Review: Grave Mercy by R. L. LaFevers

I acutally pre-ordered this book a few weeks ago, because of the amazing cover and summary. Then I got accepted to read it via NetGalley, and I wanted to read it right away. Even though I was unsure if I would like it, because it reminds me a little of Graceling and Fire by Kristin Cashore. But it isn't like those books. At all. It is sort of unique, even though it does reminds me of those books. But it's good.

I really loved this book. I liked the writing, and I loved the characters. Best part? I loved the characters at ALL times. That unsually never happens. But it did now :) And I'm so glad I read this book. Although I was a bit put off with the whole God/Death thing in this book. But I loved the Death. Glad it wasn't about God at all, not really :)

The plot in this book is really good. I loved everything about it. Well, mostly. Didn't think too much about the convent. But, it did seem like an awesome place to be :) I like that the girls are the handmaidens to Death. It made the story really, really good. Although I do sort of hate the women at charge there at the convent. They don't seem very nice.

I don't want to give away much about the plot, because I think you will like the story more if you don't know it all. But, very early in the book the main character, Ismae, gets a mission from the convent she has been living at for three years. She is to spy on Duval, who works for the Duchess. To do that, she must live with him in a city. And I really liked that. It is how the love story started, and how the plot started more.

This book has so many amazing plot things happening, I'm not going to mention them. Because I do not wish to spoil you. It really is amazing. The plot is interesting all the time, and something awesome happens at every moment. What I loved the most though, as I always do, was the romance.

There isn't much romance at first, but that's alright. And there isn't really much romance at the end either, but there is enough. And what there is is amazing. Sweet, and real. I really really loved it. So much. What I loved even more about it, is that there was no triangle. And the love in this book did not have all the drama other books have. Which I loved.

There are so many amazing characters in this book. First, there is Ismae. Who I loved from the beginning. She is sweet, kind, and broken. But she gets stronger, and I love her for it. I hate what happens to her when she is younger, in the beginning. But I also loved it, because I like it when characters are broken. Hih. And I love the scars.

Then there is Duval. Who I really, really loved. He is amazing. Kind, at times, strong and mostly honest. And he is very loyal to his family. Which I loved. He and Ismae didn't seem to get along well at first, but they are perfect for each other. And it gets better fast :) I think. I went through this book pretty fast ;p

There really is too many characters to mention in this book. But I will mention a few more. I liked Annith, from the convent, and I hope we will get to see more of her :) Was too little. I really liked the duchess; Anne. Although she ended up being a lot younger than she seemed like. But still loved her :) Also liked a few of the guards; Beast and de Lornay. (Although, not sure if that was his name. So many complicated names.) They were great characters; most of the time. Didn't like what happened to them at the end, though. But still made sense.

There is a lot of waiting in this book, I suppose. But I loved that. Mostly. I did enjoy this book at all times, and I never wanted to stop reading it. So I did not mind that it was a bit slow a few times :) Anyway, this book is a must read. It reminds of Graceling/Fire, but I liked that. But the story is amazing, and the characters. So this really is a must read when it comes out :)

Thank you to NetGalley and Houghton Mifflin Harcourt for the chance to read and review this book. <3

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Update: Newer and better review of the book can be found here.