Review | Shadow and Bone by Leigh Bardugo
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. (Goodreads summary)
From the lush descriptiveness of Alina’s world, to the formidable and mysterious Darkling, to the countless horrors of The Unsea, to the rich opulence of Ravka’s royal court and the inherent treachery of its politics, to the threadbare tents of the king’s army, to the intricately carved walls of the Little Palace to the gorgeous, Tolkien-esque map just beyond the title page – there is something about this book that had me utterly spellbound by every word. Something threading through it, binding every fascinating detail into a whole and brilliant singular piece — Alina Starkov.
An orphan of Ravka’s numerous and ongoing border wars, Alina has felt misplaced and unwanted for most of her life. All she’s ever wanted is to feel like she belongs, and the only place she’s ever felt like she does is at her best friend Mal’s side, with whom she’s secretly half-in-love with. Then came that fateful day in the Shadow Fold where in an attempt to save Mal she unleashes a power she didn’t know she had, and is ripped from her life as a lowly, mediocre cartographer’s apprentice and thrust into the world of the Grisha, an order of Ravka’s magical elite. But does she really belong here? Does she really want to belong here?
Alina. There’s a very relatable everywoman quality to Alina that makes her empathetic; her struggles, though they be of the fantastic sort, are at their core easy to identify with. And yet, while she’s a very relatable character, she’s a wonderfully unique as well – a character with many facets, and one who felt like she could just walk off the page.
As previously stated she’s a person who longs to belong, and yet that desire, though not always, is often tempered with a good dose of common sense. Surrounded by the overwhelming opulence, the pretentiousness, the gilt facade of the Ravkan royal court, Alina is unfamiliar in the art of court politics, diplomacy and affectation. Alina is an honest, frank sort of person and although she does exercise restraint and discretion, she does speak her mind. She’s witty, grounded, shows a genuine compassion to all living things, and she has a devotion to duty that is admirable.
Alina, for all her doubts, her feelings of being alone, of helplessness, her moments of insecurity, she’s a character who fights against being mastered by her darkness. The fundamentals that make up who she is are deeply rooted and not easily ungrounded.
The Darkling. Darkness incarnate and the most powerful Grisha alive, The Darkling is an utterly fascinating character. He was as expected – dark, dangerous, abrupt, intimidating, with a charismatic and commanding presence. But at the same time he is also extremely unexpected; not, certainly, as Alina expected him to be. The light to his darkness, at once his match and his antithesis, The Darkling is drawn to Alina as she provides the key to protecting Ravka from the ever-encroaching Shadow Fold.
Like calls to like, after all. Or does it?
Mal. Growing up as orphans in the generous Duke Keramsov’s household, Mal & Alina formed a deep, abiding connection to each other. They might not have family or prospects for the future, or people who really care about what happens to them, but they always had each other, looked out for each other, no matter what. Truth-be-told, Alina’s always been a little in love with him. And who wouldn’t be? Mal’s funny, charming with an irresistible cockiness. He’s a bit of a ladies’ man, but he’s loyal, thoughtful, courageous and an extremely skilled tracker in the Ravkan army. But when Alina’s power is exposed, when she is ripped away from him and taken to the Little Palace to train with the Grisha, their friendship undergoes a definitive shift.
World & Story. This pseudo-Russian fantasy world that Bardugo has created is beautiful, complex, complete with a luscious richness and a satisfying amount of depth. The fantasy elements are wonderfully conceived and executed. While the explanation for how the magic of this world works is kind of a simple idea, it’s also not. Another piece of Shadow and Bone that comes into play is the political and economic situation of Ravka. The Border Wars have taken their toll, Ravka’s leadership is corrupt and questionable, and the Shadow Fold has cut the land in half, making access to the country’s seaports extremely hazardous and unreliable. And throughout the book, Bardugo skillfully creates this mounting undercurrent of urgency and weaves an intriguing, provocative web of the morally grey variety; both of which I happily found myself caught up in.
Overall. What more can I really say? I love, ❤, and adore this book. So much so that it took me seven months to finish this review and figure out just how to convey this love without it being mostly non-verbal, fangirly squealishness. Seven months to get some 20/20 hindsight and perspective on it. Seven months later, I still love it just as much, and it’s a permanent fixture on my favorites shelf.
Author: Leigh Bardugo Title: Shadow and Bone Series: The Grisha Trilogy (Book #1) Published: June 5, 2012 by Henry Holt and Co. (BYR) Format: Hardcover, 385 pages; ebook Website: www.leighbardugo.com Source: Purchased My rating: 
Happy Reading!
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This is one of my all time favorites!! LOVED the world, the characters, the writing – and the magic and description of everything was so very well done. Easy to understand and visualize.
I have to say, I had the biggest crush on the Darkling. To be honest, up until a certain point, I was rooting for Alina and the Darkling. I mean, Mal was running after all the girls except Alina, and I wanted to literally tape his eyelids open so he could get a good look at her and realize how much more than a friend she was to him. Like Alina, I totally fell for the Darkling. His attention, the way she was special to him.
But then Mal, he totally won me over. Now of rooting for the two of them!
This was an absolute beauty of a book. I hope they make a movie out of it! I know they’re trying to:))
Lovely review:)
Yes, yes, yes. To everything you said. I felt, feel, and thought and think the same exact things.
Except for the movie thing… I’m not sure how I feel about that. lol
I know sometimes the movie doesn’t “get” the book, but the producer is the producer of Harry Potter, and Leigh Bardugo was a make up artist for movies, so I think they’d really do a wonderful job:))
Let’s hope. lol
Loved this one too!!
Yay! So glad you love it too. Really is a gem of a book.
yes yes this book is just made of pure awesome! I simply cannot wait to read Siege and Storm! Amazing review!!!!
Oh I almost forget, I am loving the new look for the blog!
And THANK YOU!
It was time for something new!
Agreed. Totally jonesin’ for that book. Must. Have. It.
I can’t wait to get my hands on this one. Looks like such a great read from your review and I’ve been wanting to read it for absolutely ages!
Oh, it’s FANTASTIC. Was in my top 5 reads of 2012. I hope you get the chance to read it soon!
I loved this story so much! My favorite part could easily be the world–the setting was so romantic and exquisite and I felt myself drawn into it more and more as the story progressed. It was one of those books that really pulls you in and can make you feel like you are actually IN the story and forget about the real world while you’re reading–and isn’t that the point of reading, anyways? Definitely one of my favorites from 2012
Exactly. And yes, a book should always be that engrossing. And yes, that’s totally the point of reading, in my opinion anyway
So glad you loved this one too! So are you a Darkling fan or a Mal fan?
I keep seeing this book but it did not get my interest. It’s the cover, I guess. I should have read the blurbs and reviews. It sounds like a great book and it has gotten quite a big followers.
Oh my goodness. While I love the cover, I can understand why it might put off some readers. I hope you do give it a shot though, because it really is a FANTASTIC book.
I’m glad you able to get your review done! Lol! I can totally relate. Great Job! I really need to get this book! I’ve wanted it for a while now and you have completely convince me I need it soon.
Yeah, this is the review I was talking about on FB. lol And thanks! I think you would really like this one… A LOT.