Young Adult Review: Siege and Storm by Leigh Bardugo

Siege and Storm (Grisha #2) by Leigh Bardugo

Hardcover, 448 pages

Expected publication: June 4th, 2013 by Henry Holt

Source: ALAMW

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.

Oh wow... Okay, so this left me speechless.  I'm not even sure where to start.  I'm thinking that gushing just isn't going to cut it, but I'm not sure I can do a coherent review.  So here's me trying...

Alina's character growth in this book was immense.  She went from being weak and lost to strong and powerful.  The only thing we have to concern ourselves with here, is she being corrupted by her own power?  This question is actually answered by the end.  I did love how she changed and grew through the book though and felt frustrated and angry at the things she had to suffer through.  She's all about doing the right thing, even if she doesn't really want to.

I wasn't sure if I was on board with Mal in the first book and I grew to like him more in this one.  I understand him better and have more of a connection with him.  Unfortunately he falls a bit to the wayside as far as personalities go, which made me kind of sad.  However, I think that's something that may change even more in the third book.  Alina and Mal have their share of troubles, it's them managing to work things out that determines whether they have a future together.

There's a new character in this book that completely stole the scenes he was in.  I'm not going to say his name because true to Leigh Bardugo style, things are tricky, tricky, tricky and not always what they seem.  He is a character that has this amazing personality and he totally jumps off the page.  He says things that made me laugh and giggle and even sigh (just a little...) because he really was amazing.  Oh man, I could go on and on.  I think he's my new most favorite character, he was so great!

I was afraid to read this because I was terrified of what horrors they would have to suffer. And while they did plenty of suffering and there were plenty of moments of me wanting to strangle someone, it was all worth it and I totally should not have been afraid.  Except for one thing... that ending. Oh gosh, that ending about killed me!  It's like a half cliffhanger.  There's so much more to come but yet it was wrapped up enough that we aren't left hanging as badly as it could have been.  But I don't know, it's torture knowing I have a whole YEAR to wait for the next book!

Really, it comes down to this~ I love these books.  I'm a huge fan of fantasy anyway, but Leigh has created a world and series different from anything else I've read.  It's a series that I will reread throughout the years and will sit on my favorites shelf to be admired by all who venture into my home.  I highly recommend it!

Disclosure: I received this book for review purposes, all opinions expressed are my own and I was not paid or influenced in any way.