Shadow and Bone

Shadow and Bone is the debut novel of Leigh Bardugo. Based loosely on Russian culture, it follows Alina Starkov, a young peasant girl who is suddenly whisked into the elite world of magic users.

Teaser
"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."

--from Goodreads

Characters

 * Alina Starkov, the Sun Summoner
 * Malyen Oretsev, a tracker in the First Army
 * The Darkling, the leader of the Second Army
 * Genya, a Grisha who manipulates beauty
 * Baghra, a Grisha trainer

Summary
In the prologue, we meet Alina Starkov and Malyen Oretsev (Mal), two orphans in an orphanage called Keramzin. They are tested for magical powers but show none. Instead, as teens, they both join Ravka's First Army. Once best friends, Alina and Mal have grown distant; Alina is a regular mapmaker, and deeply in love with Mal - who seems to hardly notice her, as he is popular and has many talents. The First Army is preparing to cross the Shadow Fold, a swath of darkness plagued by monsters called Volcra; they need supplies, but it will be a dangerous crossing.

In the Fold, they are attacked by Volcra and Alina produces a burst of light that scares them away. Having displayed magical powers that she shouldn't have, Alina is declared a Grisha and whisked to Kribirsk, where she is questioned by the Darkling, the leader of the Second Army.

The remainder of this summary describes the events of the text in detail, including major plot spoilers. The Darkling decides Alina must be protected and whisks her off to his palace in Os Alta, the Ravkan capital. On the way, they are attacked by assassins, but the Darkling saves Alina's life. Summoning light is an incredibly rare and powerful Grisha skill, making Alina the counterpoint to the Darkling and the only one able to destroy the Fold. At the palace, Alina meets Genya, a Grisha who can manipulate physical appearance; she helps Alina become presentable to meet the King. After the meeting, she gets settled in the palace. She is expected to practice fighting and also her Grisha ability, which she studies under the grumpy Baghra.

The Darkling insists that her power is incredible and she must destroy the Fold, but she struggles to control her power. He also tells her that he is looking for a magical stag whose antlers will make an amplifier for her power. Alina still misses Mal, but decides that it is her duty to save Ravka; as she decides to let him go, she begins to be able to harness her powers. Later, as Alina is asking questions about Baghra and the elusive stag, the Darkling kisses her.

The King and Queen host a royal ball at which the Grisha can show their powers; Alina is presented to the people for the first time, wearing black; the only other Grisha to wear black is the Darkling. After the ball, Alina and the Darkling kiss again. However, shortly thereafter, she encounters Mal, also at the palace; as the First Army's most skilled tracker, he has been put in charge of finding the stag, and he claims to have succeeded. That night, Baghra also comes to Alina's room. She reveals that she is the Darkling's mother and that he is the one who created the Fold in the first place. Rather than destroying the Fold, he intends to use Alina to expand it.

Alina decides to run away from the palace. In the process, she runs into Mal. They agree to find the stag together. Right before finding the stag, Mal realizes that he is in love with Alina too, and they kiss. Alina hesitates to kill the stag, however. The Darkling's army shows up and the Darkling kills the stag. He uses its antlers to make the promised amplifier, but as the killer of the stag, the Darkling also has control over the amplifier and therefore Alina.

When they return to the Fold, Alina is forced to use her power to protect the Darkling from the Volcra. When Mal is thrown off their vehicle, she uses her powers to save him and discovers that by sparing the stag, she has more control over her amplifier. She and Mal escape the Fold and enter West Ravka, pursued by the Darkling. Alina swears to destroy the Darkling, and the two board a ship across the True Sea.

Sequels
Shadow and Bone is the first of three novels in the Grisha trilogy. It is followed immediately by Siege and Storm, and the series concludes with Ruin and Rising.