Seige and Storm

Author: Leigh Bardugo
Series: Grisha #2
Genre: Fantasy, Romance, Adventure
Release Date: June 4, 2013
Summary: Hunted across the True Sea, haunted by the lives she took on the Fold, Alina must try to make a life with Mal in an unfamiliar land. She finds starting new is not easy while keeping her identity as the Sun Summoner a secret. She can’t outrun her past or her destiny for long. The Darkling has emerged from the Shadow Fold with a terrifying new power and a dangerous plan that will test the very boundaries of the natural world. With the help of a notorious privateer, Alina returns to the country she abandoned, determined to fight the forces gathering against Ravka. But as her power grows, Alina slips deeper into the Darkling’s game of forbidden magic, and farther away from Mal. Somehow, she will have to choose between her country, her power, and the love she always thought would guide her--or risk losing everything to the oncoming storm.

Review: Okay, so Siege and Storm didn't quite live up to it's predecessor, Shadow and Bone, but it was still quite a fantastic novel. I was a little nervous to pick this novel up at first. Mainly because I loved the first novel, and I didn't want the second and third novels to disappoint. It seems that I am one of the few who didn't quite like Siege and Storm as much as (if not more than) Shadow and Bone. Don't get me wrong, it was an amazing book! I just didn't find it as satisfying as Shadow and Bone, and here's why.

Alina, now with an Amplifier, sometimes thinks she is all-powerful. To say I didn't appreciate this would be a slight understatement. Although I'm happy she has an amplifier, I continually felt throughout the novel that she was flipping back and forth as to whether or not she liked having this extra power. I hated her indecisiveness and feel that if she has a downfall, this would be part of the reason.

The Darkling has so little to do with this book! Okay, I understand that he is the bad guy and all but COME ON!! I missed him constantly throughout the book. And personally, I liked him way better than Mal (#sorrynotsorry).

Speaking of Mal . . . he bugged . . . like constantly. I didn't appreciate how insecure he was about his relationship with Alina. Seriously dude, she has been in love with you for for-reaking-ever!! And now that you finally decided you love her back and want to be with her you're getting all insecure about it! GRRRR!!! :/

On a lighter now, Bardugo did an excellent job of continuing the story throughout Siege and Storm. The pace was great, and everything was as explained as it needed to be. Oh yeah, and I can't forget Nikolai. Seriously, he was my favorite character in this book! And that ending. Let's just say I was glad I had Ruin and Rising on hand!!

Shadow and Bone

Author: Leigh Bardugo
Series: Grisha #1
Genre: Fantasy, Romance, Adventure
Release Date: June 5, 2012
Summary: Surrounded by enemies, the once-great nation of Ravka has been torn in two by the Shadow Fold, a swath of near impenetrable darkness crawling with monsters who feast on human flesh. Now its fate may rest on the shoulders of one lonely refugee. Alina Starkov 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. Wrenched from everything she knows, Alina is whisked away to the royal court to be trained as a member of the Grisha, the magical elite led by the mysterious Darkling. Yet nothing in this lavish world is what it seems. With darkness looming and an entire kingdom depending on her untamed power, Alina will have to confront the secrets of the Grisha . . . and the secrets of her heart.

Review: Holy A-M-A-Z-I-N-G-N-E-S-S!! Seriously, this book blew me away! I'd seen it floating around the library for a while but never picked it up. The library then purchased the audio book and since it was brand new (and I love brand new things) I checked it out. Well . . . it then sat in my drawer for a little over a week. One restless night (I've been having a lot of those lately with Christmas so near) I pulled it out and started listening to it . . . um, can we say 'BAD IDEA'?! I listened to it for three hours straight and was more awake than I'd been before! Right off the bat, Shadow and Bone captured my attention. The world Bardugo created was fascinated, eerie, and adventurous. Alina was a fairly decent main character. There were a couple things she said throughout the book that made me facepalm, but other than that, I really enjoyed her. The supporting characters (the Darkling, Mal, and the fellow Grisha) were also very well written. The storyline progressed at a great pace. I never felt things were going to fast/slow or that certain things were brushed over. On a side note, I would definitely recommend listening to the audio book because there are some Russian-based words that I never would have been able to pronounce and it made reading the book more enjoyable. This is one that I will definitely come back to again and again. A must read over the holidays!!

 

**ALSO, there is one scene towards the beginning of the book (within the first 50-75 pages that was a little gory and graphic (a body gets split in half), but the rest of the content and language is clean, with very few minor swear words

 

 

Merry Christmas!!