Graceling Realm Books in Order By Kristin Cashore
When a monster stopped behaving like a monster, did it stop being a monster? Did it become something else?
― Kristin Cashore, Graceling
Graceling Realm Books
- Graceling (2008)
- Fire (2009)
- Bitterblue (2012)
- Winterkeep (2021)
- Seasparrow (2022)
Graceling Realm – The Graphic Novel
- Graceling: The Graphic Novel (2021)
What is Graceling Realm about?
Graceling Realm is set in a world where some of the inhabitants are born with a skill, an exceptional skill which is known as a Grace. The people who have Grace are feared and exploited, and our main protagonist, Katsa, is the bearer of a skill that she hates. She has the Grace of killing.
Katsa lives under the command of her Uncle Randa, who is King of the Middluns. This is one of the Seven Kingdoms that is set within this world, each one rulled by their own king and their own agenda for power.
Currently there are five books in the series, spanning over many years in the Seven Kingdoms, and there is even a Graphic Novel retelling of the first book, Graceling.
Who is Kristin Cashore?
Kristin Cashmore is an American author of Young Adult and Fantasy, most notably being her debut series of the Graceling Realm. She grew up in the Pennsylvania countryside, being the second of four daughters.
Cashmore earned a bachelor’s degree from Williams College, and later earned her master’s degree in 2003 from the Center for the Study of Children’s Literature at Simmons College in Children’s Literature.
There will be no yelling at people who are bleeding themselves to unconsciousness.
― Kristin Cashore, Fire
The Order
Below you will find the reading order for Graceling Realm. Each of the books follow in a linear direction, with the previous book following on from the last, sometimes a few years has passed from where the last book had ended.
WARNING: There may be spoilers for some of the books mentioned. These are taken from the official descriptions but can sometimes spoil parts of previous books. So please be careful!
Graceling (2008)
Graceling Realm #1
115,870 words, 370 pages, 40 chapters, 7hrs 45mins to read.
2,896 average words per chapter, 9.25 average pages per chapter
Published by HarperCollins Publishers
4.07 out of 5 on Goodreads
Katsa has been able to kill a man with her bare hands since she was eight—she’s a Graceling, one of the rare people in her land born with an extreme skill. As niece of the king, she should be able to live a life of privilege, but Graced as she is with killing, she is forced to work as the king’s thug.
She never expects to fall in love with beautiful Prince Po.
She never expects to learn the truth behind her Grace—or the terrible secret that lies hidden far away . . . a secret that could destroy all seven kingdoms with words alone.
Fire (2009)
Graceling Realm #2
118,080 words, 384 pages, 34 chapters, 7hrs 55mins to read
3,472 average words per chapter, 11.3 average pages per chapter
Published by Dial Books
4.10 out of 5 on Goodreads
It is not a peaceful time in the Dells. The young King Nash clings to his throne while rebel lords in the north and south build armies to unseat him. The mountains and forests are filled with spies and thieves and lawless men.
This is where Fire lives. With a wild, irresistible appearance and hair the color of flame, Fire is the last remaining human monster. Equally hated and adored, she had the unique ability to control minds, but she guards her power, unwilling to steal the secrets of innocent people. Especially when she has so many of her own.
Then Prince Brigan comes to bring her to King City, The royal family needs her help to uncover the plot against the king. Far away from home, Fire begins to realize there’s more to her power than she ever dreamed. Her power could save the kingdom.
If only she weren’t afraid of becoming the monster her father was.
Bitterblue (2012)
Graceling Realm #3
141,700 words, 539 pages, 46 chapters, 9hrs 30mins to read.
3,080 average words per chapter, 11.7 average pages per chapter
Published by Dial Books
4.00 out of 5 on Goodreads
Eight years have passed since the young Princess Bitterblue, and her country, were saved from the vicious King Leck. Now Bitterblue is the queen of Monsea, and her land is at peace.
But the influence of her father, a violent psychopath with mind-altering abilities, lives on. Her advisers, who have run the country on her behalf since Leck’s death, believe in a forward-thinking plan: to pardon all of those who committed terrible acts during Leck’s reign; and to forget every dark event that ever happened. Monsea’s past has become shrouded in mystery, and it’s only when Bitterblue begins sneaking out of her castle – curious, disguised and alone – to walk the streets of her own city, that she begins to realise the truth. Her kingdom has been under the thirty-five-year long spell of a madman, and now their only chance to move forward is to revisit the past.
Whatever that past holds.
Two thieves, who have sworn only to steal what has already been stolen, change her life forever. They hold a key to the truth of Leck’s reign. And one of them, who possesses an unidentified Grace, may also hold a key to her heart . . .
Winterkeep (2021)
Graceling Realm #4
129,890 words, 511 pages, 50 chapters, 8hrs 40mins to read
2,597 average words per chapter, 10.2 average pages per chapter
Published by Dial Books
4.03 out of 5 on Goodreads
Something is rotten in the heart of Winterkeep…
Four years after Bitterblue left off, a new land has been discovered to the east: Torla; and the closest nation to Monsea is Winterkeep. Winterkeep is a land of miracles, a democratic republic run by people who like each other, where people speak to telepathic sea creatures, adopt telepathic foxes as pets, and fly across the sky in ships attached to balloons.
But when Bitterblue’s envoys to Winterkeep drown under suspicious circumstances, she and Giddon and her half sister, Hava, set off to discover the truth–putting both Bitterblue’s life and Giddon’s heart to the test when Bitterbue is kidnapped. Giddon believes she has drowned, leaving him and Hava to solve the mystery of what’s wrong in Winterkeep.
Seasparrow (2022)
Graceling Realm #5
153,505 words, 624 pages, 10hrs 15mins to read
Published by Dial Books
4.20 out of 5 on Goodreads
In the immediate aftermath of the events of Winterkeep, Bitterblue and her entourage begin the journey back to Monsea with the only copies of the formulas for the zilphium weapon. Bitterblue must decide what she will do with her world-shaping power. But before they’ve even made it halfway home, storms drive their ship off course and then wrecking them in the ice far north of the Royal Continent. The survivors must make a harrowing trek across the ice in order to make it back to Monsea.
BONUS – Graphic Novel
Graceling: The Graphic Novel (2021)
Graceling Graphic Novels #1
272 pages
Published by Clarion Books
4.08 out of 5 on Goodreads
The beloved New York Times bestselling YA fantasy by Kristin Cashore is now available as a graphic novel, with stunning illustrations by award-winning artist Gareth Hinds. Katsa is a Graceling, one of the rare people born with an extreme skill. As niece of the king, she lived a life of privilege until the day her ability to kill a man with her bare hands revealed itself during a royal banquet. Now she acts as her uncle’s enforcer, traveling the kingdom and threatening those who dare oppose him. But everything changes when she meets Po, a foreign prince Graced with combat skills who is searching for the truth about his grandfather’s disappearance. When Katsa agrees to help him, she never expects to learn a new truth about her own Grace—or about a terrible secret that could destroy them all. With “gorgeous storytelling” (School Library Journal , starred review) and characters “crafted with meticulous devotion” ( Kirkus , starred review), Graceling is a beloved classic that has continued to resonate with readers for over a decade.
They’re stronger than me. But I’m stronger than the way they’re trying to make me feel.
― Kristin Cashore, Winterkeep
Overall
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If you have enjoyed any of Kristin Cashore work and want to learn more about her or any other of her work, then feel free to check out her website and don’t forget to give her a follow on Twitter.
Which one is your favourite or most looking forward to picking up next?
Let us know!
Happy reading!
How absurd it was that in all seven kingdoms, the weakest and most vulnerable of people – girls, women – went unarmed and were taught nothing of fighting, while the strong were trained to the highest reaches of their skill.
― Kristin Cashore, Graceling
Graceling Realm Total Word Count and More
Below is the total word count in the Graceling Realm series, not including the Graphic Novel.
- Total words: 659,045 words
- Total pages: 2,428 pages
- Total chapters: 170 chapters
- Total reading time: 44hrs
More of the same, but different:
For More of Anything:
Things to Note:
- Word count is an approximation.
- Amount of pages may differ due to different publications, font style and/or size etc.
- Time spent reading is generally an approximation based on the word count and the average reading time. The average reader will read 250 WPM (Words Per Minute).
- This is the original publisher of the books.
- The current Goodreads score at the time of writing.
- For more information on word lengths and what they mean, check out our handy guide here.
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