Siege and Storm – Leigh Bardugo

I LOVE THIS SERIES! This is another one of those occasions when I’ve read the first book in the series last year and totally forgotten how much I enjoyed it. Once again the storyline was intense and packed full of action and we were also introduced to some great new characters. I loved the beginning, middle and the end!

After escaping the Darklings clutches, Alina and Mal must must try and uncover the secrets of the amplifiers and how to defeat the Darkling once and for all. With the Darklings new and dangerous abilities, Alina must return to the country she abandoned and fight the forces gathering against Ravka as well as the power she possesses.

Leigh Bardugo doesn’t miss any action, with action and surprises lurking around every corner. The plot was well paced and the world created is just perfect. You can see that a lot of time and effort has gone into creating this world from creating old folk stories and various places each with their own unique environment. The writing is also so imaginative and lyrical yet at the same time funny and witty; it’s perfect.

Alina’s character development is certainly different as she faces the struggles of gaining and asserting power but on the other hand she is certainly beginning to come out of her shell and her actions are now powerful and brave. Alina’s battle isn’t with some external force, it’s with herself. As a female protagonist she is perfect as she is not only brave and badass but kind and protective.

Mal, on the other hand, proves to be a loyal, fierce companion who truly loves Alina but sits in a very difficult position. His relationship with Alina certainly dominates this book although we do have glimpses of scenes between Alina and Darkling alone. Mal, on the other hand, proves to be a loyal, fierce companion who truly loves Alina. Their relationship gets rocky at times but Alina, Mal and Darkling are certainly not in some sort of typical love triangle.

I loved all the new character especially the twins, Tamar and Toya who I thought were brilliant and I can’t wait to learn more about them in the next book as in this book they stayed quite reserved and closed. Their relationship with Alina is genuine and you can tell by their actions they will protect and support her through anything…

I still hold a love for both Mal and The Darkling, there’s now also Sturmhond, a dashing privateer with a careless grin and hidden agenda. I can’t help it, I have a serious weakness for men who have a gift for witty banter. Lets add him to my list of fictional boyfriends (which I know think is well over 50)!

The ending! What a cliff hanger! I currently suffering from a book hangover and I seriously need to my hands on the next book as soon as possible. I’m normally quite good at guessing these things but that totally surprised me and had me screaming at the book itself!

If you like novels such as ‘Red Queen’ or ‘The Throne of Glass’ Series then this series will be right up your street. It’s packed full of surprises and brilliant characters who you’ll instantly fall in love with. Overall, I give this book 5/5 stars and I highly recommend you pick up this series if you have done so already!

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