Review : Shadow and Bone by Leigh Bardugo

Summary (from 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.

Personal Thoughts

Everyone I know has been singing praises of Shadow And Bone. My average friend rating for this book on Goodreads is 4.75 and that's incredibly high according to me. There was nothing I could do, but expect a fantastic read. Fantastic doesn't even begin to describe how good Shadow And Bone was. Honestly, I don't regret reading this book one bit.

Shadow and Bone tells the story of Alina Starkov, a mapmaker. Alina thinks that she's a normal girl, but a turn of unforeseeable events completely flips her life around. Soon, she finds herself at the royal court being trained as an elite Grisha under the supervision of the very much feared Darkling.

The characters in Shadow and Bone were, simply put, memorable. They were the sort of characters that you would have on your mind even after closing the book. Alina was someone I actually took an instant liking to. She started off as a little innocent and confused, but she experienced a thorough growing up process when she was hurled into the royal court and she ended up being a confident, courageous and fearless girl who was ready to do anything to protect the people she loved. Her childhood friend and crush, Mal, was one of those love interests who's very easy to swoon over because he has genuinely nice characteristics. Although we don't get to see much of him, I fell hard for the guy because of the heart-warming and swoon-worthy speeches he made. Mal was an honest, down-to-earth and lively character that I couldn't help but love. Now, I can't talk about the characters without actually mentioning The Darkling. You guys, I could write ten pages on him, but I'll try to be as concise as possible so as not to bore you. Honestly, this guy had me so utterly confused that I just wanted to pull my own hair trying to figure out who he truly was. You see, The Darkling is the kind of character that will have your heart racing so hard that you might as well suffer from a heart attack whenever he appeared. I don't think I've come across such a dark, seductive and insanely mysterious character as The Darkling in a very long time. Up until the end, I truly couldn't guess his true intentions and even then, the author had me befuddled when it came to him. He was ,in fact, the most intriguing, frustrating and interesting character in the book. These were characters that had a certain depth and allure to them. Saying that they were outstanding would be a major understatement.

As far as fantasy books go, Shadow and Bone is definitely one of my favorites. I wish I could explain to you how wonderfully elaborate the world-building was, but I don't think I can do it justice. To understand my fascination with the setting of the book, you definitely need to read it. Everything about it was just so well done that it drew me in and captured me in it's awesomeness. I loved that the author made an effort to make her world original and well-developed. I was glad that she didn't just gloss over what was going on, but instead tried her best to explain what was happening in a captivating manner. Leigh Bardugo has a way with words that makes everything sound fabulous and you just can't stop reading. The writing was so engaging and bewitching that I didn't want to put down the book to even drink a glass of water. One of my favorite parts in the book was the friendship between Alina and Mal. I loved that there was no instant-love and their relationship was so genuine. They, both, had pretty rough childhoods and these very childhoods connected the two together. I loved that the author didn't over-do the romance. The book had just the right amount.

Shadow and Bone was a formidable debut novel and the series promises to be something exceptional. I can't wait to see what the talented Leigh Bardugo has in store for us readers, but I have a feeling she's not going to disappoint. I'm really looking forward to learning more about the history of Ravka and the life of the Grisha. The book's complex but alluring characters, elaborate world building, action-packed plot line and subtle, but realistic romance is what made it so entertaining. Leigh Bardugo has earned a spot in my favorite authors list. I don't hesitate for a single moment to recommend this gem of a book to fans of YA.

Rating

Cover : 4/5
Plot : 5/5
Characters : 5/5
Writing : 5/5