Rating: 4/5 
 ***Minor spoilers*** 
 Alina Starkov lives in a world where there are humans and Grisha. The Grisha are "witches" of a sort, who have different types of powers such as manipulating fire or healing wounds. Alina and her best friend, Mal, were both tested for being Grisha when they were younger but were both deemed human. However, when Alina and Mal must cross the Shadow Fold, they are attacked by volcra, creatures of darkness, and Mal is gravely injured. Alina panics and unleashes a power she didn't know she had - a power nobody has believed in for a long time. 
 I really enjoyed this book! I've been meaning to read it for a super long time but never got around to it, and I'm glad I decided to buy it because it's one of those books I want to have around for a long time. I'm a sucker for a good fantasy book and this one didn't disappoint at all. I normally don't enjoy really complicated book universes but this one was explained really well and it was easy to understand. 
 I loved the protagonist, Alina, and how genuine she seemed. I thought she was a strong female lead but at the same time she still acted like a human being and made mistakes. I didn't find her stupid or that she made really terrible decisions like I sometimes do with other fantasy series. While I loved Alina, I wasn't too fond of Mal. He was one of those hot and cold type characters that could go from being nice to being really rude. I thought the Darkling was a good addition to the story though. (view spoiler)[ He was a fun villain! (hide spoiler)] 
 I usually find myself disliking books where the main character spends a long time training for something (such as in Heir of Fire) but in this book I didn't mind too much. I found the pacing really good, and there was enough going on at any time to distract me from the fact that Alina spent so much time training. 
 Overall, this was a great start to the series with a good world and good pacing. If you're into fantasy this is definitely a series you need to pick up, you won't regret it. Hopefully I'll be able to buy the second book in the series sometime soon.