Title: Shadow and Bone

Author: Leigh Bardugo  

Genre: Young Adult, Fantasy

Publisher: Henry Holt and Company

Format: Paperback

Pages: 358

Rating: 4/5 stars

Synopsis (Goodreads):

Surrounded by enemies, the once-great nation of Ravka has been torn in two by the Shadow Fold, a swath of near impenetrable darkness crawling with monsters who feast on human flesh. Now its fate may rest on the shoulders of one lonely refugee.

Alina Starkov has never been good at anything. But when her regiment is attacked on the Fold and her best friend is brutally injured, Alina reveals a dormant power that saves his life—a power that could be the key to setting her war-ravaged country free. Wrenched from everything she knows, Alina is whisked away to the royal court to be trained as a member of the Grisha, the magical elite led by the mysterious Darkling.

Yet nothing in this lavish world is what it seems. With darkness looming and an entire kingdom depending on her untamed power, Alina will have to confront the secrets of the Grisha . . . and the secrets of her heart.

Shadow and Bone is the first installment in Leigh Bardugo’s Grisha Trilogy. 

Review:

I was super excited to pick up this book as everyone raves about Leigh Bardugo and how amazing of an author she is. And she did not disappoint.

The story is about a young woman who is a map maker in the army. She is an orphan, and the only friend she has is a young man she grew up with; also an orphan. The book started out slow, and it took me a little while to get connected to the main character, but then the story picks up with a jolt and you’re flying into the crazy YA fan land!! I loved the Russian feel to the book. The world is Bardugo’s own creation, but you can see slight Russian influences here and there. I also loved the contrast between light and dark, and good and evil in the book. Not only is the main character battling evil, but she is literally battling the darkness as well! The whole concept of the Shadow Fold was quite intriguing to me.

There was kinda a love triangle in this book. Kinda. It happens quite differently than most books. At first I thought “oh goody, yet another love triangle” and then something else happened that made me think otherwise. It’s hard to explain without giving away spoilers so I’m just going to stop now😂

I definitely recommend this book, and I look forward to continuing on with this story!

Happy reading bookworms!