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Grave Mercy | May 23, 2012

by Robin LaFevers (Houghton Mifflin Harcourt, Apr. 2012)

I invite you to fall into Robin LaFevers’ new historical novel, Grave Mercy. Brittany is in trouble. The Duke is dead, and the French are slowly invading its territories. In order to keep Brittany out of French control, Anne, the Duke’s 12-year-old-daughter and only legitimate heir to the Breton throne, is essentially sold to the highest bidder in an attempt to arrange a marriage with allies that will keep Brittany strong and independent. If this weren’t difficult enough, there are spies in Anne’s court who try to sabotage all of Anne’s tenuous plans.

Enter Ismae Rienne, the daughter of a poor farmer, taken in by the convent of St. Mortain, the saint of death, to be trained as an assassin. Ismae is dispatched to the Breton court, prepared to suspect everyone of subterfuge and ready dish out the saints’ punishments to those who try to keep Brittany from independence. Along the way however, Ismae finds more than just traitors, she finds herself and realizes that there are shades of gray in her line of work and maybe, just maybe, room for love. Pick up this tantalizing tale of historical fiction which has enough girl power, corruption, love, and growth to satisfy even the pickiest of teenage girl readers.

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