Shadow and Bone (The Grisha, #1) by Leigh Bardugo

Warning: This review may contain spoilers!

The Shadow Fold, a swathe of impenetrable darkness, crawling with monsters that feast on human flesh, is slowly destroying the once-great nation of Ravka.

Alina, a pale, lonely orphan, discovers a unique power that thrusts her into the lavish world of the kingdom’s magical elite—the Grisha. Could she be the key to unravelling the dark fabric of the Shadow Fold and setting Ravka free?

The Darkling, a creature of seductive charm and terrifying power, leader of the Grisha. If Alina is to fulfill her destiny, she must discover how to unlock her gift and face up to her dangerous attraction to him.

But what of Mal, Alina’s childhood best friend? As Alina contemplates her dazzling new future, why can’t she ever quite forget him?

Glorious. Epic. Irresistible. Romance.

Source: Goodreads

My review:

After I have read and loved The Bone Season by Samantha Shannon, I searched for similar fantasy novels. I don’t read too many YA fantasy books, because as you know, I rather read paranormal books, but since The Bone Season was so awesome, I wanted to read more fantasy. And that’s how I heard about Shadow and Bone by Leigh Bardugo.

I’m probably one of the last persons who hasn’t read this trilogy, but I am glad that I finally picked up the first book because I really loved it. I should have read it sooner and should have trusted my Goodreads friends and all the people who have recommended this trilogy to me.

So let’s talk about the things I liked about Shadow and Bone. First of all, I loved the whole setting of the book because it had a unique feel to it. I just loved to read about this intriguing world the author has created and I wanted to find out more about the Grishas and their powers.

Alina was a great protagonist, very likable and I am curious to see how much she will change in the next two books. At first, she is overwhelmed by the unexpected turn her life has taken, but then she accepts her power and is determined to do anything in order to safe Ravka.

The Darkling was very mysterious and I didn’t know whether Alina could trust him or not. I was intrigued by him and I can’t wait to read more about him.

Mal was a great character too and I loved how his relationship to Alina developed. I liked the fact that they have known each other since they were little and that it takes Mal some time to sort out his feelings for Alina, because when he finally realizes that he’s in love with her, he’ll do anything in order to protect her.

The only thing I didn’t like about the book were these foreign terms the author used. They were very confusing at first, but I got used to them eventually. Also, the world building is great, but at the beginning, it was a little confusing.

All in all Shadow and Bone was a great and suspenseful YA fantasy novel with a gorgeous setting and intriguing and mysterious characters. I am definitely looking forward to reading the sequels in the near future.

Rating:

4.5 out of 5 stars

How about you? Have you read this book? Did you like it as much as I did?

Andreea