The debut novel by Lee Bardugo, author of the bestsellers "The Six Ravens" and "The Corrupt Kingdom". The book that began the story of the Grisha, people with magical abilities. The book was included in the New York Times and Los Angeles Times bestseller lists; the rights to its film adaptation were acquired by producer David Heyman, the man who made the Harry Potter films. About what? Alina Starkova is a seventeen—year-old orphan girl who was sent to war in the border area. She knows that she might not survive her first fight. But Mal is more precious to her than her life — her only friend, whom she is afraid of losing. When they are attacked by Volcr monsters, hostile creatures of darkness, Alina suddenly discovers a power she did not know she had. Alina's magic is so strong that it becomes clear that she is capable of saving the whole country. Alina is taken to the royal palace, where she will be trained as one of the Grisha, representatives of the elite community of magicians led by the mysterious Darkling. She will have to face the secrets of Grisha... and her own heart. For whom? For fans of the Grisha world and the "Six Ravens" dilogy, as well as for all those who love truly fascinating and high-quality teen fantasy. Why is it worth reading? Because of the atmosphere — according to the writer herself, when working on the creation of the novel, she was inspired by the images of tsarist Russia. To describe a country where we can guess familiar features, Lee Bardugo immersed herself in the study of Russian history and folklore for two months — and was very passionate about this topic. Because of the plot, Bardugo skillfully and fascinatingly crosses the destinies of individuals and the destinies of entire nations; the characters' lives are full of dangers, unexpected encounters, strong emotions, love, hate, risky actions and dizzying temptations.