Fire by Kristin Cashore

Fire, Graceling's prequel-ish companion book, takes place across the mountains to the east of the seven kingdoms, in a rocky, war-torn land called the Dells.

Beautiful creatures called monsters live in the Dells. Monsters have the shape of normal animals: mountain lions, dragonflies, horses, fish. But the hair or scales or feathers of monsters are gorgeously colored-- fuchsia, turquoise, sparkly bronze, iridescent green-- and their minds have the power to control the minds of humans.

Seventeen-year-old Fire is the last remaining human-shaped monster in the Dells. Gorgeously monstrous in body and mind but with a human appreciation of right and wrong, she is hated and mistrusted by just about everyone, and this book is her story.

Wondering what makes it a companion book/prequel? Fire takes place 30-some years before Graceling and has one cross-over character with Graceling, a small boy with strange two-colored eyes who comes from no-one-knows-where, and who has a peculiar ability that Graceling readers will find familiar and disturbing...

Review:
Really. . .I'm speechless. This book is as good, or even better than Graceling. I loved it. There was so much emotion in this story, but it wasn't overbearing. I couldn't put the book down, and was sucked in instantly. If you haven't read this book or Graceling, I say do it, cause you'll regret it if you dont. It doesn't matter which one you read first because they explain everything so well you can't get confused. Fire is an amazing character and from the beginning I wanted her to fall in love with Brigan. There was a lot of conflict because of who her father was, and she was trying so hard not to become her father, Fire risked her happiness. Everything all comes together in the end, but I would really like to know what happened to Leck. The little creepy graceling boy. He just seems to go poof. I guess that gives room for interpreting your own ideas to what happens to him, or what you want to happen to him. Amazing book. Can't wait for the Third Installment; Bitterblue. x.