Shadow and Bone (The Grisha, #1) by Leigh Bardugo

Book Synopsis:
Published June 5th 2012 by Henry Holt and Co.
358 pages | 
The Shadow Fold, a swathe of impenetrable darkness, crawling with monsters that feast on human flesh, is slowly destroying the once-great nation of Ravka.

Alina, a pale, lonely orphan, discovers a unique power that thrusts her into the lavish world of the kingdom’s magical elite—the Grisha. Could she be the key to unravelling the dark fabric of the Shadow Fold and setting Ravka free?

The Darkling, a creature of seductive charm and terrifying power, leader of the Grisha. If Alina is to fulfill her destiny, she must discover how to unlock her gift and face up to her dangerous attraction to him.

But what of Mal, Alina’s childhood best friend? As Alina contemplates her dazzling new future, why can’t she ever quite forget him?

Glorious. Epic. Irresistible. Romance.

Book Review : 

“The problem with wanting,” he whispered, his mouth trailing along my jaw until it hovered over my lips, “is that it makes us weak.”

Fantasy is not my strong suit. I blame this on my minds inability to keep track of the magical elements and the ranking of particular characters found in such novels. Also they are always given such weird names. However, just because it isn’t my strong suit (due to the fact that my mind likes to pretend it has an inability to retain information) it doesn’t mean that I don’t enjoy reading them. And wowie fellow lovers of literature!! Welcome to a fantasy adventure with a distinct Russian heritage. 

At a base level it is your rather typical YA novel. A young girl realises that she in fact has powers, but not just any powers but the powers that are meant to save the whole world. And then of course there is a rather handsome man in a powered position that sees her true value and whisks her away to be trained by the elite, but we must not forget about the girls best friend who she has always loved. Cue love triangle, and cue misguided affection and the search for belonging. 

Don’t get me wrong, I’m not complaining about these elements that are incredibly common in YA literature…after all I continue to read them and of course love them. I am merely making the point that at a base level, it isn’t anything new. 

On another level however the fantasy world this novel is set in is fantastic. I loved the finer details that distinguished characters magic by their choice of clothing. I enjoyed The Fold with its ever pressing darkness and the volcra creatures that will forever give me nightmares. But more than anything I enjoyed the writing. Bardugo expertly weaved a story of intrigue that had me reading this one all day. ALL DAY!! 

I am however rather hesitant to continue with this series, mainly because I had fallen for the wrong male lead (who ended up being completely nuts..why does this always happen to me. Not only in fiction.) Which is why I feel like I may end up disliking the rest of the series since my hopes for future scenes won’t become a reality. 

Have you read this one? What did you think?

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