An Introduction to the Grishaverse

Happy Thursday everyone!

I am back with a special blog post that I have been wanting to write for a little bit of time. If you know a few things about the book community, or if you have been on Netflix in the past few months, you may have heard about Shadow and Bone or the Grishaverse.

I need to start this post by telling you that the grishaverse holds a very special place in my heart. If you have read my post about how school ruined reading for me, you will know that for many years, it was hard for me to read books for myself. You will also know that about three years ago, one book changed it all: Six of Crows by Leigh Bardugo. Without this book, I am not sure that I would be here today, writing my blog, having a bookstagram account, or even be applying to work in publishing.

Leigh Bardugo's books also helped me find some amazing bookish friends that I might not kow today had these books not turned me into a reader.

If you have seen the show, or if you keep seeing it pop up online, you might wonder 'what the fuss is this series all about?'

Or you might think, 'well, there are so many books, how do I know where to start?'

Well, this blog post is here for you. I will tell you about the different books, the best order to read them, and what to expect from them all.

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The OG: The Grisha Trilogy

It might be a bit simple, but the best way to start is to read the Grisha trilogy, meaning Shadow and Bone, Siege and Storm and Ruin and Rising. If you have seen the Netflix show, it follows the first book Shadow and Bone, which tells the story of Alina, the Sun-Summoner.

In this trilogy, Alina is a young girl who works for the Ravkan army as a cartographer. During the crossing of the fold, a darkness that splits her country in two, she discovers that she is a grisha - meaning someone with speical abilities - and can summon light, a power believed to be able to destroy the fold. From common girl to her country's best hope, she navigates politics, dangers and her newfound powers.

The entire series is told from Alina's perspective in first person. I will admit that it was not the first Grisha book that I read, and that the writing is not the best. The story is still very entertaining, and Leigh Bardugo does a great job at building a believable world. The characters are amazing, and you can see Leigh Bardugo's evolution as the books go on.

Starting with these books will allow you to have a better understanding of the world and will help you when reading the other books. Because I started with Six of Crows, a duology that takes place later on, there are some things that I missed while reading because I did not have the whole picture.

Not only that, but the difference between the Grisha trilogy and the other books in teerms of writing is striking enough that if you start with anything else, reading the original trilogy will feel a bit disappointing.

The Golden Age: The Six of Crows duology

Once again, if you have seen the Netflix show, you may know some of the characters from the Six of Crows duology: Inej, Kaz, Nina and Jesper. This is, without a doubt, one of the most beloved books in the whole of the book community, and my personal favourite.

Six of Crows follows six teenager who attempt to break into the most secured place in the world to steal something. Think of it as a teenage version of Ocean's 8, but with magic.

While Shadow and Bone follows the trope of the chosen one, with characters who are willing to do anything for their countries, Six of Crows is more about self-gain and morally grey characters. It is a third person narrative which follows multiple points of view, which means that you easily get attached to the characters. After all, once you understand them, how can you not like them? They are all incredibly well-crafted, and the story is so well-written! Once you get into the book, it is so hard to stop, and the many twist are not predictable to the point hat it ruins the story.

Overall, the hype is so well deserved, and it is one of the best Young Adult fantasy books I have read.

The duology is a nice break from the Grisha trilogy, and the two are very different, but will help you build a better understanding of the world. It also has some great easter eggs if you have read Shadow and Bone!

The Underrated one: The King of Scars duology

Even if you have seen the show, you will need to have read the books to know what the story is about.

This duology follows Nina after the events of Six of Crows as well as Nikolai - my all-time favourite character in the series. It is filled with politics and I will admit that it is probably the most slow-paced book of the entires series.

The reason why I call this duology underrated is because it seems like people did not enjoy this one as much as the others. In my opinion, it has to do with teh fact that it is slow-paced. The first five books can be read very quicly because they are fast-paced. A lot of things happen, and there are no real down-time. This duology is much more about politics and strategy. Because of that, there is not a lot of action throughout the books. That does not mena, however, that they are not worth reading.

The last book in particular is the one place where all of the characters are present at the same time, and it truly feels like an ending (Leigh Bardugo admitted that she has no plan to write a new instalment for now).

I understand the frustration that many have felt because of the change of pace and tone. However, in my opinion, it really shows Leigh Bardugo's growth as a writer, and people are quick to judge change.

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Overall, what this list shows is that the grisha books can be read in order of publication, which makes it pretty easy to know where to start - and yes, this is a subtle call out of Cassandra Clares books and their impossible order.

I hope that if you have not read the books, you feel motivated to pick them up soon! And if you have, I hope that you agree with this post. If not, feel free to say so in the comments or send me a message on Instagram!

If you have read the Grishaverse novels, which one was your favourite? And did you read them in this order?

Until next time xx