Reviews with content warning for Violence - Shadow and Bone

When Alina Starkov unleashes a dormant power she is taken to train among the Grisha, the powerful elite army of Ravka. Longing for a place to belong and overwhelmed with the feeling of being Ravka’s last flick of hope, she gives it her all. However, she soon finds out the court is not what it seems and she must be careful who she trusts.

It has been a long time since I have read a YA fantasy like this. I’m surprised it took me so long to read this because this genre was my thing back when I was 15 and 16. Now my tastes have shifted significantly. I focus now more on romance, specifically queer romance, so being fully honest, I worried if I still enjoyed this genre. And as it turns out, I still very much do.

The amount of effort put into worldbuilding made me realize how much I missed a good fantasy book. I loved all the little details, the differences between different areas of Ravka, and the political complexities of the court and the Grisha (although I hope to get more of that in the next book).

The Darkling was also a very interesting character and I liked how the book kept you on your toes with his character. In contrast, I found it so easy to trust Mal. From the moment he first appeared he became my boy and wanted to give him everything.

Alina was a great protagonist as well. I love when characters are flawed and you see them grow as the story progresses. However, I do hope in the next and other books her powers and strength go beyond her love for Mal.

This was a good book to get back into the high fantasy genre and I can’t wait to read the rest of the series.

Content Warnings

rafacolog's review against another edition

Go to review page

adventurous challenging mysterious medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? It's complicated
Loveable characters? It's complicated
Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated

4.0

Content Warnings

sydoodle's review against another edition

Go to review page

adventurous dark hopeful tense fast-paced

3.5

I couldn't take The Darkling seriously bro his name is THE DARKLING LMAOOOO

But this wasn't bad, I didn't love it but didn't hate it. I don't think Alina is a super great protagonist and I don't particularly love any characters but Genya to be honest. I am going to read the whole trilogy because I have faith. We'll see!

Content Warnings

justcallmeemily's review against another edition

Go to review page

adventurous dark emotional funny tense medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Character
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.0

I continue to not understand why people dislike this book so much. I had so much fun reading it and I can't wait to read the rest of this series.

I didn't want to put it down at all. I felt so immersed into the world that at times I genuinely felt like I was there.

The only reason it's not a 5 star is because I didn't feel like anything in the plot was surprising. Of course I was very happy when I guessed the plot twist but I shouldn't have been able to guess everything that was going to take place throughout the book. I guess what I'm trying to say is, it was a little too predictable for my tastes. Even when I was actively trying not to guess where it was going to go.

Thankfully, predictablility doesn't mean I can't thoroughly enjoy a story.

Content Warnings

More...