Review: Shadow and Bone | Leigh Bardugo

This review is spoiler free.

“The problem with wanting,” he whispered, his mouth trailing along my jaw until it hovered over my lips. “is that it makes us weak.”

Series: Shadow and Bone
Published: 2017, by Henry Holt and Co.
Pages: 369
Format: eBook/Kindle Edition
Genre: Young Adult, Romance, Fiction, Magic, Fantasy, Adventure, Paranormal
Contains: Violence, Anger, Blood/Gore, Imprisonment, Death

‘Shadow and Bone’ follows Alina Starkov, who 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.

I’d first picked up this book a few years ago, wanting to delve into the most popular Young Adult books I could find. I never continued the series, however, and now considering Netflix will have an adaptation out of it soon, I thought it was time to return to the world of Shadow and Bone.

Alina made for an interesting protagonist, being strong and stubborn, and yet the most logical of the accompanying characters. She sought after what was right, not always taking the easiest path, and did her best to prove to those around her that she’s doing the right thing. She made for a incredibly reliable protagonist, and I loved reading the tale in her shoes.
Mal, however, wasn’t the most interesting character to me, knowing very little about him outside of the fact of being a love-interest. I didn’t care much for him, finding him a little too gritty and moody in my opinion, however, I’m sure I’ll warm to him in time.
On the other side of things, The Darkling was fascinating and desirable, making you confront your own emotions and question them. I deeply enjoyed that, finding myself relating to the protagonist in many ways as she resisted the antagonist’s desirable ways.

The writing style was full of luscious descriptions and tantalising dialogue, keeping my interest from beginning to end of this book. It’s the fastest I’ve finished a novel in a while, and I’m desperate to discover what happens next.

Overall, this world is incredibly interesting to me, being full of both light and darkness, and I can’t wait to discover that comes of it next.

5/5