Summary Of In The Grace Year By Kim Liggett

“That’s the problem with letting the light in - after it’s been taken away from you, it feels even darker than it was before.” In The Grace Year by Kim Liggett, Tierney, as well as other girls her age, go to a camp where they are not allowed back into the county until the year is over because of their "magic." Each year, this happens to a new set of girls when they are sixteen. Tierney struggles to stay alive while the other girls turn against her because she doesn’t believe in the magic they carry. If they try to escape the encampment, then a poacher will kill them before they can even get close to the county. Tierney has to put a lot of trust in the people around her and herself. Trust sets the foundation for any relationship. Relationships

Many do not have this much trust in themselves to speak their minds, so they hide behind shadows or different personalities. When trusting oneself, one can do anything one puts their mind to, no matter what others think. The author uses Tierney’s trust in Ryker to develop the theme of trust by showing how quickly they fell for each other. When Tierney and Ryker started talking, they both realized there was a connection between them. Tierney trusts Ryker more than anyone else in her life, even when he promises to kill her. She says, “Maybe the reason no one speaks of the grace year is because of us. How could the men live among us, lie with us, let us care for their children, knowing the horrors we inflict upon one another... alone... in the wilderness... in the dark?” (Goodreads). Ryker thinks the same as the other men at the beginning of meeting Tierney because of the things he has seen while being a poacher, yet he doesn’t kill her. At first, he was helping Tierney because her father saved his friend, but after his obligation was fulfilled, he still protected her and let her stay with him. They quickly became friends, and then much more, because they had no reason to lie to each