Review - Grave Mercy

by Robin LaFevers
publisher: Houghton Mifflin Harcourt
date of publication: April 3, 2012
format: ARC
pages: 509
source: from the publisher for review
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From Goodreads:

Why be the sheep, when you can be the wolf?

Seventeen-year-old Ismae escapes from the brutality of an arranged marriage into the sanctuary of the convent of St. Mortain, where the sisters still serve the gods of old. Here she learns that the god of Death Himself has blessed her with dangerous gifts—and a violent destiny. If she chooses to stay at the convent, she will be trained as an assassin and serve as a handmaiden to Death. To claim her new life, she must destroy the lives of others.

Ismae's most important assignment takes her straight into the high court of Brittany—where she finds herself woefully under prepared—not only for the deadly games of intrigue and treason, but for the impossible choices she must make. For how can she deliver Death’s vengeance upon a target who, against her will, has stolen her heart?

What I Thought

Anticipation for this novel has been high ever since I first read the plot description.  I was intrigued by the concept of a seventeen-year-old assassin trained in the deadly arts by a convent.  As if that wasn't enough, the fact that it takes place at the high court of medieval Brittany and is based upon the events surrounding the real-life Anne of Brittany boosted this novel near the top of my must-read list.  Now that I have had the chance to read it, I can gladly say that Grave Mercy lived up to every one of my expectations... and more!

Ismae is, perhaps, one of the strongest female main characters I have had the pleasure of reading in quite some time.  She is born during a time when women are basically sold at a young age in marriage and have little to no choice in what becomes of them.  That she goes from being a victim to being a formidable young woman who can more than take care of herself is a marvel of character development.  Her experiences do leave their mark upon her, however, which makes her all the more complex and easily related to.  Her male counterpart, Duval, is one of my favorite male characters that I have encountered in a while, as well.  While he does hold concerns about Ismae's welfare, he isn't over-the-top with it.  I really liked that Ms. LaFevers made him into a remarkably open-minded young man in a world where so few men would take a woman's theories and strengths seriously.  It was very refreshing and, I must say, the hints of romance were all the more compelling for it! 

The world of this assassin is one filled with both danger and beauty and I simply could not get enough of it.  Having recently learned of my own familial ties to both this time period and era, I quickly found myself drawn into this rich, intricately woven world of politics, intrigue, and betrayal.  The storyline is wonderfully complex and, though I thought I had figured a few things out, the plot twists were nothing short of brilliant and ensured that there was much to take me by surprise.  The overall package reminded me of some of my all-time favorite historical novels and left me feeling similarly excited upon finishing the last page.  This book fully engaged my mind and left me wishing to learn even more about the time and people that inspired it.  This is the mark of a great novel.

The only complaint I have about Grave Mercy is that I have to wait an entire year to read the next book.  It was one of those books that I felt sad upon finishing simply because it was over.  I'm beyond thrilled that there will be 2 more books, however, and can't wait to see what else the world of His Fair Assassin has in store.  If you're a history buff that enjoys a little fantasy in their novels, then you absolutely have to read Grave Mercy.  Even if you're not so interested in history, I still highly recommend this book.  It has made it into my top 5 for the year so far and I can not wait to have a finished copy on my shelves, just so I can read it all over again.

 
Obligatory legal statement: This ARC was provided to me free of charge by the publisher. No monetary compensation was received in exchange for this fair and unbiased review.