KRISTIN CASHORE, STOP TRYING TO MAKE ME CRY

I just read this on the blog of my favourite author, Kristin Cashore.

I don't quite know why this moved me, but it did. The first thing I'd like to say is that, Ms Cashore, the author does matter. Without the author, there would be no book. And when somebody falls in love with a book, the likelihood is that they do actually think about that person who sat down and spent their time and effort to write that book.

Secondly, I don't know about anyone else, but I don't use your books for coasters, Ms Cashore. I don't use any books as coasters, I have too much respect for them. I may have realised my love for your books a little too late to stop a few slightly dog-eared pages and broken spines on Graceling and Fire (my copy of Bitterblue is a hardback. And I did try very hard with the spine of Fire, so I'm sorry I still broke it), but I most certainly do not and never will use them as coasters. :)

Thirdly, one day, one of those letters in one of those piles of fan mail will be from me. One day. :)

TO READ: Graceling

And at last, I've got to recommending what is probably my favourite series of books: The Seven Kingdoms trilogy by the wonderful Kristin Cashore (whose blog is here). Graceling is the first in the trilogy to have been published, and is Cashore's debut novel, although in the story's timeline it is not the first chronologically.

Graceling is set in a fictional Medieval-esque world made up of seven kingdoms: Nander, Estill, Sunder, Wester, Monsea, Lienid, and the Middluns. In this world, some people - called Gracelings - are born with extra-special abilities and are marked by having one eye a different colour to the other.

One such Graceling is Katsa, the niece of the king of the Middluns, who is Graced with killing, and is used by her uncle as a weapon to fuel his fearsome reputation. Sickened by the gruesome tasks she is forced to do, Katsa also works for a secret organisation called the Council, which she started herself, to do good and help people in order to balance out all those she has hurt and killed.

It is on a Council mission to rescue the kidnapped father of the peaceful king of Lienid that Katsa stumbles onto a dark mystery that will lead her on a journey of survival and self-discovery across the Seven Kingdoms in the hopes of putting right a world gone wrong.

Winner of several awards and nominated for many more, Graceling is a gripping and fast-paced coming-of-age novel for young adults, beautifully written with a touch of romance and humour, as well as believable characters who I myself have become incredibly emotionally attached to over at least five readings of this book. It's also due to be adapted for the big screen, by the makers of Life Of Pi; it's a film I'm very much looking forward to, I just hope they do it the justice it deserves.

Also, while browsing Kristin Cashore's blog for the link to the post in which the film was announced, I found this awesome post (if you read it, remember to read some of the comments too, as Cashore comments to answer peoples' questions with more wonderful insights). I swear it's the most inspirational post for writers EVER. Another of my favourites is this one; Kristin Cashore has some of the most brilliant advice for writers, I could actually spend all day finding links to posts from her blog that would be helpful to anyone aspiring to be a novelist (she is seriously inspirational).

A Fan-Girl Moment

I just found out that Kristin Cashore's The Seven Kingdoms Trilogy is going to be made into a film. A film! How exciting! I am very, ahem, pleased. Definitely not overreacting at all. :)

It had better be good.

No, it had better be AMAZING.

Or else.

...

A short continuation of the post I wrote approximately two minutes ago

Furthermore, I have just read the latest post on Kristin Cashore's blog. The captions are brilliant.

http://kristincashore.blogspot.co.uk/2013/02/it-is-use-of-increasingly-more.html

Which reminds me, I promised a friend I'd lend her Kristin Cashore's books. We were talking about The Lord Of The Rings, and she said she didn't like fantasy because of all the crazy magic stuff like talking trees. Naturally I was like, "What's wrong with talking trees?!" So I was telling her why I like fantasy, and I told her about Kristin Cashore's awesome books and asked her if she wanted to borrow them off me, she tried to refuse by saying that she prefered romance stories, so I was like, "THERE'S LOADS OF ROMANCE!!!"

Hopefully, Kristin Cashore, you will have another fan. :)

Basically what I'm saying is, read Graceling, Fire and Bitterblue. They are AMAZING and you will see why I keep mentioning them and their author. :)