Shadow and Bone (Review)

Book: Shadow and Bone
Author: Leigh Bardugo
Format: Hardcover
Pages: 358
My Rating: 5 of 5 stars

Blurb:

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.

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.