This review contains affiliate links, which earn me a small commission when you click and purchase, at no extra cost to you. Thank you for supporting my small business and allowing me to continue providing you a reliable resource for clean book ratings.
Alina and Mal have narrowly escaped Ravka and the Darkling, but at what cost? How can they start a new life in an unfamiliar land when Alina is constantly haunted by the lives she took on the Fold, when they’re battling constant fear of the Darkling discovering them, and when there must always be a scarf at Alina’s neck to hide the bone collar and her identity as the Sun Summoner?
Alina can never go back to being the girl she once was. Worse, she isn’t sure she wants to. Choices have already been made. It’s time to stop running and embrace her destiny.
The Darkling has emerged from the Shadow Fold with a terrifying new power. With the help of a notorious and ever sarcastic privateer, Alina returns to Ravka determined to unite the Grisha and fight the Darkling and his shadow army.
But the Darkling isn’t the only threat to Alina. Not anymore. The Apparat has started a cult. More and more people believe she’s a saint, and the larger the Apparat’s cult grows, the more threat there is of riots … and of being torn apart by her so-called devout followers.
As her power grows, Alina slips deeper into a game of dark, forbidden magic and farther away from Mal.
This magic could destroy her, and the Darkling is still too strong. Alina knows that she must not fail — she cannot break — but what hope is there really of winning? After all, saints die young and most die a horrid death.
Siege and Storm is the second book in the Shadow and Bone Trilogy by Leigh Bardugo. I love the Russian fantasy setting, as well as the sarcasm and wit that appears in this story. In comparison to the first book, the characters seem to have taken on a moral grayness in their iconic battle of light and darkness. Alina isn’t the perfect heroine. She is constantly at war with herself over the dark pull of her power and constantly struggling with the responsibilities of becoming a savior to her people when she can’t even save herself. I find this makes her more real and relatable and only makes me want to cheer harder for her in her battle against the darkness threatening her country and herself.
Rated: Mild. There is some mild language and a couple of instances of moderate language. Several innuendos are made of characters having sexual relationships with each other even when they haven’t. There is also quite a bit of violence through the story, though nothing is too detailed.
Click here to purchase your copy of Siege and Storm on Amazon.
