4 stars? I guess??

Leigh Bardugo doesn't pull her punches, does she?
I can understand why so many people didn't like Shadow and Bone compared to Six of Crows. It has all the intensity of dark themes such as abuse, manipulation, power,

Spoiler

sexual assault (though it's only briefly touched on),

etc. but none of the comic relief. Like none. It's a dark book.

It starts simple enough. Alina finds out she has powers she unconsciously suppress her whole life. Darkling takes her, kicking and screaming, to his palace to let her train. It's like a training montage for at least a third of the book. Then things get interesting.

The writing is pretty simple. There's lots of Tell and not Show. It made the book a quick read. I don't like flowery writing though, so it didn't bother me.

Overall, I think I enjoyed it?? It's a solid book. I can't help but want to add question marks when I say anything. It's not bad, but I'm left dazed. It was much more intense than I expected. And interesting.

I read other reviews saying the book is pretty basic. It makes me doubt my own opinion. Maybe the curtains are just blue, and the book was boring. All I know is it took me out of a reading slump and doubled down my awe that Leigh Bardugo doesn't shy away from intense themes. This book will stick with me for a while.

Also yay more SoC lore :)