A Lazy Reader's Review of "Shadow & Bone" by Leigh Bardugo

 Synopsis

    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.

Review

    I had been desperately searching for a new fantasy series to get into. I was in such a drought and none of the books on my shelves seemed appealing at the time. Then, as I was scrolling through the #BookTok tag on TikTok, I came across a video recommending this book series. I was immediately intrigued. I had never read anything relating to Russian culture until I picked up this book. And, while I'm not claiming to be an expert on the topic, I do know that it's very common for women's last names to have an 'a' at the end. So wouldn't Alina's last name be 'Starkova'? Just something I noticed.

    I thought that Shadow and Bone was a really strong first book of the trilogy. It had it's slow moments, true, but I think those moments are necessary, especially in fantasy books. If you want your readers to understand and be immersed in the world you've created, you must have slow moments. Moments where the main character is interacting with other characters, talking about certain aspects of their culture, describing the landscape, etc. You need to have descriptions of the world. Now, I'm not saying that there needs to be pages and pages of just pure exposition, no one wants that. But I'm not opposed to reading excerpts of what the world is like. The overall plot was good and really drew me in, to the point where I didn't want to put the book down.

    I think that Alina as a character is pretty likable. She doesn't fall into the 'fantasy female main character' trope (thank god). She has her flaws, but I don't think that they were enough to make me not like her as much as I do. She begins as a pretty unassuming part of the war effort, a simple map-maker, before she is thrusted into the Grisha world. Typical 'Hero's Journey' series of events. And there's nothing wrong with that. Mal's character was a breath of fresh air when it comes to love interests in young adult novels. He's just the right amount of protective without being completely territorial, there was not hint of overt jealousy during parts of the story, and throughout the book, it felt like he genuinely cared for Alina's safety and well-being. He's just *mwah* chef's kiss.

Jan. 21, 2022 – Jan. 22, 2024

★★★☆☆

Favorite Quote: "Of course not. And there's nothing wrong with being a lizard. Unless you were born to be a hawk."