Teaser Tuesday on Wednesday *Graceling*

I forgot to do a Teaser on Tuesday. And I really wanted to do one for Graceling. I am just finishing up reading Hate List by Jennifer Brown (author interview to come!), and I'm going to pick up Graceling by Kristin Cashore next. I'm so excited about Graceling it's not even funny. So here's a bit of a teaser, although I don't know who I'm teasing--you or me! I can't wait to start reading.

From the back cover:

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.

When she first meets Prince Po, Graced with combat skills, Katsa has no hint of how her life is about to change.

She never expects to become Po's friend.

She never expects to learn a new truth about her own Grace--or about a terrible secret that lies hidden far away...

Plus, Holy Crow, check out the cover! What a beaut. The cover for the semi-sequel Fire is dazzling as well. Here is your teaser:

Her thoughts rambled, but she wasn't daydreaming. Her senses were sharp. She caught the fall of every leaf in the garden, the rustle of every branch. And so she was astonished when a man stepped out of the darkness and grabbed her from behind. He wrapped his arm around her chest and held a knife to her throat. He started to speak, but in an instant she had deadened his arm, wrenched the knife from his hand, and thrown the blade to the ground. She flung him forward, over her shoulders.

He landed on his feet.

Her mind raced. He was Graced, a fighter. That much was clear. And unless he had no feeling in the hand that had raked her chest, he knew she was a woman.

I'm so ridiculous; I'm getting all excited typing up this entry!

Another very cool thing I noticed, flipping through praise mentioned at the front of the book, a BLOGGER has made it into the print for this book! Hip Librarians Book Blog has written a handful of lines about the book and Graphia/Houghton Mifflin has printed this praise alongside that of Horn Book and Newsday.

Bloggers have come a long way as reviewers and arbiters of trend. It is very cool to see publishers nod to bloggers in this way and support bloggers with galley books and giveaways.

Mandy

Teaser Tuesday is a weekly meme hosted by Should Be Reading.

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