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?
I've heard a lot about Shadow and Bone recently, so I decided to pick it up and give it a try. Plus, the cover is absolutely gorgeous and dark and exactly my style. It's a bit difficult to give a brief overview of the book, but essentially it's about an orphan named Alina who ends up discovering a magic power that sets her apart from the rest of the Grisha (the magical order of people who live in Ravka and beyond). She meets the leader of the Grisha, the Darkling, who is fascinated by her and claims she can set all of Ravka free from the strange darkness of the Shadow Fold. And then, of course, there's Mal, a fellow orphan and her best friend.
It all sounds pretty standard fantasy fare, but let me assure you that Shadow and Bone is unlike anything I've read! The whole story is basically set in Russian folklore, and it's absolutely beautiful (and terrifying) to read about. The intricate hierarchy that Ms. Bardugo creates within Ravka is well-thought out, the descriptions of the palaces and the country are gorgeously written, and the bad guys literally gave me the chills. The Shadow Fold especially is just...ugh. So creepy. And the creatures that the darkness hides are even worse (in the best way)!
As for the characters, I really enjoyed most of them, even the supporting ones! Alina was weak, fragile, and unable to fight for herself, but about halfway through the book she starts to come into her own and blooms into an incredibly strong heroine that was easy to root for. Her best friend Mal is definitely a likable love interest, and I loved reading about the relationship between the two of them, best friends from childhood. The slowly developing romance between the two of them was sweet and honest. The Darkling....ohhh, the Darkling. He was probably my favorite character. He was dark, he was mysterious, he was hauntingly powerful. And yet for such an inhuman creature, he was surprisingly human at times, which I loved.
The secondary characters were well fleshed out as well, with their own desires and stories. Alina's friend that she meets at the palace, Greya, was one of my favorites. She was incredibly beautiful, and unlike most characters she didn't flaunt it, nor did she deny it. She embraced it, and I adored that about her.
All in all, I really enjoyed this book! For some reason I didn't connect with Alina as much as I should've, which is why it only gets four stars, but I'm sure that most people with fall madly in love with the beautiful, dark story that Ms. Bardugo has woven. Gorgeous book, definitely go check it out!
Pages: 358
Publisher: Henry Holt and Co.
Date Published: June 5, 2012
Rating:
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