Grave Mercy

****

4 Stars/5

14 year old Ismae manages to escape her abusive father and brutality of her arranged marriage, and flees to the convent of St Mortain, who is the old God of death. Now as a 17 year old she is an assassin and handmaiden to death and is going to the high court of Brittany to protect the young Duchess. As she is drawn into the treason and intrigue of court life, she finds it difficult to know who to believe in, the convent who has protected her or the person who has stolen her heart.

Grave Mercy is a young adult historical fantasy book which I enjoyed much more than I thought I would. It is full of intrigue, romance, action and killer nuns.

I really like Ismae as she comes across as a kick-ass assassin but inside she is really vulnerable and does not know who to trust. I like the love interest but it was very obvious and for two smart people they missed a lot of the signals they were giving each other.

The writing came across as very modern which clashed a bit with the historical setting of the book, I would have preferred if it was set in a different world like most fantasy books rather than the past. However, LaFevers is very good at keeping you guessing who the traitor is and what would be happening next.

I really liked this book and I look forward to what happens next in Dark Triumph. I would recommend this book to people who like Scarlet by A C Gaughen or The Gathering Dark by Leigh Bardugo.