The Grisha Trilogy by Leigh Bardugo is about Alina Starkov and her powers of the Sun Summoner. When her army unit travels into the Rift, a dark and dangerous place, Starkov shows her powers for the first time to save her best friend. Afterwards, she is taken to the Little Palace and trained by the best teachers out there to use her powers alongside the most powerful Grisha – the Darkling. Sadly, not everything is as it seems, and Alina is forced to make many difficult choices that decide the fate of the world. This exciting trilogy is intense, thrilling, and even funny.

When I read the first book, Shadow and Bone, I didn’t know what to expect and I was surprised at how amazing it was. Shadow and Bone hooked me, and I couldn’t get enough of it. I recommend the first book to fans of Sarah J. Maas’ A Court of Thornes and Roses series because that’s what this book reminded me of. As I read, I assigned each character from Leigh Bardugo’s book a twin from Sarah Maas’ books.

The next book, Rise and Ruin had me laughing the whole first half. The new and old characters were so funny together, it made me smile. Bardugo has a way of making her characters interact so that there is always humor during serious times. It’s amazing how there’s still humor to be found after everything they’ve been through. The last book, Ruin and Rising, completes the series so well.  I laughed, I cried, and the end is so perfect I’d read the whole series over just for that. It’s a fantastic series if you’re looking for good, lovable characters and a plot that doesn’t disappoint.