Wonder Woman: Warbringer by Leigh Bardugo
My rating: 3 of 5 stars

She hated hearing her sisters' names, her mother's name, on his lips. Diana raised a brow. "A wise warrior learns from her mistakes." She adjusted her stance. "And you're forgetting who taught me to fight.”

 I'm not quite sure where to start, I guess I should first let you know that I don't read a lot of contemporary, fantasy has always appealed more to me than almost any other genre. That said, when this book first came out I was frantic to get it and when I finally got a copy I must admit I was very excited, I had such high hopes for it, unfortunately it just wasn't my cup of tea.

 The book's narration is split in two, on one side is Diana, my favourite Amazon; however, she is not Wonder Woman yet, this incarnation of her is still a girl, gorgeous and strong and bright but a little insecure, struggling to find her place among her sisters and come to terms with her own existence on Themyscira, the island of the Amazons. On the other side is Alia, the last of the Warbringers, an ancient line of cursed woman destined to bring conflict and war into the world, the first of which was Helen, as in Helen of Troy. The two girls join forces and try to reach a magical spring which will clean Alia of her curse and stop World War Three before it begins.

 The thing is, I was so excited for this book I failed to read the description first and so the setting caught me completely by surprise, because of course this book is basically Contemporary with Fantasy elements. I found myself disappointed from the beginning almost, when I realized that the beautiful island of Themyscira and the world of the Amazons wasn’t going to be explored anymore than as backdrop for the first few chapters, while the rest of the story progressed in Alia’s world, surrounded by Alia’s friends and obnoxious brother Jason.

 And the thing is, I didn’t like Alia very much, she felt very basic and her friends, though funny, failed to reach the category of epic in my mind, unlike in Bardugo’s previous Fantasy works. I should mention though that I loved Diana but felt like her role was relegated to the back and that didn’t sit very well with me.

 Last but not least, I really wished the author hadn’t given Diana a love interest, which was very obvious and more than a bit tedious (even with how everything turned out in the end). All things in consideration, beyond the occasional epic quote, Amazon ass kicking and delightfully feminist air the novel has, the result felt kind of plain and very honestly, a little bit boring.

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Shadow and Bone by Leigh Bardugo
My rating: 3 of 5 stars

“I missed you every hour. And you know what the worst part was? It caught me completely by surprise. I'd catch myself just walking around to find you, not for any reason, just out of habit, because I'd seen something that I wanted to tell you about or because I wanted to hear your voice.”

 I finished this book weeks ago, and yet my little bookish heart is still confused about it. On one hand, I wanted to love this, I mean it's Leigh Bardugo, I swear by Six of Crows. Then there's the whole Russian inspired setting that always (and I mean it) catches my attention. But I think that in the end, I liked the concept behind the book more than the actual material.

“This was the truth behind the handsome face and the miraculous powers, the truth that was the dead and empty space between the stars, a wasteland peopled by frightened monsters.”

 Alina Starkov is an orphan, she has known Mal (her best friend and crush) her entire life, and he is without a doubt the most important person in her life. When an accident occurs it is revealed that she has a very special skill which she had been unknowingly repressing since she was a child. Because of this she is sent to the Little Palace, a place where Grisha (people with abilities such as hers) train as soldiers under the command of a man known as The Darkling. Things happen and then she's running for her life.

 As I mentioned before I love Leigh Bardugo's writing, and though I was aware that this, beign the first book she wrote might not have the same quality as her newest work, I was still drawn to it. However though while I was reading it I was very invested in the story, after I finished the book I must admit it felt kind of hollow. Alina's characterization seemed a little flat and while I wanted (I really did) to love Mal, I ended up rooting for The Darkling. No surprise though, the bad guy always gets me (see Holland from A Darker Shade of Magic for example). I wouldn't say it was a disappointement because it wasn't but I'm still debating on reading the next one or not. I guess we'll see.

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Six of Crows by Leigh Bardugo
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

 "They would learn to fear her, and they would know her by her name. The heart is an arrow. It demands aim to land true."

 I cannot express in words how much I love this book, it is not only one of the best I've read this year, but in the entire time I've been a reader. I have to admit I was a bit scared to get into this at first, it is definitely complex, with six different point of views and quite a plot, but it turned out to be such a rewarding experience.

 The story revolves around a group of six outcasts who land an unbelievable job to infiltrate a prison which if they complete successfully will make them rich beond their dreams. The characters are so beautifully crafted that this book sucks you right in, their intentions and the way they move around each other makes the story compelling, and has you turning pages the the speed of light just to know what happens next. The universe is the same as in The Grisha Triglogy but clearly Bardugo has come a long way as an author, her writing is now much more experienced.

 This book really had everything for me, a heist, complex characters, a fast paced plot, representation, even romace (never obstructing the plot though) and a handful of anti heroes. My favourite one for sure is Inej, a girl who was sold as a slave and who has become the greatest spy in the city, the horrors she has been through and her journey towards freedom and empowerment were, at least for me, the best part of the story.

 I highly recommend this one, it really one of the best YA novels that has reached my hands.

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  No puedo expresar con palabras lo mucho que amo este libro, no es sólo uno de los mejores que he leído este año, pero uno de los mejores que he leído en el tiempo que llevo como lectora. Tengo que admitir que estaba un poco asustada de éste en un principio, es definitivamente complejo, con seis diferentes puntos de vista y una trama muy rápida, pero resultó en una experiencia muy gratificante.

 La historia da vueltas en torno a un grupo de seis "marginados" los cuales adquieren la increíble tarea de infiltrar una prisión, la cual de resultar con éxito los hará ricos más allá de sus sueños. Los personajes está tan bellamnte construídos que el libro te atrapará al instante, sus intenciones y la manera en que se mueven alrededor unos de otros vuelve la historia irresistible, y te mantiene pasando las páginas a la velocidad de la luz sólo para saber que ocurrirá después. El universo es el mismo de The Grisha Trilogy pero obviamente Bardugo ha avanzado como autora, su escritura es mucho más experimentada ahora.

 Este libro lo tuvo todo para mi gusto, un robo, personajes complejos, una trama rápida, representación, incluso romance (aunque nunca obstruyendo la trama) y un puñado de anti heroes. Mi favorita por lejos es Inej, una chica que fué vendida como esclava y se ha convertido en la espía más grande de la ciudad, los horrores por los que ha pasado y su viaje hacia la libertad y el empoderamiento fueron para mí al menos, la mejor parte de la historia.

 Recomiendo éste libro altamente, es de verdad una de las mejores novelas YA que han llegado a mis manos.


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