With the snow and the glaciers in the background, it felt like the perfect time to start reading this book as the world is based on Russia, and by this country, I always think of rough and snowy landscapes. I am quite a mood reader, so I always choose the book I will read next as I am close to starting to read it.

In this book, we follow Alina. She is a member of the mapmakers in the army, and with the grisha’s, she has to cross the Shadow Fold, a dark and evil place with monsters ready to kill inside it. As she crosses and they get attacked, she reveals a world-changing power she didn’t know she had, and everything will change for her.

“The Darkling slumped back in his chair. “Fine,” he said with a weary shrug. “Make me your villain.”

Leigh Bardugo, Shadow and Bone

I loved this book. The storytelling pulled me in, but I wasn’t the most interested in Alina’s story. My interest was in the darkling, and I would love to read more of his backstory and why he did what he did. I don’t know what this says about my moral compass, but we must go with it. What made the book great for me was the magic. There are a few different kinds of Grisha’s, and they all have entirely different types of power, but all of them are handy, and the use of the power is reasonably practical instead of the “I am going to hurt you with my power’ kind of use.

“Why can a Grisha possess but one amplifier? I will answer this question instead: What is infinite? The universe and the greed of men.”

Leigh Bardugo, Shadow and Bone

I will put the second book on my TBR soon after this one because I can’t wait to continue this series.

This book will most certainly get 5 stars!