Bardugo, Leigh; Shadow and Bone (The Grisha #1) - Buddy Read "Revisit"- (Start date 28 December, 2014) - November 7, 2015; Revisit starts June 15, 2018

[Vikki]

Anyone start reading this one yet? I started reading it today and I could not put it down. Starting Chapter 4 now.

[Joi]

Is it hard to understand?

[Vikki]

No, but I am highlighting the passages in my Kindle on the explanations on what all the different magical groups are/do. So far I have not gotten confused but I wish they had an index just in case. I just saw the list at the beginning of the book so far.

[Joi]

Okay, I just started, it doesn't seem too hard to understand. It's interesting so far.

[Vikki]

Ok, when I get a chance to read this book, it reads really fast. I am in Chapter 12 right now (about 45% through). I am starting to question a few things

(view spoiler)[Is Mal a Grisha too? Possibly Alina's amplifer? I am trying to figure out why Alina cannot use her gift at all on her own. Did she subconsciously block it so she would not be separated from Mal and if so, how can she undo it?

I also notice the theme of classism and people using other's gifts for their own advantage. (hide spoiler)]

How is everyone else finding the book?

[Delitealex]

I'm up to chapter 5 I like learning about the different powers of the Grisha. I'm definitely interested in finding out more about the Darkling and his powers. Lots of action and thigs going on.

[Delitealex]

Up to chapter 11 starting to get into court intrigue can't wait to see how Alina handles herself at court.

[Moderators of NBRC, Challenger-in-Chief]

*********THIS BUDDY READ IS BEING REVISITED!***********

Starts June 15, 2018

[[deleted user]]

Looking forward to seeing if this is as good as Six of Crows!

[Morgan]

Talia wrote: "Looking forward to seeing if this is as good as Six of Crows!"

It was really good, but I will say, I wish I would've read this book before Six of Crows. It would've helped that book make more sense by having some better background info. Still a really good book though. I enjoyed it! :)

[Natesha]

I'm excited for this! Team Minerva McGonagall!

[megan]

Yay! I've got this one. And it's on my Kindle, so I will get it done so much faster than with actual books.

[Brandy]

Is there a reading schedule?

[Suzanne]

There isn't a schedule that I know of. I'm going to try to start and at least read a little bit tonight before bed :)

[Deanna]

Finished through chapter 6 today...

Mal - (view spoiler)[I get the sense that perhaps Alina sees the real Mal when it is just the two of them, and it is more of a Mal persona when others turn up. I have a feeling she is wrong about him growing away from her. (hide spoiler)]

Alina - (view spoiler)[She seems fairly insecure with her appearance, her cartography, and definitely her new found power. I'm look forward to watching her figure out what she wants and grow. (hide spoiler)]

Darkling - (view spoiler)[It seems like he is more interested in Alina's power than Alina herself. I'm not quite sure what I think of his character at the moment. (hide spoiler)]

The Fold - (view spoiler)[Full of darkness and monsters, yuck! I wonder why they haven't tried to create a route that goes around it. It looks possible on the map at least. (hide spoiler)]

[Suzanne]

I finished through Chapter 6, so now I can look at Deanna's spoilers - yay!

Alina and Mal (view spoiler)[ It seems like something happened when they were going to be tested - they held hands and then something (I assume Alina's power) was hidden. Maybe that happened subconsciously so they could stay together? Or ??? Anyway - I like Mal, although he seems kind of clueless about adult Alina - he still seems like a best friend though. (hide spoiler)]

Darkling - (view spoiler)[ he interests me - it SOUNDS like he wants to right a wrong. But wow pretty powerful. We'll see. (hide spoiler)]

The Greisha court (view spoiler)[ Lots to learn here! Looks like we have all sorts of different types, and depending on the country they are in, all sorts of different circumstances. That said, I wish I had use of a Greisha tailor :) (hide spoiler)]

[Deanna]

Suzanne wrote: "I finished through Chapter 6, so now I can look at Deanna's spoilers - yay!

Alina and Mal [spoilers removed]

Darkling - [spoilers removed]

The Greisha court [spoilers removed]"

The court is definitely interesting, and I totally agree about the tailor.

[Deanna]

Finished 7 - 12 this evening.

Alina - (view spoiler)[ I spent most of the 6 chapters wondering if someone else had blocked her magic or if maybe she needed Mal's help to access it. It actually makes much more sense that she buried her power to stay with Mal originally. I think the Darkling is probably preventing all of her letters from going through. (hide spoiler)]

Zoya - (view spoiler)[Alina definitely seems to have made an enemy there. I was actually shocked that Zoya lost her temper and used her magic on Alina while sparring. She knew it was forbidden to use magic and that the Darkling was deeply interested in Alina. That was an idiotic decision on her part. (hide spoiler)]

Darkling - (view spoiler)[I haven't seen anything to change my mind that he is more interested in her power than her, but I'm a little surprised that I don't really feel like I've learned anything else about him. He is still just as mysterious as he was in the last section. I'm sure that will have to change at some point. (hide spoiler)]

The Apparat - (view spoiler)[He definitely seems strange. It seems to me that he is trying to warn her with the book and explaining the dangers of becoming too much of a focus for the people. (hide spoiler)]

[megan]

Suzanne wrote: "I finished through Chapter 6, so now I can look at Deanna's spoilers - yay!

Alina and Mal [spoilers removed]

Darkling - [spoilers removed]

The Greisha court [spoilers removed]"

Totally agree about the hiding of the power! (view spoiler)[She really fought hard to keep it down. As a child she might have been so scared about this strange feeling anything it tired to manifest, that she subconsciously suppressed it. (hide spoiler)]

And I can't wait to see how the Grisha hierarchy both solves and creates problems for them.

[megan]

Mal - (view spoiler)[ When it comes to Alina is he a clueless male or trying to protect himself? I'm not sure if I can say clueless male, as we don't really know his character yet. He seemed pretty flippant about going into battle, so maybe it's a maturity thing, or trying to put on airs. I think the later. What we know about him is all Alina's version of him/events and that muddles it - part of what makes first person easier to narrator and why I give mad props to authors who use third person POV (hide spoiler)]

The Darkling - (view spoiler)[ Most intriguing character by far. I definitely want to explore his story more. Seems like he will be both a good guy and a bad guy at some point. In my head he walks with a flourish of a black cape. Kinda Darth Vaderish, but quick on his feet. LOL. (hide spoiler)]

[megan]

Deanna wrote: "Finished 7 - 12 this evening.

Alina - [spoilers removed]

Zoya - [spoilers removed]

Darkling - [spoilers removed]

The Apparat - [spoilers removed]"

YES! I NEED TO KNOW MORE DARKLING!!

[Suzanne]

Megan - I totally agree with what you said about both!!

[Claire]

I'm going to start this bad boy tonight. I've had the complete trilogy + the Six of Crows duology sitting on my shelves, unread, for far too long!

Team Hermione

[Suzanne]

Through Chapter 12 -

Alina and Mal (view spoiler)[ I hadn't thought that the Darkling could be hiding her letters, but that makes sense. I'm also wondering if the scar on her hand could be her half of some "blood brother" tie? I am also wondering if Mal is her amplifier. And lastly - it seems a shame to kill a stag to get an amplifier. (hide spoiler)]

The Apparat (view spoiler)[ seems really kind of crazy and scary, kind of obviously evil but then...maybe not? (hide spoiler)]

[Deanna]

megan wrote: "Mal - [spoilers removed]

The Darkling - [spoilers removed]"

Mal - (view spoiler)[I actually think maybe a combination of clueless and also afraid to do something that might mess up their friendship. (hide spoiler)]

[Deanna]

Chapters 13-17

Darkling - (view spoiler)[That one caught me totally by surprise. I did not see the enslave Alina to kill volcra so the fold could be weaponized angle coming at all. That is some serious evil, and here I was thinking he wasn't really all that bad. (hide spoiler)]

Mal - (view spoiler)[That spat between Mal and Alina was hard to read. Clearly they both care about each other but were too angry at supposed things the other did or didn't do to sit down and actually talk. Alina is truly lucky that Mal is such a loyal friend. She clearly doesn't have a lot of skills for running away and hiding in the woods. (hide spoiler)]

[~❤️Minnie❤️~]

Just finished chapter 8 and I have to say...

(view spoiler)[
Mal is just your typical man trying to be all badass for appearance’s sake and I feel sorry for him. I like him best when he is around Alina.

For her part Alina is getting a bit on my nerves with her “I’m not pretty” speech (it might have to do with the fact that I’m reading a book that has a whinny heroine that has a “gorgeous” twin).

The Greisha court is full of assholes that think they own the world (typical rich people behavior for that “era”) and I see a lot of problems for Alina with them in the future.

The Darkling I think is more that he’s lonely since he is so far up the food chain and Alina keeps “scorning” him.

And last that “priest” dude on the Kings court gives my the creeps. Maybe he’s with the bad guys that what the Sun Summoner dead?
(hide spoiler)]

[Suzanne]

Nice insights, Minnie

[Deanna]

Finished!

Alina and Mal - (view spoiler)[I'm so glad they finally figured out how they felt about each other. (hide spoiler)]

The Stag - (view spoiler)[I thought they had really messed up by not killing the stag. I am glad that mercy counts just as much as the slaughter. It definitely feels right that she should benefit because she tried to spare the stag. (hide spoiler)]

The Darkling - (view spoiler)[I sincerely hope the volcra got him, but I'm not sure I believe without someone having seen his body. (hide spoiler)]

Overall, it was an intriguing world, well written with characters that were easy to relate to and root for (or against).

[megan]

~❤️Minnie❤️~ wrote: "Just finished chapter 8 and I have to say...


Mal is just your typical man trying to be all badass for appearance’s sake and I feel sorry for him. I like him best when he is around Alina.

For he..."

Agreed! Down with the (view spoiler)[ creepy priest! LOL (hide spoiler)]

[~❤️Minnie❤️~]

Deanna wrote: "Chapters 13-17

Darkling - [spoilers removed]

Mal - [spoilers removed]"

I completely agree with you

(view spoiler)[I even mention it on my previous post that he was just lonely. I was taken completely by surprise and to find out Baghra was his mom? Oh em gee!

As for Mal and Alina I wonder what happened with his letters? I understood their anger and wariness for each other , after all they thought they didn’t want to communicate with one another, but was it really that Mal’s unit was moving around so much or was it something else. I am just glad they work it out. And also I agree with you Alina is the worst at running away. (hide spoiler)]

[Suzanne]

Chapters 13-17

I'm with Deanna (view spoiler)[ I thought we were going for a typical YA love triangle - I didn't see the whole "Darkling is evil" thing coming at all. I'm now guessing he intercepted the letters. I love when a book surprises me like that.

Mal maybe seems to have some kind of power/skill too. (hide spoiler)]

[Suzanne]

And - finished!

Darkling (view spoiler)[ I'm almost positive he'll be back, since there are 2 more books in the series. But I still am kind of happy I was surprised by him. (hide spoiler)]

Apparat (view spoiler)[ It sounds like he was briefly ruling and has disappeared. He is still quite mysterious to me. (hide spoiler)]

The Stag (view spoiler)[ I'm so glad that her mercy worked and gave her the power, because having her kill him would have been really sad. I'm sad he is dead anyway! (hide spoiler)]

[Claire]

I'm finally making progress, here. I got caught up in watching Jessica Jones on Netflix, haha

I'm liking it so far.
up to chapter 6 (view spoiler)[I'm don't really trust the Darkling and the other Grisha. Their methods are too aggressive in my opinion. And all the rumors about them. There must be some truth about it.
Also I don't trust a monarch who only values beauty. That's just vain. That Grisha girl in chapter 6 really crossed a line for me. She was about to modify Alina's face without her consentment. Worse, she was going to do something to her without even telling her what she was up to. That's not okay in my book. (hide spoiler)]

[Claire]

Deanna wrote: "Finished through chapter 6 today...

Mal - [spoilers removed]

Alina - [spoilers removed]

Darkling - [spoilers removed]

The Fold - [spoilers removed]"

I agree with all of the above. (view spoiler)[Especially your comment about Mal. It's like they can only be free to be themselves when they are together.
I feel bad for Alina. It's clear she really loves Mal. It must be hard to see him flirting with all these women. No wonder she's insecure. (hide spoiler)]

[Claire]

Suzanne wrote: "I finished through Chapter 6, so now I can look at Deanna's spoilers - yay!

Alina and Mal [spoilers removed]

Darkling - [spoilers removed]

The Greisha court [spoilers removed]"

I have the same question about the test (view spoiler)[ it was clear to me they knew something and were trying to cheat the test. Does that mean Alina knew about her powers? or does Mal also have powers? I wonder... (hide spoiler)]

[megan]

Suzanne wrote: "And - finished!

Darkling [spoilers removed]

Apparat [spoilers removed]

The Stag [spoilers removed]"

Agree on all of these

(view spoiler)[ I think there will be more Apparat in the future. He did try to get Alina's attention at the ball thing. Maybe there on Baghra's behalf? And The Darkling thinks he's a fraud, so maybe he's a good guy on the inside? Still creepy.

I really like that the love triangle wasn't what pushed this story forward. (hide spoiler)]

And a question: (view spoiler)[
And the Stag - so his power was his to give? Alina has the power was because of her mercy, but does she have it simply because of the mercy or did the stag knowingly transfer it to her? (hide spoiler)]

[megan]

✿ Claire ✿ ~ Foxgard wrote: "Suzanne wrote: "I finished through Chapter 6, so now I can look at Deanna's spoilers - yay!

Alina and Mal [spoilers removed]

Darkling - [spoilers removed]

The Greisha court [spoilers removed]"

..."

I had wondered about that too (view spoiler)[ I wouldn't be surprised if Mal ends up having a power too. Just because that's how these stories work. Maybe everybody's got a little Grisha in them? Could lead to an interesting twist. (hide spoiler)]

[[deleted user]]

I’m through chapter 6. This book has a different feel than Six of Crows. I don’t know why it was hard for me to get into the first time I tried it, but I’m enjoying it now and it is easy to read. I’m liking Mal and Alina but not sure about the Darkling yet. I’m looking forward to seeing more Grisha powers at work (view spoiler)[ and seeing what all Alina can do with that light of hers (hide spoiler)].

[Claire]

megan wrote: "✿ Claire ✿ ~ Foxgard wrote: "Suzanne wrote: "I finished through Chapter 6, so now I can look at Deanna's spoilers - yay!

Alina and Mal [spoilers removed]

Darkling - [spoilers removed]

The Greish..."

It wouldn't surprise me either. (view spoiler)[ that Mal is also Grisha. In YA, don't they all end up with powers at one point? But I wonder what it would be. (hide spoiler)]

[Claire]

Deanna wrote: "Finished 7 - 12 this evening."

The Darkling (view spoiler)[I definitely don't trust him. You're absolutely right. He's more interested in her powers than in her. And I'm also sure she blocks her letters too.
The way he asked about Mal is suspicious. I have a hunch he's going to track the guy to see if he has powers too.
Also, I've thought about the king. He's way too superficial to be the mind ruling the kingdom. And My guess would be the Darkling is the one making all the political decisions. (hide spoiler)]

The Apparat (view spoiler)[I don't know what to think of him. He looks creepy and speak in a mysterious way, but I'm not sure if he's a bad guy. At first I thought he would be an equivalent of Rasputin, but now I'm not so sure anymore. (hide spoiler)]

Zoya (view spoiler)[ is just plain mean and obviously jealous of Alina. She made a big mistake during training. I bet now she's even more angry at Alina. I fear she'll do something stupid again. And also, I really hope once Mal comes back, she won't try to seduce him to get at Alina. I could very well see that happening, but I hope it won"t. (hide spoiler)]

[[deleted user]]

I'm in chapter 15.

(view spoiler)[ Wow, Baghra spilling all the tea on the Darkling's plans! So he is a villain -- I wasn't sure before. (hide spoiler)]

[Claire]

Talia wrote: "I'm in chapter 15.

[spoilers removed]"

(view spoiler)[I didn't trust him before. I'm glad my instinct was right here. I didn't expect Baghra to be the one to spill the beans, however. It was clear there was an animosity between the two, but I was sure they were on the same side nonetheless. (hide spoiler)]

[Claire]

I finished it this afternoon. I really liked it, but I still think it was overhyped. I thought the plot was a bit slow to develop at times, for instance. And I don't understand the hype around the Darkling. (view spoiler)[He was an okay villain, I guess. But that's it. I never even believed in his little romance charade with Alina. Nothing about him really wowed me. (hide spoiler)]
That being said, I plan to read the rest of the trilogy soon.

[[deleted user]]

I finished today! Going back to comment on some previous comments...

Deanna wrote: "Finished 7 - 12 this evening.

Alina -]"

Regarding Alina's letters to Mal, (view spoiler)[ I was thinking that too, that someone was probably keeping Alina's letters from really being sent out. I don't know why she didn't think about that possibility and let herself get so upset over not hearing back from Mal! (hide spoiler)]

When Zoya appeared on the scene I was thinking, (view spoiler)[ah, finally someone to hate! Because the Darkling was kind of being nice to Alina, so I didn't see him as the villain of the story. (hide spoiler)]

[[deleted user]]

✿ Claire ✿ ~ Foxgard wrote: "Zoya..."

Regarding Zoya's fate (view spoiler)[I feel like she must play a big role in the other books in the trilogy. She was too mean to not have us find out where she ends up at the end of all this! (hide spoiler)]


I enjoyed the book and will read the rest in the trilogy. (view spoiler)[I was surprised by Mal's feeling for Alina because I really thought he had friend-zoned her. But I'm happy for Alina that they got together. (hide spoiler)]

[Lexi]

Anyone still around? I may start this one.

[Lexi]

I'm coming from having read Six of Crows and Crooked Kingdom and enjoyed them enough to try this trilogy. I am at a third. (view spoiler)[ It is interesting to see the grisha when I am familiar from the from Six of Crows. I am hoping there is no romantic interest with the Darkling especially as old as he is. The court is obviously corrupt and we know from the later books that revolution is coming. (hide spoiler)]

[Brandy]

Lexi wrote: "I'm coming from having read Six of Crows and Crooked Kingdom and enjoyed them enough to try this trilogy. I am at a third. [spoilers removed]"

I agree with you. I also read Six of Crows before reading this series, so I enjoyed learning about the Grisha. I kind of feel bad for The Darkling. No one likes this guy!

[Lexi]

Brandy wrote: "Lexi wrote: "I'm coming from having read Six of Crows and Crooked Kingdom and enjoyed them enough to try this trilogy. I am at a third. [spoilers removed]"

I agree with you. I also read Six of Cro..."

I just finished. (view spoiler)[ I never liked the Darkling as seemed predatory and there is the ever larger age difference. It was clearly a first book as the characters felt more flat but since I want to read her next series, I will read this trilogy for background. (hide spoiler)]