Bitterblue

Plot

Eight years after the events of Graceling, Bitterblue, now eighteen, is Queen of Monsea. She is determined to restore peace and justice to her land, and rebuild the kingdom left in ruins by her father, King Leck. Her advisors Darby, Rood, Runnemood, and Thiel seem to be keeping her in the dark, and want her to act as a figurehead. Bitterblue disguises herself as a servant and begins a truth-seeking campaign in the city. She stops at a tavern, which she learns is a story-room, where she hears stories about her kingdom and history. She meets the young thieves Teddy and Sapphire (Saf), who is also a Graceling, but oddly, does not know what his grace is. She discovers that the two young men and their cohorts are involved in an underground movement to educate the kingdom's people. Unaware of her true identity, they nickname Bitterblue "Sparks".

Bitterblue discovers new disturbing information about her father, the information he destroyed, and that her advisors are former healers who were forced to treat those Leck tortured. Lord Danzhol tries to kidnap Bitterblue, and she kills him in self-defense. Saf tells her that he only steals things formerly stolen by Leck. Teddy is stabbed, and later his family's printshop is burned down. These events are somehow connected, but the connection is elusive. Hava, who unintentionally helped in Bitterblue's attempted kidnapping, is a Graceling with a talent for disguise. Hava and Bitterblue evade an attack and Bitterblue realizes that she has romantic feelings for Saf.

Bitterblue goes to a murder trial, and finds that Saf is the one accused of murder. Saf realizes Bitterblue is the queen, not the commoner he believed her to be. When his alibi is proven and the case is over, he steals Bitterblue's crown and sells it on the black market. Bitterblue manages to decipher hidden messages from her mother and discovers the depth of her father's depravity. She visits Saf to apologize, and as she leaves she is stabbed, an assassination attempt orchestrated by Runnemood. Runnemood is later found dead and blamed for acting against Bitterblue. She suspects that she is still being lied to.

Bitterblue discovers Leck's old journals, which are written in strange, unrecognizable symbols. Bitterblue's head librarian, Death, learns that the journals are in a different language, and begins to translate them to learn Leck's secrets. When Death is attacked and many of the journals burned, Bitterblue realizes Thiel is responsible. He reveals that Leck compelled him and others to torture people for Leck's pleasure, and all of Bitterblue advisors have been responsible for silencing the truth in order to forget their painful pasts. He then commits suicide and Darby also kills himself out of guilt. Bitterblue confronts Thiel and Runnemood's remaining followers, gaining their loyalty when she forgives them for what they were forced to do, but determines that they cannot force others to suppress their past in the same way.

Bitterblue takes measures to ensure the true history of the realm is recorded. Saf and his group do their part in the city. Saf and Bitterblue spend a night together, and Bitterblue realizes Saf's Grace is the ability to give others good dreams. Katsa returns from her expedition to the unknown East behind the mountains with Lady Fire, Pikkia and others from the Dells as they are interested in allying. When they return to the Dells, Po's older brother Skye leaves with them, and Saf joins him. Bitterblue learns that Hava is her half-sister, born after Leck raped her mother, Bellamew. Bitterblue begins to found ministries to help Monsea properly recover from Leck's reign.

Characters

Queen Bitterblue: Queen Bitterblue is the daughter of Leck (Immiker), the former king of Monsea, and Ashen, the former queen of Monsea and princess of Lienid. She was born in Monsea. She is the main protagonist of the book Bitterblue.

Thiel: Formerly an advisor to King Leck, and then to Queen Bitterblue. He was selected by Leck due to his excellence in medical studies (along with Darby, Runnemood, and Rood). He was later selected to be Queen Bitterblue's advisor by King Ror. After Bitterblue figured out some of his betrayal, he admitted to having killing Runnemood and committing crimes against Bitterblue. Thiel tragically took his own life by stepping off Winged Bridge.

Sapphire: Also known as Saf, is a Monsean commoner raised by the Lienid. His parents were truthseekers during King Leck's reign, and he is Graced, though he doesn't know what his grace is. At the age of six months, his parents snuck him onto a Lienid ship in the hopes of saving his life. They died in the fight against Leck. Saf returned to Monsea shortly before the events of Bitterblue, looking for his sister, Bren. He spent his time since then working with Teddy, Bren, and Tilda as part of the continued truth-seeking campaign. His primary task has been stealing back the many things Leck stole. During Bitterblue, Saf meets and develops a fractious relationship with the young queen, believing her to be a commoner as well. When he finds out that she is not, their relationship deteriorates and never fully recovers. At one point, he takes in a frazzled Bitterblue into the drawbridge tower, where he learns of Thiel's suicide. He lies with her through the night. At the end of the book, he leaves with the Dellian party to seek adventure elsewhere.

Teddy: Tilda's younger brother, and friend and colleague of Saf and Bren who do their underground work in his printing shop.

Tilda: A young woman residing in Bitterblue City in Monsea, running a printing shop with her partner Bren and brother Teddy. During Bitterblue, she starts out printing reading lessons to combat the low literacy rate in Monsea and especially Bitterblue City. She is later contracted by Queen Bitterblue to print copies of the books that were destroyed by King Leck and restored by Death, the librarian.

Reception

Bitterblue was named a New York Times best-seller, a Kirkus Reviews and Publishers Weekly Best Book of 2012, and the 2012 American Library Association Best Fiction for Young Adults.