Title: Shadow and Bone
Author: Leigh Bardugo
Publisher: Henry and Holt Co.
Release Date: June 5, 2012Goodreads 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.
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.
Review:
Shadow and Bone is a marvelous debut novel by talented author Leigh Bardugo. When I picked up Shadow and Bone to review I had no idea what to expect. I am thankful that I decided to read this novel because it ended up being awesome!
Shadow and Bone was much like a mash up of Harry Potter and the Hunger Games. The main character, Alina, is fierce and isn't afraid to speak her mind much like Katniss. Like Katniss, Alina was unexpectedly thrown into a strange situation where she felt out of her element. All of the magic and the fantastical creatures in this novel reminded me of Harry Potter which was definitely a plus considering how wonderful Harry Potter is.
The setting of Shadow and Bone is a made up world called Ravka. Sometimes when the setting of a novel is somewhere that doesn't exist and there are lots of made up creatures in that world, it is hard to keep up with what everything is called. Shadow and Bone was clear and easy to follow along with.
I strongly suggest Shadow and Bone to anyone who wants a read that will get their imagination working! I was thoroughly impressed with this debut.
I was very skeptical when I first picked up Shadow and Bone, but I was pleasantly surprised. I too, was blown away by this fabulous debut novel. It really got my brain working!
ReplyDeleteAwesome! Glad you liked Shadow and Bone :)
Delete-Erin
Wow! Thanks for the review, I'll have to pick this book up!
ReplyDeleteI really need to read this book- I have seen a lot of praise for it and it looks very intriguing! I am also loving the US cover but I would have to have the UK cover which is a bit crap. Ah well x
ReplyDeleteI love the sound of this book. I wasn't that interested at first, but now I've heard so many wonderful things about it, I'm going to have to get it :)
ReplyDeleteOooh. I like hearing that the setting is a made-up world. For some reason I was running under the assumption that this was a historical fiction which usually isn't my thing but this sounds like it's definitely worth the read. Thanks for the review :]
ReplyDeleteHello Jasmine, yep, Shadow and Bone is not a historical fiction novel. It is a great read and will get your mind churning. Thanks for stopping by!
Delete-Erin
Nice! Thanks for the great review Erin. This sounds like a really cool book!
ReplyDelete