Book Review: The Gathering Dark By Leigh Bardugo

Name: The Gathering Dark
Author: Leigh Bardugo
UK Publisher: Indigo - Orion Books
UK Release Date: 21st May
Summary: 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.

Review: You ever look at a book and prey that it's something you've never read before. A story that can take you to a magic, tremendous, incredible, original world and make you not sleep for days because you want to finish it? well then The Gathering Dark By Leigh Bardugo will for fill that prayer.
I had not heard much about this book before I received it. The summary sounded interesting and nothing like I had read before. It was defiantly the case! This book is spectacular. I first opened the book and was sucked in. Why? Because it was straight into the action. Mal The Tracker, Alina the Map maker and the incredible dark "The Darkling".

The plot is amazing. 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. I think the amount of detail put into this story is mind blowing. This book makes you want to be part of it. It makes you want to be a Grisha. Wear their beautiful Kefta (a colour coded coat they wear) live in the grand little palace and be part of a troubled world that you hoped you could help. I loved the whole being part of a faction so to say for example you could be a Map maker, A tailor, a Fabricator. It's amazing to read about all the different and awesome things they do and what Colour cuffs represent them.

I think its descriptive and effective. Leigh has created word images so vivid that it is almost like watching a movie. You can feel the heat and the cold, You can smell the smells and feel the emotion through the words. I have never come across a book where actual Darkness is the villain in this novel. Because of this I was on edge through out. I loved the characters. Alina is such a brave character that I could not help but love and im sure you guys will too, Mal the best friend of Alina who is so brave and so loveable. And then the Darkling. He has a lot of mystery that you cant help but want to find out and when you do there will be shocking reevaluations.

I can use one word to describe this book and that is "powerful" powerful because its original. Powerful because its eye catching. Powerful because it makes you feel all the emotions that are mentioned in the English dictionary, And powerful because Its made me have a whole new out look and something to look forward to in the future of YA.