So yeah, the title of this blog deserves the "understatement of the year" award. I'm not just recommending this book. I'm screaming as loud as I can, "GO BUY IT NOW!" Seriously, I had the fortune to get my hands on an Advanced Readers Copy, and I was completely enamored with the story, the writing, the characters, and the world. Yeah, everything in this is as good as good can be. Read the description from
Goodreads below and then get thee to a book store as soon as you can. You won't regret it. I guarantee it!
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.
I will admit that the story is a little predictable. But, this story plays out like a video game. I played a lot of video games in my time. I can only imagine this story being turned into one. The characters have presumable motives and interests that can be guessed pretty early on. The plot twists aren't huge and amazing. Yet the story is still so well written and interesting that I kept glued to it.
ReplyDeleteThe characters are extremely fulfilling. The story is told through the eyes of Alina, our main character. We read the world as she sees and understands it. Yet the characters are explained and identified so well through Alinas eyes, as the reader, you really have a strong grasp and understanding to how Alina sees the world and everyone it contains. The characters are impressive.