the Dells, explorers have also located other lands including Winterkeep. Winterkeep is a nation that is very different from anything we've seen before. Even though Graceling and Bitterblue took place in a different land than Fire, they were still very similar in many aspects, with the biggest difference being the existence of monsters in Fire.Seeing Lovisa understanding the abuse that she has faced throughout the years and her entire character development in so many different aspects was the storyline that really made the book for me, more than any of the political intrigue or mysteries (althought those go hand-in-hand with Lovisa's storyline as well). Cashore has also written professionally for textbooks, and teacher editions, as well as for The Horn Book Guide. [1] I was surprised by how little I hated the new romance plot. I think that's all I really have to say. Winterkeep and the other countries around it having airships. Please, please don't tell me that countries that are in the middle of what is actually an industrial revolution of sorts, and been at it for a few longs years, haven't been able to fly over the the mountains to their...West, I believe, to find out about the Graceling kingdoms. In all, this one has its good points, particularly in some of its humor, it’s excellent animal characters, and in the always wonderful Bitterblue, but it’s hugely overlong and ultimately disappoints plot-wise. If you haven’t done so already, I recommend reading Cashore’s bizarre and exceptional stand-alone novel Jane, Unlimited instead.