Shadow and Bone

Review originally posted on The Book Addict's Guide Once again I find myself singing the praises of high fantasy! I’d seen tons of praise for this book pretty much everywhere and after seeing Leigh Bardugo at Anderson’s Bookshop first on the Fierce Reads tour in June and again at Anderson’s on August 30th (although I actually finished the book before then!), just seeing her personality and hearing her talk about the book and how she came up with it really drove me to get into the story. I absolutely loved the development of the Grisha and the story behind their history and abilities. It seemed utterly magical but as we learn more about the talents, there’s a little bit of practicality mixed in as well. It was really interesting to learn about and I found it quite unique. Another thing I really enjoyed is that the romance aspect isn’t overdone. We first learn that Alina has developed a crush on Mal in the very beginning of the book, so that’s something we already know, but since Mal is also her best friend and pretty much only friend, that also makes him so much more to Alina. He’s incredibly important to her and it’s not just a lust factor. As for The Darkling….. well that’s just a pure lust situation! So yes, I really loved where the story went and I loved how it all came together in the end! Leigh Bardugo’s writing was also extremely enjoyable and I loved the new elements that she brought to the story. Characters-- Alina: I didn’t find myself like Alina so much as I could understand her. As an orphan, Alina grew up alone. She’s stubborn, she’s protective, she’s independent; it’s not like I’d want her for my friend but I admire her courage and determination to make the best of herself and the situation she came from. It did get a bit tiresome at first once Alina was figuring out her abilities and once she became part of the Grisha society that she spent most of her time trying not to be noticed and pining for Mal. But then the more I thought about it, the more it made perfect sense. If you’re a person who’s not used to attention, it’s overwhelming when people are constantly praising you, following you around, and giving you special treatment. As a poor orphan, Alina never experienced anything like that before. Even though her ability is extraordinary, it’s now something that has put her in an uncomfortable spotlight and ripped her away from her only family – Mal. The Darkling: **Mild spoiler alert in The Darkling section (it’s not really a spoiler, but if you want to be kept totally in the dark, skip this part!)** He’s mysterious, he’s sexy, he’s…. old? We find out that due to the nature of The Darkling’s power, it severely enlongates his life. He reveals to Alina that he’s well over 100 years old so um, thanks but no thanks? It’s kind of a Twilight situation here (which somehow I was totally okay with in Twilight but not okay with in Shadow and Bone – I don’t know – don’t ask me why). I can understand he looks sexy and he acts sexy, but.. but.. he’s an old man? So yeah, he totally just didn’t appeal to me after I heard that! Had the age not been a factor, we’d have a little bit of a swoon situation going on. After knowing that? Yipes. ---- Re-read review: This was quite the interesting re-read for me… I think this was the first re-read in which I had two totally different expectations going into it: When I first picked up SHADOW AND BONE almost two years ago (!!!), I was not a fantasy reader. I think I had read Graceling first and that was about it, so I wasn’t expecting much in the way of a new fantasy book and it turned out that I loved it! I was really scared going into the re-read this time because I had since fallen in love with this series and was afraid that the re-read just wouldn’t be the same. Honestly, I did read the book entirely differently. Well, in two ways — I bought the audiobook from Audible because I’ve started to really enjoy doing my re-reads via audiobook and also because I been obsessing over the series for two years now and all of the THINGS that I know, I’m able to pick up on so much more with a re-read. I must say, re-reading SHADOW AND BONE really proved to me how amazing SIEGE AND STORM was. As someone who wasn’t a fantasy reader before, I very much appreciated the whole revelation of having powers, learning how to use them in that almost boarding school-type setting, and the romances involved but reading all of these things a second time and especially after reading SIEGE AND STORM came across totally differently. Honestly, TOTALLY. For one, I already knew Alina had powers and exactly what they entailed, so I wasn’t as interested in the figuring out process so much as paying attention to the other details that I may have glossed over in my first read. The whole learning process actually wasn’t as appealing to me the second time around, I think because I really already knew how it happened so I was ready to dive into more character development of secondary characters which didn’t happen as much in the first book as it does in the second. SHADOW AND BONE is very much about Alina and about Mal and about their ties to the Grisha so my impatience didn’t exactly pay off haha. But of course, it was still enjoyable to go through that experience again! I read the romance aspect of this book entirely differently the second time around. During my first read, I did not get what was the big deal about Mal. I liked him and I loved his friendship with Alina but I didn’t fall for him (or the Darkling, really, but that’s another story) the way other readers did. During my re-read. YEAH. MAL. I’M THERE. I really got to know him better in SIEGE AND STORM so that made my connection in this re-read stronger but WHOO BOY, that best friend romance thing going on there…. *fans self* How was I not more into this during my first read!? I don’t understand. Because best friends falling for each other is a trope that I luuuurve and I was totally on board with it during my re-read. I also felt less love-triangley about the Darkling because knowing what I know now, it seemed more like a power play than a romance and I had it in my head that way more happened than it actually did in the book. Since I already knew about the world-building side of the book, I did pay more attention to the romance this time around which hadn’t really seemed to play a big part for me during my original read. Speaking of world building, that was something I really enjoyed even more. The more I read about this world, the more I fall in love with it. It’s always a little difficult to get a grasp on a new world with unique (and foreign) names so now that I know a little more about the Grishaverse, I really got a hold on what happens where and exactly what’s involved. As far as plotting and characters go, obviously now I know their connections, but even then I was formulating new theories about the Darkling and why we don’t know his name yet and what if it’s related to or connected to characters we’ve already met and don’t know it?! I think I enjoyed my original read a little bit more than the re-read but I am even MORE anxious to re-read SIEGE AND STORM and I’m still salivating over RUIN AND RISING and dreaming about how it’s SO CLOSE. I’m still in love with this world and this series and it will be bittersweet to end in June but I still can’t wait!

A few years ago, YA Fantasy was suddenly swamped with brand new series from brand new authors. REALLY good brand new series from brand new authors. Shadow and Bone by Leigh Bardugo was the second of that batch that I read, and I hadn’t really wanted to. The cover was weirdly creepy and looked to be inspired by Mother Russia. The only Russian anything I had ever read was Anna Karenina, and let me tell you—NOT a fan: “My life sucks, so I think I’ll throw myself under a train.” NOPE. Not my thing. So even though it was listed as YA Fantasy (one of my favorite genres), I blew it off. I didn’t need it. I still had one more book from Cinda Williams Chima’s Seven Realms series coming, and Fire and Thorns by Rae Carson was off to an excellent start. I bite my thumb at you, Shadow and Bone . . . *rolls eyes at self* Then I saw it included in one of those Big Deal lists of Top Summer Reads. And I am a HUGE sucker for those lists, so I decided to read it after all. And surprisingly, even though it was a reluctant edition to my summer reading list, I read it almost immediately. And I LOVED it. Love, LOVE, L-O-V-E-D it. Yeah, I tripped over some of the Russian-esque words in the beginning, but it didn’t take long to acclimate. And it was obvious from the start that this was my type of story. I know (though I don’t understand it) that there are tons-o-readers out there who don’t like romance in their YA Fantasy (or Science Fiction) books. If you are one of those, then this is not the book for you, but you should already know that based on the blurb: Glorious. Epic. Irresistible. Romance. Not much room for misinterpretation, is there? And it was fairly clear that this was going to be a friends-to-more-than-friends story and those are the BEST. Until the Darkling showed up . . . Yes, ladies and ladies, here there be love triangles. Doesn’t bother me. I actually like a good love triangle. Keeps things interesting IMO. But for those of you who hate love triangles, read it anyway b/c the last book comes out in June, so you don’t have to wait very long to get your resolution. *bats eyelashes* Alina Starkov and Malyen Oretsev are orphans. They were raised together under the condescension of an ex-military, war-hero Duke who set up one of his residences as an orphanage. They were taught to read and write, and upon coming of age, they both joined the military—Alina as a mapmaker, and Mal as a tracker. They were all each other had growing up, and while they were still dear friends, Mal grew into a robust and handsome young man, who enjoyed flirting with, and chasing after pretty girls, while Alina stayed thin and sickly, and thought only of him<——it HURTS. They were both part of a group selected to cross the Shadow Fold, a desert-like area of the land covered in impenetrable darkness, and filled with loathsome creatures, to . . . come to think of it, I’m not really sure why they were crossing the Fold. Seems kind of silly to confront that kind of danger for some animal furs and new maps. Though there was a permanent military base in front of the Fold, so probably these trips occurred semi-regularly. Anyway, they were meant to cross in sand skiffs, powered and defended by Grisha (human wielders of the elements), but not long after they entered the darkness, they were attacked by an unusually large pack of volcra (hideous, flying, man-eating beasts). Death was eminent when a blast of light forced the volcra into retreat, and saved their lives. Can you guess where the blast of light came from? Hmm?? Can you, can you? Well, I’m not telling. *winks* Suffice it to say, that was only the beginning of the deftly created layers-within-layers story of Alina, Mal, and the Darkling (not to mention countless, wonderful secondary characters). The only thing that kept this from being a 5 star read for me was that the thwarting of the bad guy was a bit too deus ex machina for my tastes. Yes, there was foreshadowing that all was not as it seemed, but there were too many conflicts. If the solution was really the solution, then it seems to me that someone should have never been able to do what they did in the first place. Make sense? But ultimately Shadow and Bone was a fantastic read. I loved watching Alina blossom into what she had always been meant to be. I loved the agony of going back and forth between Mal and the Darkling, trying to decide who Alina should choose. I loved Mal and the Darkling b/c they were Mal and the Darkling. And I loved all of these things, and so many more, within Bardugo’s expertly crafted world of Ravka (not to be confused with Russia). If you’re a fan of YA Fantasy, and dark and creepy things, then Shadow and Bone should be at the top of your reading list. With the final chapter of this trilogy being released in June, there is absolutely no reason to delay.

A edição de colecionador vem em capa dura com ilustrações lindíssimas na capa e mesmo no interior. O livro é tudo o que esperava! Mal posso esperar pelas próximas edições de colecionador dos restantes livros da trilogia.

Een boek met een erg goede verhaallijn. Het heeft allerlei elementen van een fantasy boek maar ondertussen ook een roman. Verder zaten er ook plottwist in het verhaal, wat het erg fijn maakte om dit boek te lezen. Ben daarom zeker van plan om de andere delen van deze boekenserie ook te kopen!

Leigh Bardugo has fast become one of my favourite authors. Shadow and Bone drew me in from page one with incredible worldbuilding, deep characterisation, and exciting action. I couldn't stop reading and devoured this story in two days (which says something since I'm usually an incredibly slow reader). This is one of those books that makes you feel like you're living the story, experiencing all the feels! And there are plenty of those when it comes to the protagonist, Alina, and the handsome, ruthless Darkling. Alina goes through such a journey, falling in love, facing heartbreak, finding the fierce courage and power within herself to survive. And the best part is the twist that comes midway. I was shook. This plot is just so compelling and awesome. I'd recommend Shadow and Bone to anyone who enjoys rich fantasy worlds, very dark magic, court intrigue, complicated romance, and strong female protagonists. Sensitive readers or parents shopping for their kids might like to know there is a passionate kissing scene and one very violent death which is meant to shock for plot/characterisation purposes. But all in all, this book is AMAZING, and since stepping into the Grishaverse I'm hooked!

I really like the covers for this series. So much effort was put into them. I especially like the antlers on either side of the palace. The book also included a nicely drawn map. I also really like the chapter title illustrations. A lot of effort was put into the book's design. I can definitely see why though. YA lately are the same thing over and over, at least this one had something slightly different with the Russian and fantasy setting. The writing was clear and very easy to get into. I definitely found the writing better than most YA books. I really liked the prologue and the epilogue's writing, probably because it was written in third person. The setting was fun and I did enjoy it to a certain extent and there were one or two original things. Ordinary girl finds out she has power. Taken away by organization and trained. You wouldn't believe how overused this plot line is in fantasy. Despite this, Shadow and Bone threw in a couple of surprises and it was really fun to read. I really enjoyed it and it was such a fun read. It was plot and fantasy with a dabble of romance. The interesting thing about Alina was probably her power. I liked the villain. I think everyone likes him. He's probably my favourite character. I'll be picking up the sequel.

Livro lindo que veio em perfeito estado e antes da data prevista! Se você é um grande fã do Grishaverse, vale muito a pena. Em relação ao conteúdo extra, se trata de uma carta do Maly para a Alina, quando essa ainda está no pequeno palácio com o Darkling. Livro lindo que não deixa a desejar em aspectos físicos. Queria que tivesse um conteúdo extra do Darkling, mas parece que não foi dessa vez! Leitura em inglês em nível um pouco mais complexo, como todos os livros da Leigh, na minha opinião.