BLURB:
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.
MY THOUGHTS:
The reason why I want to read this series is SIX OF CROWS. No surprise there.
I have gone through the fear every reader has, at some point. STARTING A HYPED Book. I was scared that I won't like the book. I was excited to read the book. I was ready for another adventure. A new world. A new beginning.
And that's what the Shadow and Bone gave me. The world I found so unique and intriguing. I want to explore it but I couldn't do it when nothing much was said. Or maybe I missed the part where the world was beautifully set up? The kingdom and their names were so different and yet so impressive. About the setting in one sentence: A world I really want to inhabit(Of course, this comes after THE WIZARDING WORLD)
The writing was fast paced. I couldn't even put the damn book down. I really wanted to know what will happen. And the flow with which the story acted was brilliant. And I was little disappointed because nothing happened much. I can understand this is the first book of a solid series. But I was yearning for killing/stabbing/betrayal. TBH, I was hoping for another Storm of Swords II. So I will blame that book for making me crave.
And the trope is so familiar. Like The One, who will be very different from others. And both the good side and the bad side will be fighting to get him/her to their side. Typical. Even though I read a lot of books on the same trope, I still love it. I may not be THE ONE, who will change the world in a matter of seconds. But that doesn't stop me from reading and enjoying those books.
"The problem with wanting,” he whispered, his mouth trailing along my jaw until it hovered over my lips, “is that it makes us weak.”
Let's see the amazing characters.
ALINA: She is genuinely real. I connected to her the most. When she was told about her powers, she was like,"I think you lost it." And when she met a guy who has a vibe of power, strength, and danger, she couldn't avoid of being pulled by him. When one took a time to their thoughts, something can be learned. When she analyzed the thought of haunting, it changed the incident in a snapshot.
MAL: I have a question. Is he the protagonist? I couldn't be so sure. I understood the friendship between him and Alina. It's strange to see if they're an OTP. One incident can change one's life. His cheeriness went down the hill once some big and tragic things happen. No matter how much he was irritated and infuriated by Alina because of her involvement with The Darkling, he stood with her. That's the thing I liked about him.
GENYA: She is the best female friend one could get in the midst of faking courtiers who only wants gossip or in this case Darkling's favor. I really want more Genya and Alina bond.
BAGHRA: She is fierce and sometimes scary too. It would be pleasing to rile her up. I was imagining her to be young. But when the truth was told, it felt like I was run over by a bulldozer. I never see it coming. One surprise.
LAST BUT NOT LEAST.
THE DARKLING: I was little disappointed. I was expecting him to be like Sebastian Morgenstern. Because he was cruel, evil little bastard and yet I LOVE him. Maybe I expected a lot?? At first, I wasn't pulled in because I was waiting for some of his cruel activity. And I waited, waited and waited. It never happened -_- But when his real intentions were known, I was like,"Ah...that's better." Maybe, just maybe the next book will have more Darkling's evil side.
I SHIP DARKLING AND ALINA. NO MATTER WHAT HAPPENS. THEY REALLY ARE MADE FOR EACH OTHER. LIGHT AND DARKNESS. WHAT DO YOU WANT MORE??
This was definitely worth a shot.
MY RATING: Acceptable
