Book Review: Shadow and Bone by Leigh Bardugo

Time for me to write a review and shout about another amazing book I just read!

 

Shadow and Bone

 by Leigh Bardugo

Reading Grade: Young Adult

Genre: High Fantasy

My Rating: 5/5 stars

Every now and then, you read a book that makes you remember the reason you love to read. Shadow and Bone is just this kind of book for me. It’s one of those novels you can read and read, and keep reading without even realizing how much time is actually going by in real life as you read it. When you have to put the book down and go do something else that needs your attention, you want to read just one more page, or chapter….

Shadow and Bone is a high fantasy young adult novel set in a fictional world based on Imperial Russia. Yep. Right there you already know you have something different, probably even special (and you do). It’s about a teen girl named Alina Starkov from a country called Ravka who discovers she’s a Grisha—basically a person with magical abilities. She’s not only a Grisha, but the special kind that comes around every century, or even less often. Because of this, she is whisked away to the capitol of Ravka for her own protection and to be trained to use her powers.

There is, of course, romance, but it’s not heavy-handed as you would expect. Let’s face it—YA tends to focus so much on the romance that not much else about the stories have any substance. Not the case here. There is plenty of plot and real things going on, political things even. The author finds little opportunities to sneak in a bit of romantic tension here and there without making it all about those moments. It’s done so artfully.

But, the best part about the story is Alina herself. She is full of sarcasm and even a little sardonic humor. She’s realistic and reacts how people would actually react to the strange and fanciful situations she’s forced into. I liked Genya, her sort-of best female friend character, Mal, her crush and long-time best friend, Baghra, her magic teacher, and even the ever mysterious and complicated Darkling. The relationships she has with all of these characters is delicious.

I know this book came out about two years ago and I’m only now reading it, so I feel a little slow. But, it takes a while to get around to certain books with a to-be-read pile stacked to the ceiling, you know? If you haven’t gotten around to this one, I highly suggest you do. Make sure to imagine Alina with a Russian accent as she tells you her story. The entire story will sound so much better and more fitting in your head that way, particularly with her personality.