Shadow and Bone by Leigh Bardugo

Summary from GoodReads:

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.

My Review:

Shadow and Bone is pure, unadulterated, guilty pleasure. I seriously devoured this book in just a few hours. It’s fantasy, but fantasy that appeals to the little girl inside of me – fantasy that has my toes tingling and my imagination whirling with images, ideas, and romance.

Alina and Mal are orphans, tested early while under the protection of a good Duke, for Grisha abilities. Grisha’s are a sort of sorcerer – each has an ability they are fantastic at, and they are separated according to those abilities.

The orphans and the Grisha’s are thrown together to create a story that is compelling and interesting. This is easily a book I’d throw into the “book crack” category along with several other well-known titles, and I wouldn’t be surprised to see it catch on with other readers and bloggers.

That all said, it’s not meant to be taken seriously. After all, this is fantasy, folks. The stereotyping can get a little annoying, but it wasn’t enough to pull me from the strength of the story, and I don’t know enough about Russian culture to catch any flaws. That said, I did thoroughly enjoy seeing a fantasy that was set in a type of country different than the normal (Hi King Arthur throwbacks).

This book is being released the early part of June, and I only recommend you pick it up if you have the time to devote to it – because you might just find yourself, like me, unable to put it down.

Don’t just take my word for it! Check out what these bloggers say!

Paranormal Indulgence | Bookalicious | Candace’s Book Blog