Participating in Blog Tours gernaly make me utterly excited. But… when I was asked to join the Siege and Storm Blog Tour I was actually gasping for air.. and then.. when Leigh send over the Guest Post I was freaking out about this epicnesss!
(I kind of like to exaggerate in case you didn’t know.. but in this case it’s the truth! .. )
Today, we have some amazing Character Introductions for you which will get people excited who haven’t read Shadow and Bone yet (seriously?) and also for those who are such epic fans like us!!
THE DARKLING
Name: The Darkling
True name: Unknown. For now.
Most frequently found wearing: Black and only black
Occupation: Leader of the Second Army
Skills: Summoning darkness to blind his enemies, using darkness to slice his enemies in half (the Cut), generally doing bad things to his enemies. He’s also a living amplifier—his power can be used to strengthen the power of other Grisha.
Likes: Giving orders.
Dislikes: Taking orders.
Inspired by Flagg, Raistlin, Jareth the Goblin King
Frequent fancasts: Sean O’Pry, Ezra Miller, Ian Somerhalder, Shiloh Fernandez
“The problem with wanting is that it makes us weak.”
Comment from Leigh Bardugo
The biggest challenge in writing the Darkling is that he reveals so little of himself. I have to walk a line between the information he chooses to disclose, and the secrets people like Alina guess at based on his behavior. But I also love writing him for the very same reasons: He’s a creature of extraordinary power and nearly perfect control. I like trying to make the reader wonder which cracks in that control are real and which are feigned.
Photo Credit, image above: Ardawling
Photo Credit left: Kyra Photo Credit middle: Irene Koh of – Photo Credit right Cheri Nowak
ZOYA
Name: Zoya Nazyalensky
Most frequently found wearing: Blue and silver
Line of Work: Squaller (Etherealnik)
Skills: The ability to raise or lower the pressure in the air to create and direct currents and storms
Likes: Being the best
Dislikes: Upstart peasants
Frequent Fancasts: Katie McGrath, Megan Fox, Phoebe Tonkin
“I find the lower classes have a certain rough appeal.”
Comment from Leigh Bardugo
It would be easy to hate Zoya. She’s snide and snobby and too hung up on status. But I like her because she doesn’t play nice. She isn’t interested in accommodating people or putting herself out for anyone. Also, her loyalties are based on power and principle, not affection. Zoya starts out as a typical mean girl, but nothing in Ravka is ever quite what it seems.
Photo Credit above: Chantalle
Photo Credit left: Cassie – Photo Credit middle: Yoonona
BAGHRA
Name: Baghra
Most Frequently found wearing: a kefta of indeterminate color
Line of Work: Teacher at the Little Palace
Skills: Baghra is an amplifier of extraordinary power, the nature of her specific Grisha gift has long been forgotten
Likes: A warm stove, whacking students with her stick
Dislikes: The cold, whiners
Frequent Fancasts: Helena Bonham Carter, Judi Dench, Meryl Streep
“And there’s nothing wrong with being a lizard either. Unless you were born to be a hawk.”
Comment from Leigh Bardugo
I always imagined Baghra as a particularly vicious ballet teacher. Better than anyone, she knows what the stakes are when it comes to war and she drives the Grisha relentlessly in their training. She can be a challenge to write because I’m always tempted to soften her, but I believe her moments of kindness or even seeming kindness should be hard won.
Photo Credit above: Kyra
Photo Credit: Yoonona
Uhm… speechless much ? I certainly am! Look all all this fanart bur having read these books I know why they inspire such amazing fangirlism
Siege and Storm by Leigh Bardugo
Series: The Grisha #2
Published by Henry Holt and Co. on June 4th 2013
Genres: Fantasy, Young Adult
Source: Publisher
amazon • Goodreads
Darkness never dies.
Hunted across the True Sea, haunted by the lives she took on the Fold, Alina must try to make a life with Mal in an unfamiliar land, all while keeping her identity as the Sun Summoner a secret. But she can’t outrun her past or her destiny for long.
The Darkling has emerged from the Shadow Fold with a terrifying new power and a dangerous plan that will test the very boundaries of the natural world. With the help of a notorious privateer, Alina returns to the country she abandoned, determined to fight the forces gathering against Ravka. But as her power grows, Alina slips deeper into the Darkling’s game of forbidden magic, and farther away from Mal. Somehow, she will have to choose between her country, her power, and the love she always thought would guide her–or risk losing everything to the oncoming storm.
Find Leigh Bardugo
Siege and Storm Blog Tour Schedule
Official Blog Tour Page at MacTeen Books
- Monday 5/20 Novel Sounds
- Tuesday 5/21 Supernatural Snark
- Wednesday 5/22 Bewitched Bookworms
- Thursday 5/23 YA Sisterhood
- Friday 5/24 Cuddlebuggery
- Saturday 5/25 BookYA Review
- Sunday 5/26 YA Romantics
- Monday 5/27 Icey Books
- Tuesday 5/28 Tales of a Ravenous Reader
- Wednesday 5/29 The Book Monsters
- Thursday 5/30 Two Chicks on Books
- Friday 5/31 Birth of a New Witch
- Saturday 6/1 Into the Hall of Books
- Sunday 6/2 Fic Fare
- Monday 6/3 Mundie Moms
- Tuesday 6/4 Moonlight Book Reviews
Siege and Storm Trailer
Links and Info
- Leigh Bardugo will be on tour in June as part of the Fierce Reads Tour. Get all the info/dates
- Siege and Storm is featured in our Spring 2013 Fierce Reads Book Trailer:
- Listen and download Leigh Bardugo’s song, “Winter Prayer”. Yes, we said SONG!
- Pre-order a copy of Siege and Storm (hardcover or e-book), submit your receipt, and we’ll send you a specially-branded nail polish! Details:
- Download and read for FREE the first five chapters of Siege and Storm on your e-reader:
- Become a fan of The Grisha Trilogy on Facebook:
- -The fan page includes chapter excerpts, polls, and giveaways!
- Follow Leigh Bardugo on Twitter:
- Follow Leigh on Tumblr
Giveaway
And now, thanks to Macmillan I have an awesome Giveaway for you guys! One lucky one can win a Paperback copy of Shadow and Bon plus a shiny Hardcover of Siege and Storm. Giveaway is US/CAN only. Just enter the Rafflecopter below and Good Luck!!
Much Darkling Love,
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Baghra is awesome. This series is full of such dynamic and interesting characters.
Emily Ward recently posted..Release Day: Hope’s Reign
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I haven’t read Shadow and Bone yet, but my students keep urging me to, so this might be the perfect time to get started! Thanks for the giveaway.
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Oh, and I love this line about Zoya: “Zoya starts out as a typical mean girl, but nothing in Ravka is ever quite what it seems.” Just delicious and mysterious!
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Haven’t read this series yet but they all seem to be a bit rough.
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I love how they were all unique. Thanks for the giveaway.
Itara @ My Midnight Fantasies recently posted..Review and Author Interview: Holding On and Letting Go (The Ties That Bind Us # 1)
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[…] third blog tour stop: Bewitched Bookworms. Go there to enter to win a paperback copy of Shadow and Bone and a Hardcover copy of the […]
You have no idea how excited I am for Siege and Storm. As always, I love finding out anything about the Darkling (though do like Mal much more…), but am particularly interested in Zoya, especially Leigh’s comment that nothing is what it seems.
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LOVE THIS POST SO MUCH *huggles*
But that’s not quite how I pictured Darkling…in my mind, he’s a bit older, a bit more worn and a lot more dangerous looking. He’s got to be a hard character to write, since he is so mysterious and yet knows so much.
Mary @ BookSwarm recently posted..Waiting on…MAGIC RISES by Ilona Andrews
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I loved Shadow and Bone, and I can’t wait for Siege and Storm. Thanks for the giveaway!
Vincent recently posted..Photo
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I love Leigh’s comments about the characters! I learned what she thinks about them and a little about her writing process! Thanks for this amazing post and giveaway! I would love to win!
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I learned that Megan Fox would definitely make a good Zoya & that I’m also torn between Meryl Streep & Helena Bonham-Carter to play Baghra, lol.
Heather C. recently posted..Review and Giveaway: In the Shadow of Blackbirds by Cat Winters
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This series kicks so much booty!
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Yay, I loved this post! Seeing the character profiles like this was so much fun, and the commentary from Leigh Bardugo was a nice bonus. I heart Baghra! I’m getting SO excited for this book!!!!
Kelley (Another Novel Read) recently posted..Let’s Talk: Made-Up Cuss Words in Fiction
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LOVE THIS POST!!!!! Even after everything that’s happened with the Darkling, I still love him. He’s just so fascinating, I want to spend all my time trying to figure him out, and that both excited and frustrates me because I know even if I do dedicate all that time, I will still never have the answers. So brilliant:)
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I loved Shadow and Bone and love seeing characetrs imagined in flesh. Great post!
Melissa’s Eclectic Bookshelf recently posted..Sky on Fire Author, Emmy Laybourne, Talks Character Development (Plus Giveaway)
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I Have not read the series yet but the characters all seem interesting.
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Zoya Looks to be an amazing character and of course Love love love the darkling!
Josie recently posted..Incarceron by Catherine Fisher
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Ya know I won book one from ya’ll and I really need to read it. Holy Guest Posts..i would have been dancing too, wonderful post and it totally has me wanting to read them both..thanks!
kimbacaffeinate recently posted..Bella Andre Summer of Love Beach Bag Giveaway!
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Ohhhh anything about Siege and Storm just makes me so happy!!! It was SUCH an amazing book 😀
Brittany @ The Book Addict’s Guide recently posted..Gayle Forman Read Along: Sign-Ups!!
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Someday, I want to cosplay as Zoya. She’s such an awesome mean girl 🙂
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It’s always kind of fun to know that how you picture a character is the same as the author or other readers, and that’s how it is with Baghra for me.
So excited for Siege and Storm!
magan bagan recently posted..Waiting on Wednesday: The Coldest Girl in Coldtown
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Loved this first can’t wait for the second!
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Thanks so much for this giveaway! Really enjoyed the character profiles. 😀 Leigh does a VERY good job keeping us guessing about the Darkling, which I love and hate at the same time, haha.
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Thanks for the giveaway! It was interesting to learn what Leigh thought about each character in comparison to what I thought. 🙂
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I love how she finds it hard to reveal some of Darkling’s character without giving away too much. I bet that’s so difficult!
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I have been dying to get my hands on a paperback copy of this amazing book! I just know Mal’s letter is going to shatter my heart into a thousand tiny little unrecognizable pieces. I am so anxious to to read more about Alina’s incredible story. The book sucks you in and when you reach the final period on the last page you’re at a loss as what to do next. You crave more and now finally we have the opportunity to have more of this amazing story and complex characters.
Ashley Nicole recently posted..@keeoone Something you don’t see…
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I haven’t read this series, but have been meaning to pick it up. I have heard so many great reviews about these books.
Marleigh recently posted..Long Time Gone
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This made me really excited: The Darkling…True name: Unknown. For now. 🙂 Also, I can totally see Baghra as a ballet teacher, of the worst kind! Love it! Great insight!
Candice (thecrjreviews) recently posted..review – Wait for You
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like the pics for the characters
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I haven’t read the book yet, so reading the description of the characters was very interesting. Can’t wait to read the series!
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Hellooo, Darkling.. Hihi.
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I love the Darkling. I hope eventually we get to see more layers of him. Not that he isn’t already a complex character, but I wonder if he’s more than just evil.
Alison (@AlisonCanRead) recently posted..If I Should Die by Amy Plum
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Hmm… the Darkling is a little more commercialized than I thought? I mean, YUM, but I just had a different vision of the Darkling. Like, COMPLETELY different vision. But that’s okay! To each their own 😀
Thank you!
Alyssa Susanna recently posted..Swoon Thursday (#19): Golden by Jessi Kirby
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Sadly I haven’t gotten to read Shadow & Bone yet. I had it rented from the library a few times but at the time I had over 25 book out and it was only a week rental & I forgot to read it before it was due back (its been reserved every since *sigh*)
This would be an awesome contest to win! I’v been dying to read these!
Dayna recently posted..Lavender Garden by Lucinda Riley ARC – Dayna
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Ughghghgh The Darkling does things to me
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I thought all the characters sounded quite interesting (:
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I haven’t started the series yet but I have Shadow and Bone sitting on my night table rearing to go. I definitely have to read it before June 4th to be ready for the Siege and Storm release.
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I learned that Zoya has really amazing powers (like Storm from X-men). Controlling the weather would be a really neat ability!
Bookish in a Box recently posted..Review of Jellicoe Road
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Wow, I am very honored to have my work chosen for the character profile. S&S and spectacular looking forward to R&R!!!
Kira recently posted..mysydneysage:
It hurts, but I can bear it. Because I am a…
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I love seeing little details of characters’ lives like this. It adds layers to them that aren’t always found in the canon material, or at least not always so readily available.
Bibliotropic recently posted..Women of Genre Fiction Reading Challenge
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I actually avoided the character info because I haven’t gotten the chance to read these books yet, which is why I’d love to win them 🙂
Thanks for the giveaway!
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Learning that Katie McGrath was the fancast….That pleasantly surprised me because it it so fitting!
WanderlustBooks recently posted..Project Jamie
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I loved taking a better look at Baghra’s character. The Darkling is so mysterious… I’d envisioned him a little more dark/brooding than the first picture group shows, but I suppose the presence in the way he was acting would make a difference, too. Thanks for the giveaway! ^.^
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I want more Darkling on the next book *w*!! Only a week away!
Selene recently posted..sarahreesbrennan:
blonde-lady-with-the-dragons:
sarahreesbrenna…
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Thank you so much for doing this giveaway…the first book was amazing!
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Thanks for the awesome giveaway! I learned more about my favorite character the Darkling. <3
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Thanks for the awesome giveaway, and for hosting this blog tour stop!
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I loved Shadow and Bone. The characters were awesome. Especiallt the Darkling and Genya! Thanks for the giveaway!
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THX FOR GIVEAWAY _ LEARNED MORE ABT THE DARKLING!!!
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Reafirmed my likeness for Helena Bonham as Bahra! Just picture her, it would be awesome.
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I learned that its legit The Darkling is hotter than the sun.
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I find it all interesting! It is always a favorite thing for me to read an authors perspective on their characters. It puts a new spin on my own thoughts about them. And it also helps me dig deeper into the story, so I can find out the secrets of them. I like that she said you never really know if the Darkling’s shows of weakness are to his benefit, or completely accidental. I really am so excited about this second book. Thanks so much for the giveaway!
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OMG Danny you must be so happy with this fantastic guest post sent to you by Leigh, this is AWESOME! I’m yet to see a guest post prior to this one with this much detail and in depth look into her characters, I absolutely loved it and wish that she had written more on other characters LOL
I learnt so much about the characters, just helps me picture what they are more like and not just my POV whilst reading the book, but how Leigh wrote them to be 😀
Thanks for the generous giveaway too 🙂
Angelica @ Paperback Princess recently posted..Blitz ~ Pods by Michelle Pickett {Giveaway}
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I love getting more insight into the Darkling, I liked that Leigh mentioned that he’s all about control. And he choses what he wants others to see
Thanks for the chance!
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It’s really a cool and helpful piece of info. I am satisfied that you simply shared this helpful information with us.
Please stay us informed like this. Thanks for sharing.
Columbus recently posted..Columbus
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[…] third blog tour stop: Bewitched Bookworms. Go there to enter to win a paperback copy of Shadow and Bone and a Hardcover copy of the […]