This was an impulse buy for me. I wasn't sure if I was going to like it or not, especially when I started stumbling over all the Russian or Russian-inspired names and words. However, it turned out to be a surprisingly easy and quick read and I enjoyed it.

Alina and her best friend Mal are orphaned at an early age by the Border Wars. Peasants, they are sent to be raised on a duke's estate, where they will be educated and taught a trade. When their training is finished, they join the army - Alina as a mapmaker and Mal as a scout. The two are still best friends and are inseparable, though Alina's feelings are definitely no longer platonic. Alina's life is pretty normal - until the fateful day her troop enters the notorious Shadow Fold.

I don't really know how to describe the Fold except to quote Alina: "At first, it was like drifting into a thick cloud of smoke, but there was no heat, no smell of fire. Sounds seemed to dampen and the world became still...The living world had disappeared. Darkness fell around us, black, weightless, and absolute. We were in the Fold." They are not the only ones in the Fold - so are deadly monsters called volcra, which travel in flocks and attack Alina and her companions. It is during this attack that Mal is injured and Alina attacks - and everything changes permanently for her. Alina's hidden power is awakened by the shock of the attack and she is knocked unconscious.

When Alina awakens, she is taken to see the powerful - even infamous - Darkling, the most powerful Grisha (mage or spellcaster) in the land. He examines Alina and she is found to be a Grisha as well. Alina is forced to leave the army, Mal (who is recovering), and everything else she knows, and go to the Little Palace, where she will be trained to use her powers. It becomes soon apparent that the Darkling has a special interest in Alina, though she is not sure if it is personal or if it's due to her powers. Alina is no ordinary Grisha - she is a Sun Summoner, a very powerful Grisha who may be able to destroy the Shadow Fold once and for all. Unless, of course, someone else has a better use for her powers - or wants her dead before she can master them.

I definitely plan to buy "Siege and Storm," which is the second volume. I liked Alina and enjoyed her story. It's also nice to see something other than the same old Western European/Sword & Sorcery stuff. This is the first fantasy world I can remember with a Russian theme. It's very refreshing.