Shadow and Bone is the first book in the Grisha Trilogy (Now coming to Netflix, WHAAAAT?) by Leigh Bardugo. It follows Alina, an orphan and a cartographer in the First Army of the Kingdom of Ravka. When faced with a terrifying situation shocking truths arise regarding her identity and so she is sent away and her journey begins. Leigh Bardugo is the best-selling author of this trilogy and the Six of Crows duology.
I will say that this book was really fun to read, the writing style kept me hooked from the beginning to the end. One of the things I liked most was that the majority of the chapters end in some sort of cliffhanger or with a question/problem to be solved which managed to keep my attention and made it more enjoyable. More than half of the book is about self-discovery, Alina learns she has this new...ability and is now trying not only to accept that part of herself but also to control it. BTW there is romance in this book, I'll say maybe, maybe 2 potential love interests and I was surprised by neither, besides the main love interest was very predictable and it's a bit of a cliché: childhood best friends to lovers, it was cute though.
I liked the world, especially the Russian influence it has. However, the world building wasn't the best, I mean we're basically thrown into this world, there's this country Ravka that's been at war for some time now, there are basically two types of people: Grisha, who have certain abilities and humans without those abilities...and that's basically it, of course there are more details, but it didn't expand to more. The magic system, which I can't even call it that, since in these books it's not considered magic, it's a science (that part I liked, I think it was a very interesting way of introducing Grisha and their 'powers'), was not very elaborate.
The characters. I wasn't completely attached to the characters, in fact I don't really like Alina, the protagonist. I think she's got potential and I'm looking forward to seeing her develop in the next books, but in this one she's really just figuring out who she really is, on her own. One of the things that I didn't like about her character is the fact that she's basically codependent on Mal at first, so when she, at some point in the book, decides to let go and starts enjoying herself for herself I was like " 'bout damn time!". Also, and I know he's able to create some sort of "pull" to the other Grisha, but when she's with The Darkling she throws herself to him way too fast, and while I was intrigued by their connection, I didn't want it to happen like that.
The Darkling. I was so so so DISAPPOINTED with this character, for years I had heard such great things about this series, especially about this character, and yes I went into this book with extremely high expectations, so that must explain a little of my disappointment, which is why I really hope he gets better in the next books. He's dark and misunderstood, clever, calculating and extremely manipulative, but again, for the great complex villain I had heard of it just wasn't enough.
As for the rest of the characters I liked Genya a lot, she's kind, talented, funny and smart. I liked the theme she conveys, how beauty isn't everything. Mal I liked enough, but he didn't make any permanent impressions on me. And Baghra is definitely a character I want to read more about.
The one thing I loved about this book was the writing style. Leigh Bardugo's writing style is marvelous. It makes reading the book easy, it's compelling, the scenes are not confusing, it's very clear and easy to follow. Her use of imagery was great, I found myself in one scene completely enveloped with the story, so much that I literally forgot for a moment where I was.
In conclusion, I had a good time reading this book and while I am not completely attached to the characters or the story I am looking forward to reading the next books and see if my opinion changes. For all of the previously mentioned I give this book 4 out of 5 stars, and recommend it to people who like fantasy novels with an easy to explore world, or who are just getting acquainted with this genre.