Shadow and Bone and Saints, oh my!
The Shadow and Bone Trilogy by Leigh Bardugo
The Shadow and Bone trilogy is part of a series of books written by Israeli-American author Leigh Bardugo known as the Grishaverse. There are currently 11 books set in this world, all of which are connected to each other in some way with many of them occurring at the same time. There is also a series based on these books produced by Netflix that is called Shadow and Bone.
The series is set in a country known as Ravka which is modeled after 19th century Russia and is home to two types of humans. The first being the average people who have no special abilities known as the Otkazat’sya. The second are known as the Grisha and possess powers that allow them to manipulate the world in different ways.
The main character Alina (later referred to by some as Saint Alina) is an orphan girl who discovers that she is Grisha, and not just any Grisha but a special one known as the Sun Summoner. The books follow her and her cast of friends and allies as she tries to save the world by destroying the “Fold” and defeating the Darkling.
What makes this particular trilogy one of my favorites is the unique world building, character design and magic systems. It features a cast of interesting characters from various backgrounds and histories with the main character being of mixed descent which plays an important role in her identity and interactions with other characters.
The book series does fall into a few tropes that are cliches such as the chosen one trope and childhood friends to lovers but that doesn’t take away much from the story. One thing that I really like about this series is that there is also a clear goal in mind for the main character, she has a plan and she’ll stop at nothing to see it through.
Another thing that makes this series so great to me is that even though Alina has all of these options for romance, she doesn’t need any of them. She’s a true protagonist and not just some damsel in distress disguised as one.
Overall I would recommend this series to anyone who likes fantasy and magic as well as good books with well written female leads.