Shadow and Bone (The Grisha Trilogy)

Shadow and Bone is the story about Alina Starkov and how her new discover power led to become train to be a Grisha and meet the mysterious Darkling.
I just stepped into a dark, mysterious, and scary place and I loved every part of it. This book is something completely different from what I have read. The plot is wonderful, all the twists and turns work magnificently. Leigh Bardugo is such a great story teller. Shadow and Bone has everything a good book should have: mystery, action, humor, romance, betrayals, an awesome setting, cool characters, unexpected twists. Such a well-written book that it was painful to put it down. I absolutely felt in love with the Darkling, he truly is something. The Grisha have the "magic" the makes me thing of the Full metal alchemist, they control the elements. It so unique to read about these mysterious beautiful looking people. I loved the connection between Alina and Mal. And a little of romance can't hurt no one. I really enjoy Shadow and Bone can't wait to start reading Siege and Storm (book two on the Grisha triology). Also, I can't hardly wait to watch the movie, Who could be the Darkling? Mal? Alina?.
Shadow and Bone made me feel like I was in some type Russian scary myth. I loved it, seriously a must read trilogy. 5 Darkling Stars

Wow.

That's my initial reaction after completing this novel. Like Veronica Roth says, Shadow and Bone is "unlike anything I've ever read." I don't know why, but I couldn't stop myself from crying, shouting in joy, and screaming at the author. I loved the characters, the adventure, and of course the romance. I can't wait to read the next, since I feel like Alina, Mal, and The Darkling will go through a lot of changes throughout the rest of the series.

I loved this book, it was amazing. I liked the story, it was very interesting and kept me interested, which made me want to keep reading it.

Shadow and Bone is about Alina. While she is crossing the fold and Mal, Alina's best friend and crush is attacked and hurt. Alina saves him and passes out. When she wakes up she finds out that she is Grisha, a sun summer which she doesn't believe to be true.

She is then taken to the Little Palace. While she is there she doesn't think that she belongs there and wants to go back to Mal.

Alina and the Darkling get closer through the book and he tells her how he wants to destroy the Fold and how she with help him to do it together with the stag antlers. Though it turns out the Darkling is using Alina and was also the one to create the Fold, which he said he wanted to destroy. Though in realty he wants to control the Fold and he is able to with Alina and the Stag's antlers.

For some odd reason I started to like the Darkling even though he turns out to be the villain at the end. Which made me sad, but I still like him. I loved this Book and I can;t wait to read the second book.

From what I’ve read, Leigh Bardugo’s debut novel Shadow and Bone is a love-or-hate sort of book. I see very few middle-ground reviews. I requested this from the library because most feedback I read was positive. Strictly speaking, fantasy is a genre I’m most likely to be unimpressed by, so I did come into this book somewhat leery of what I would find.
I did have a few issues with Shadow and Bone, which I expected.

It’s very obvious that the world this novel takes place in was inspired by Russia, which is actually quite awesome. However, when you consider the wealth of detail and tradition that comes with a Russian setting, I felt that Leigh Bardugo didn’t invest as much into her setting as she should have. Superficially, I could see that this took place in some sort of pseudo-Russia, but I found the richness of a truly well developed alternate Russia to be lacking from the text.

The basic framework for Shadow and Bone’s plot is also somewhat lackluster. Plain Jane discovers she’s destined to save the world. Been there, done that times a jillion. Throw in a love triangle and we’re set for a boring and too-typical YA novel.
Those are my complaints, and, when all is said I done, I personally find them to be rather minor ones. I was actually pleasantly surprised by Shadow and Bone, and though I shudder at the thoughts of getting caught up in the waiting game for yet another series completion, I totally plan on continuing with this.

Aside from my complaints about the blandness of Bardugo’s “Russia”, I was hugely impressed with the Grisha themselves. I wouldn’t say their powers are super unique, but the way this author wrote them was fascinating and not at all info-dumpy. It was a very interesting cultural set-up, and I almost wish it had been expanded on a little bit more.

As for the characters, I thought they fit very well into pre-established character types. Alina was the typical YA “kickass” heroine who had a problem with her appearance: brown eyes/brown hair. The villain was pretty standard, too: he’s evil because he wants unlimited power and will stop at nothing to get it. (Wouldn’t it be interesting if someone wrote a YA novel from the villain’s perspective and gave him/her a realistic motive?) Love interest Mal was a nice boy-next-door type; second love interest Darkling was a broody dude with a past. Courtiers are petty and fashion-obsessed. You know, the usual.
But. But it is the way all this was written that sealed the deal for me. I found myself not minding the flat character types because Leigh Bardugo gave them personality. I allowed myself to wave off the vague world building because the author’s way of presenting things was extremely compelling. Even the shallow romance was acceptable, because I could see what Bardugo meant to accomplish, so that even if I don’t think she did it as well as she could have, I was able to visualize the reality she truly intended.

Lots of times, fantasy only pretends to be gripping and action-packed. Yeah, there’s a lot of fighting, but it gets buried beneath philosophical discussions and passages of purple prose. Not so here. Shadow and Bone is narrated in a crisp, effective manner that engages the reader from start to finish. Add in a very compelling twist on an overused premise, and I’ve found myself to be highly impressed with Leigh Bardugo’s debut.

Oh My God! I loved this book. Truthfully, I had seen everybody talking about it on goodreads but I didn't check it out until recently. While reading it I could not believe that this was the author's first novel.

I loved the characters, from Alina to Mal and I have to admit I liked The Darkling in the beginning. They all developed beautifully and were realistic, even though some of them had "powers", they all had flaws.

The world that Leigh Bardugo created was simply magnificent. It was like Russia but at the same time it really wasn't Russia. I think this land has the ability to rival Narnia, that is how good it truly is.

This was one of those books that I couldn't read fast enough but at the same time dreaded ending. I will definitely be purchasing it since I checked it out of the library and will also be buying the sequel. Too bad I have to wait forever for it to come out!

If you haven't read this book yet you really should. It is simply amazing and it is written beautifully.

This is in my top 5 books of 2012, probably top 2 of the year, also. This was SOOOOO, so good!!

I am always looking for the next book that is going to blow me away, and Shadow and Bone has done it!

I was transfixed by the Grisha world. It was unique and completely different than anything I have ever read, and from Chapter 1 I was hooked.

Alina was such a great heroine. Her power is discovered while protecting a friend in the Fold, a place of total darkness filled with all sorts of treacherous creatures. From there, she has the attention of all of Ravka, even the Darkling, the most powerful of all Grisha. I liked that Alina had to work to figure out her powers, and it took her a while to even be able to call them forth. It wasn't a bang, I'm awesome type of thing. She had to work endlessly and tirelessly. This made it all the more amazing when she finally broke through!

And then there's The Darkling. Oh my yummy yum yums! He's dark (obviously) and mysterious and powerful and brooding...and I could go on and on about all the great glowering things he is, but you get the point! I immediately fell for him because wowza! I want to go back and re-read it just for him!

This book was amazing! Full of suspense and steam, I couldn't put it down!

This might be, by far, the hardest review I’ve had to write to date. It will probably be very vague, but the twists and turns that will repeatedly catch you off guard along the way is one of the greatest notes I can make about this book, and so I’d never want to ruin the element of surprise for you. I also believe that no amount of hype or how much I flail over it would adequately give this book the credit it’s due because it’s just too good to put into words. I still can’t wrap my mind around all of it. That being said, let’s get into the review, shall we?

All Alina Starkov’s life, she has remained on the edge of the crowd, never anything particularly special about her that would garner the attention of anyone. Orphaned at an early age because of the Border Wars, she has no real family and finds her only companionship in her best friend and long-time crush, Mal. Fast forward into their teenage years and they’re both serving in the First Army, Alina as a mapmaker and Mal as a tracker and soldier since they both failed in their Grisha (more on them later) testing. On a particular mission to pass through the Fold, a barren dessert wasteland filled with darkness and fleshing-eating monsters, their convoy is attacked. Scared out of her mind and desperate to save Mal’s life, Alina unleashes a magnificent power that even she didn’t know she possesses. With the ability to summon sunlight, Alina is swept up by the Grisha and rushed away to the royal court, where they hope to help her learn how to harness this great and rare ability. Alina’s life is about to change in every single way possible, and Shadow and Bone takes you along for the journey.

Leigh Bardugo has created a world unlike anything I’ve ever read, and it played out in my mind like one visually stunning movie scene after the next. I could picture the war-torn country, the palace, the Grisha, the training, and all of the other special elements that aided in perfecting this masterful tale of magic, betrayal, and triumph. It was easy to become immersed in the story and feel very much a part of it, experiencing all the highs and lows and the bumps in between right alongside the characters. This book felt as though it were a giant race to the finish line that will have your heart pounding out of your chest or plummeting down to your stomach or lodged in your throat at the turn of every page. I loved being swept away in it, and this author’s show-and-don’t-tell approach in which she hits all the major senses doesn’t leave you feeling short-changed about any aspect of this story.

I also think one of the biggest testaments to Ms. Bardugo’s writing ability (if I am in any way able to “judge” this) is how carefully crafted all of her characters are in Shadow and Bone. She makes sure they each perform and execut a particular role, thus making each character integral to the story-line. No one felt out of place or was seemingly used as a filler; even the servants in the royal palace had a bit of depth. To say I was blown away would almost be an understatement. Out of all the characters, though, I found myself intrigued by the Darkling the most. He’s the most powerful of the Grisha, an order of elite humans gifted with certain magical abilities that serve the King, and there’s so many layers to him already, but I still like there’s still much left to discover with him, like we’ve only began to barely scratch the surface. (This is only my gut instinct; I could be wrong.) I won’t go into specifics, but I will say that even though Mal had me swooning like crazy, I’m definitely pulling for the dark horse in this race. Call me crazy (I often do myself), but there’s something about this guy that I just can’t seem to shrug off.

Drawbacks: The only fault I could find with this book is the complexity in the hierarchy of the Grisha. Matching the colors of their keftas with their rank within the Grisha system and want powers they possessed were a bit confusing at the beginning of the book. There is a guide at the start that breaks it down for you, but after a while, I found that I didn’t even need to reference it any more.

Verdict: I loved this book, and I know any fantasy fan will love it, too. Even if you aren’t a huge fan of the fantasy genre, I still think you should give it a go. I’m also thrilled that I purchased my own copy because this book is gorgeous! From the slip cover, to the map inside of Ravka, to the embellishments at the heading and footing of the pages, it’s a very pretty, artsy presentation. And you know me, I’m all about the pretty!

There's a category of fantasy that seems particular to YA fiction. It requires no sequel or series (note: it may have them anyway), though it builds a world rich and complete enough to sustain epics. It's built on fairy tales and legends, or the sense of them, and combines romance with adventure in a way that embraces magic as something inherent in nature.

Most readers would agree that it began with Robin McKinley, and it's been sustained by Shannon Hale's Goose Girl, Kristin Cashore's Graceling (which, for the record, I did not like), and more recently Rae Carson's Girl of Fire and Thorns. There are more - Mette Ivie Harrison, Jessica Day George, Sarah Beth Durst, and some with only two names - though there are degrees to each of them. Graceling, for example, features a less accessible heroine than Girl of Fire and Thorns, though the latter is higher fantasy.

Even within an author's canon, there are degrees (Shannon Hale's Book of a Thousand Days is stronger than Goose Girl, though they're both excellent, and Jessica Day George's titles are more playful with this category than others). The strength of each is not in the magic of their fantasy, but in their characters. Magic becomes a burden as well as a gift. Victory over the enemy - which is often a seductive enemy, harnessing its own brand of magic - comes at the last possible moment. It also comes as a last ditch effort of sacrificial strength.

If this seems like a strange way to define a category, just take a look at the titles I'm talking about. They all do something like this: Unlikely heroine discovers a position or power that seems bigger than her, must learn that her inner strength is greater than the mystical strength of her enemies. It's not cliche; it's good fiction.

Shadow and Bone does this. Shadow and Bone does this better than a lot of other books.

Alina and Mal grew up together as orphans, were conscripted into the army together, and have stayed friends despite their very different positions. Alina is a mapmaker; Mal is a tracker. Alina is weak and awkward; Mal is strong and handsome. They are utterly different, but they are best of friends.

Until Mal is almost killed trying to save Alina in the Shadow Fold, and Alina discovers her own power. It's a power she didn't ask for and does not want, the source of her own weakness and the potential for great strength. It's proof of just how different they are, and it will tear them apart - perhaps forever.

Leigh Bardugo has answered whatever call Robin McKinley and those of her ilk have sounded into the vast reaches of the writer's ether. Shadow and Bone is fantasy at its best, displaying a Russian landscape of magic and legend almost as rich as the characters that move in it. This is a book to loan friends but demand that they return. It's hands down one of the best books of the year. And if you need any more convincing, the cover art is beautiful enough to frame.

Wow!!! Words cannot describe how much I loved this book. After seeing so much hype about Shadow and Bone, I finally got my hands on a copy and it just blew me away. Leigh Bardugo! You are AWESOME! =) I was sucked into this story from the beginning to the very end, gripping the covers of the book in anticipation, wondering what would happen next. The Grisha world, and characters were beautifully written with such creativity and imagination. I really like how descriptive Bardugo was when describing the land of Ravka, the Vy, and the Fold. The Fold straight up sounds creepy and scary ass hell!
I love the three main characters in this book, Alina, Mal, and the Darkling. Alina is the type of heroine who never backs down. That is something I admire about her. Her character grows throughout the book and even though shes strong-willed, you get to see the softer and vulnerable side to her as well.
Mal, in the beginning I didn't really like him. But as the story progressed, my heart soften for him. He's the best friend anyone would want. He is a strong, brave, and extremely loyal person to those he care about. He never gave up on Alina even when he was pissed off at her. There is definitely more to him and meets the eye.
The Darkling, gosh, I can go on and on about him. I LOVE him!!!! He is charming, sexy, mysterious, strong, scary...etc... His character is so well written and I couldn't believe what happened in the story!!! Seriously! I rooted for him since the beginning of the book and even after finding out that he was the villain and just wanted to use Alina and her powers, I still couldn't help but continue to root for him. The more he was turning into the villain, the more excuses I would try to come up with for his behavior. I really do believe he still has true feelings for Alina. I hope that in the next book we can see more of the Darkling and hopefully *cross fingers* he will redeem himself in Alina's eyes.