I looked forward to reading this book for quite some time. I love stories of knights and honor. I love when women are portrayed as strong and capable. Graceling certainly maintained my interest on these two points. Katsa and her grace are used and manipulated for a long time, then she (with some help from a friend) takes ownership and makes her own choices. I liked this story, but felt like the relationship theme was too pronounced (for my personal taste). There are also some plot decisions that seem a bit rushed, if not contrived. Despite these complaints the story grabbed my attention and kept it throughout.