Be prepared for yet another adventure in the Girshverse.
About The Book
Title: Siege and Storm | By: Leigh Bardugo
Series: The Shadow and Bone Trilogy #2, The Grisha #2
Published: June 4th 2013 | By: Henry Holt and Co.
Page Count: 448 | Pace: Fast
Genre: YA Fantasy | Age: 12+
Darkness never dies.
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, all while keeping her identity as the Sun Summoner a secret. But 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
| Goodreads |
Spoiler Alert: This review is for those who have read the Shadow and Bone book. If you haven’t read it, then this review might be a spoiler.
This book was better than the first one, and there wasn’t unnecessary gossip to fill the pages in the story. This book had more backstory to the Morozova amplifiers and more folklore references, which were significant to the story. It had a few additional characters such as Nikolai, Tolya, Tamar, and the new monster- nichevo’ya, which were a great addition to the story. I had mentioned in my Shadow and Bone review that I would like more of Apparat and Baghra’s involvement in the story, but that never happened in this one too. Although he leads a cult, the Apparat appears briefly in the story, and Baghra is hardly there.
I would say that the first and the last few chapters are the core chapters of the book. It feels like the story is anchored in those few chapters. The book can be divided into three parts. The First part was about how Mal and Alina fell into the Darkling’s claws and were unable to escape him again. The next bit was how they, along with Nikolai and the group, escaped the Darkling and set out to find the Morozova amplifiers, and eventually return to Rakov. The last part was where they had to face the Darkling’s army.
I wonder why these YA fantasy novels have romance trope in them.
Mal, Nikolai, and the Darkling like Alina, and she is confused about whom she likes the most. And I will never understand what she sees in Mal. Am I crazy to ship her with the Darkling? I mean, she was better off with the Darkling than Mal. He is a tracker and can magically find amplifiers whenever they needed it. So far in the series, his power wasn’t accounted for. I guess he must be a Grisha too, which hopefully the next book can clarify. He is a mortal and fought everyone with his fighting skills, which was hardly convincing. And now I’m digressing from the main plot which for Alina to find a way to defeat the Darkling.
Even after two books, I wanted to know more about the Darkling. He is an enigmatic character whom I want to see actively present in the book. I was hoping to see him more in action in this book, but unfortunately, his powers were overhyped as he never fought or used his powers much in this book.
I also liked the Morozova hunts in this series. Those chapters were interesting, and there is one more amplifier that has to be hunted, which will probably happen in the next book.
Overall, I liked this book better than the first one. There were a few solid chapters in this book, which has compelled me to pick up the next book anticipating the conclusion of this trilogy.
So many men had tried to make her a queen. Now she understood that she was meant for something more.
Triggers: murder, Blood, abduction
I’m rating this book 3.4 Stars, rounding it to 3 Stars.
Let’s Chat!
If you have read this book, what are your thoughts on it? Also, let me know in the comments what do you like the most in YA fantasy novels?
paperbacktomes 
Yes! Another Mal hater. I don’t really understand WHY Alina likes him!? And Darkling is the best 😍
Though I’ll not ship her with Mal (too toxic. I’m choking) or Darkling (he deserves better than her). I’ll push myself to not dnf it…
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Ikr, I wanted to see how the trilogy ends and that’s the only reason I’m continuing with it.
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I *might’ve* dnfed it already. It’s been 2 months since I’ve last picked it up and I’ll most probably never read it…Tell me if it is worth it!
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I read it for closure but it wasn’t that good. So if you want to know how this trilogy ends, you can try reading it.
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Out of all the books, Ruin and Rising is the one that annoyed me the least due to it not having Alina thinking of Mal all the time.
And Mal is the worst character I have ever come across. And I didn’t think Alina was much better. Honestly I’m glad for Leigh Bardugo’s writing glow-up. Like how did she create both Shadow and Bone and Six of Crows. They are on such different levels.
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Exactly. I’m currently reading Ruins and Rising and can see what you mean.
I won’t be reading Six of Crows anytime soon, but I’ve heard that it’s better than the Shadow and Bone, so I will be reading it somewhere in 2021.
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