This book is awesome! when I finished it and realized there was going to be a sequel, I flipped out. now, having read the second, which is just as good as the first, I cant wait for the third! ah, the slow torturer of waiting for a good book...

Wow, what a great book. It was long and yet so nicely written that I enjoyed every word. If you enjoyed "Graceling" this might be the book for you. It is full of action and I really enjoyed the historical timeframe. I can't wait for the 2nd book of the trilogy - Dark Triumph - which is coming out in April 2013. if I am not mistaken Dark Triumph is the story of Sybella - Ismae's convent sister - so really a totally new book.

I couldn’t put this book down! And trust me, having a sorta short attention span, reading into the break of dawn on a school night is strictly saved for the very best books. This is one of them. Honestly, this book was amazing. I can’t find one flaw in it. It had beautiful characters with their own stories and personalities, assassins that killed for justice and saved for mercy, and a romance that was slow and purposeful that rose from the ashes of nearly killing either other many times. I don’t know why that always makes it better, but it does. Must read.

If you enjoy Action/Thrillers, with a few twists and turns, and a bit of a love story, this book is for you. You can be 15 or 50 years old, and love this book. I think this is my favourite read of this summer. I don't want to give anything away, but this was very enjoyable, with an entirely enigmatic heroine.

Original story set in medieval Brittany, with a twist. Ismae is one of the scarred daughters of the god/saint of Death, Mortain. She is rescued from a forced marriage by Mortain’s convent and trained in the art of assassination, but then must make her way in the treacherous surroundings of the fragile court of the Duchess of Brittany. I like the world, and the ideas behind the story, but Ismae is alternatively too wise and too naïve to be super believeable. Also, I find the sudden rescue in the ending to be a little too pat – if I think of it as a Romance novel, then it is well and excellently done. As a YA paranormal-ish book, it leaves something to be desired.

This book was good, and the subject was completely different from anything else I've read. Ismae is a very strong lead character, and I enjoyed reading about her adventures. That being said, this book was very long and got boring at times. The general plot is very good, but the author just stretched the story out too far, which made me lose interest. Overall, it was a good story, but I had to force myself to just plow through and finish it. I also felt like the dialogue wasn't accurate to the fifteenth century, although I probably wouldn't have enjoyed it at all if it was accurate. I also wish there were more romantic scenes in this book, but maybe the author was just building up that relationship for the sequel? I wouldn't necessarily recommend this book to everyone, but if you are interested in these type of stories, I would suggest trying it.

Grave Mercy was a long read. a bit too long. The book is over 580 pages and should have wrapped up around page 300. It is about a young lady who is trained to be an assassin who is assigned to protect the soon to be crowned queen of brittany. At first she is sure of her path but then begins to second guess who she is working for and if she herself is on the right path.

Fun and fast paced -- with interesting parallels to pre-modern Brittainy. However, this is a very dirivative novel, copying the assassin role from Graceling, and other elements from other recent popular Young Adult fiction. So enjoy -- but Graceling is better.

Two words. Ninja. Nuns. Who wouldn't be hooked? The writing style is a little annoying (far too much telling, not enough showing), but that's a common complaint for adults trying to read YA fiction. It's an interesting story line. Sort of like Kushiel's Dart for teenagers. I'm interested to see how the series develops.

Promising beginning with an intriguing premise. In Britain, a number of monks and nuns would quietly worship the ancient gods under the auspices of the new Christian faith. In LaFevers' new fantasy, one cloister trains the daughters sired by Death himself. Ismae is fun to get to know.