Book Review Time: The Grisha Trilogy by Leigh Bardugo

I don't do book reviews very often, mainly because there are so many book reviewers out there who all do a wonderful job and cover an amazing scope of books that my reviews aren't really necessary. But I just have to talk about this one trilogy by Leigh Bardugo

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 am two books into the trilogy (devoured the almost 500 page book in a few days), and I absolutely cannot wait until I can get to the bookstore and pick up the final installment. This trilogy just blows my mind! It's pre-modern, russian-inspired, high fantasy with monsters and magic and love and adventure and mythology. Just...wow! The characters are so clear, but trust in this book is faulty. Who are friends, and who are enemies? In a war torn world, who can tell? I just cannot recommend this trilogy highly enough. If you need an escape, dive head first into Leigh Bardugo's world. 

The first time I saw Leigh Bardugo was at the 2015 Yallfest in Charleston, and she was so impressive--very charismatic and funny. I honestly think her banter with Brandon Reichs made the whole night. And just meeting her made me want to pick up her book. Because someone that awesome is going to write good books, correct? 

So I read the first one over my spring break (in Charleston again haha), and I read it in two days. TWO DAYS. The night that I finished, I was on twitter and saw that some internet troll was attacking her jewish heritage, which is just infuriating. But she handled it like a queen, and when I tweeted at her about her book, she was so kind and tweeted back. I'm always going to remember that. Taking the time to acknowledge fans and readers--that's something worth spending time on. After I finish the Grisha Trilogy, I'm heading straight for her next series Six of Crows.