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Grishaverse
The Lives of Saints
Dive into the epic world of international bestselling author Leigh Bardugo with this beautifully illustrated replica of The Lives of Saints, the Istorii Sankt’ya, featuring tales of saints drawn from the beloved novels and beyond. Out of the pages of the Shadow and Bone trilogy, from the hands of Alina Starkov to yours, the Istorii Sankt’ya is a magical keepsake from the Grishaverse.
These tales include miracles and martyrdoms from familiar saints like Sankta Lizabeta of the Roses and Sankt Ilya in Chains, to the strange and obscure stories of Sankta Ursula, Sankta Maradi, and the Starless Saint.
This beautiful collection includes stunning full-color illustrations of each story.
Enter the world of the Grishaverse and Shadow and Bone, soon to be a Netflix original series!
These tales include miracles and martyrdoms from familiar saints like Sankta Lizabeta of the Roses and Sankt Ilya in Chains, to the strange and obscure stories of Sankta Ursula, Sankta Maradi, and the Starless Saint.
This beautiful collection includes stunning full-color illustrations of each story.
Enter the world of the Grishaverse and Shadow and Bone, soon to be a Netflix original series!
128 pages, Hardcover
First published October 6, 2020
About the author
Leigh Bardugo
77 books173k followersLeigh Bardugo is the #1 New York Times bestselling author of Ninth House and the creator of the Grishaverse (now a Netflix original series) which spans the Shadow and Bone trilogy, the Six of Crows duology, the King of Scars duology—and much more. Her short fiction has appeared in multiple anthologies including The Best American Science Fiction and Fantasy. She lives in Los Angeles and is an associate fellow of Pauli Murray College at Yale University. For information on new releases and appearances, sign up for her newsletter.
She would be delighted if you visited her at LeighBardugo.com and fairly giddy if you liked her selfies on Instagram.
She would be delighted if you visited her at LeighBardugo.com and fairly giddy if you liked her selfies on Instagram.
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 3,718 reviews
January 20, 2022
A common belief held by many people, formerly myself included, is that when people are very beautiful they are often not that interesting. Because they are immediately somewhat interesting due to being fun to look at, they did not need to develop much beyond that.
That is not how I feel about people, but it is how I feel about this book.
This is one of the most crazy beautiful books I have ever held in my hands. Every turned page was like...gasp! Wow! Paparazzi, get over here!
But the writing...left something to be desired.
Have you ever read a book that fails so completely to get you into it that you can't really focus throughout?
This is a very short book and it took me hours to read it, for that reason alone.
You do have to hand it to the Grishaverse, though. Not many other series could write a complete theological text with examples of saints from each fictional country in said fictional universe.
That's some damn good worldbuilding.
Bottom line: They can't all be hits! And if this book being slightly worse gets Ninth House 2 finished even days earlier, then so be it.
-----------------
pre-review
i've probably said this before but i don't care. i'll scream it from the rooftops.
nobody is doing it like leigh bardugo.
review to come / 3 stars
-----------------
i just received this as a gift and threw the horrible half dust jacket away immediately.
merry christmas to all
clear ur sh*t book 56
quest 24: a book in a series
-----------------
tbr review
i am forced to assume that this extremely exciting book is this ugly solely to teach me not to judge books by their covers
That is not how I feel about people, but it is how I feel about this book.
This is one of the most crazy beautiful books I have ever held in my hands. Every turned page was like...gasp! Wow! Paparazzi, get over here!
But the writing...left something to be desired.
Have you ever read a book that fails so completely to get you into it that you can't really focus throughout?
This is a very short book and it took me hours to read it, for that reason alone.
You do have to hand it to the Grishaverse, though. Not many other series could write a complete theological text with examples of saints from each fictional country in said fictional universe.
That's some damn good worldbuilding.
Bottom line: They can't all be hits! And if this book being slightly worse gets Ninth House 2 finished even days earlier, then so be it.
-----------------
pre-review
i've probably said this before but i don't care. i'll scream it from the rooftops.
nobody is doing it like leigh bardugo.
review to come / 3 stars
-----------------
i just received this as a gift and threw the horrible half dust jacket away immediately.
merry christmas to all
clear ur sh*t book 56
quest 24: a book in a series
-----------------
tbr review
i am forced to assume that this extremely exciting book is this ugly solely to teach me not to judge books by their covers
October 23, 2020
charming, magical, inspired, with just the right amount of darkness.
this is a wonderful companion book to a brilliant world with phenomenal characters and captivating stories.
i am such a believer.
favourite stories - sankta vasilka, sankt valentin, sankt mattheus, and the starless saint (obviously)
↠ 4.5 stars, overall
___________________________________
saints included (*tag yourself - im sankt vladimir lol):
sankta margaretha | patron saint of thieves and lost children
sankta anastasia | patron saint of the sick
sankt kho | patron saint of good intentions
sankta neyar | patron saint of blacksmiths
sankt juris | patron saint of soldiers
sankta vasilka | patron saint of unwed women
sankt nikolai | patron saint of sailors and lost causes
sankta lizabeta | patron saint of gardeners
sankta maradi | patron saint of impossible love
sankt demyan | patron saint of the newly dead
sankta marya | patron saint of those who are far from home
sankt emerens | patron saint of brewers
sankt vladimir | patron saint of the drowned and of unlikely achievement
sankt grigori | patron saint of doctors and musicians
sankt valentin | patron saint of snake charmers and the lonely
sankt petyr | patron saint of archers
sankta yeryin | patron saint of hospitality
sankt feliks | patron saint of horticulture
sankt lukin | patron saint of politicians
sankta magda | patron saint of abandoned women and bakers
sankt egmond | patron saint of architects
sankt ilya | patron saint of unlikely cures
sankta ursula | patron saint of those lost at sea
sankt matteus | patron saint of those who love and care for animals
sankt dimitri | patron saint of scholars
sankt gerasim | patron saint of artists
sankta alina | patron saint of orphans and those with undiscovered gifts
the starless saint | patron saint of those who seek salvation in the dark
saint of the book | patron saint of storytellers
this is a wonderful companion book to a brilliant world with phenomenal characters and captivating stories.
i am such a believer.
favourite stories - sankta vasilka, sankt valentin, sankt mattheus, and the starless saint (obviously)
↠ 4.5 stars, overall
___________________________________
saints included (*tag yourself - im sankt vladimir lol):
sankta margaretha | patron saint of thieves and lost children
sankta anastasia | patron saint of the sick
sankt kho | patron saint of good intentions
sankta neyar | patron saint of blacksmiths
sankt juris | patron saint of soldiers
sankta vasilka | patron saint of unwed women
sankt nikolai | patron saint of sailors and lost causes
sankta lizabeta | patron saint of gardeners
sankta maradi | patron saint of impossible love
sankt demyan | patron saint of the newly dead
sankta marya | patron saint of those who are far from home
sankt emerens | patron saint of brewers
sankt vladimir | patron saint of the drowned and of unlikely achievement
sankt grigori | patron saint of doctors and musicians
sankt valentin | patron saint of snake charmers and the lonely
sankt petyr | patron saint of archers
sankta yeryin | patron saint of hospitality
sankt feliks | patron saint of horticulture
sankt lukin | patron saint of politicians
sankta magda | patron saint of abandoned women and bakers
sankt egmond | patron saint of architects
sankt ilya | patron saint of unlikely cures
sankta ursula | patron saint of those lost at sea
sankt matteus | patron saint of those who love and care for animals
sankt dimitri | patron saint of scholars
sankt gerasim | patron saint of artists
sankta alina | patron saint of orphans and those with undiscovered gifts
the starless saint | patron saint of those who seek salvation in the dark
saint of the book | patron saint of storytellers
Shelved as 'maybe'
December 16, 2020yes I hate the Grisha trilogy yes I will still be reading this weird ugly half blue half red book
(edit: I know it’s a half dust jacket cover that comes off, I will still call it ugly for no other reason than the fact that I want to)
(edit: I know it’s a half dust jacket cover that comes off, I will still call it ugly for no other reason than the fact that I want to)
January 20, 2021
I'VE ALWAYS WANTED TO READ THISSSSSS!!! LOOK HOW BEAUTIFUL IT ISSSSSSS!!! <333
Leigh also said:
"I’m a habitual doomsayer, so if ten years ago, you’d told me we were going to end up here, I never would have believed you. In fact I'd have shushed you because I'm not about tempting fate. But, as soon as I wrote the Istorii Sankt’ya into Shadow and Bone, I started dreaming about getting to create a collection like this. Seeing it in Jessie’s hands as a prop in our Netflix adaptation? I never could have imagined it. I hope you’ll love this dark, strange collection of stories, some macabre and some hopeful (but also still macabre)."
I’ll be honest. In terms of her novellas, I much prefer the Language of Thorns. While this had pretty illustrations, the stories were rather lacklustre, whereas the Language of Thorns shined in both departments. This is still a great addition to any Grishaverse collection though! <3
Leigh also said:
"I’m a habitual doomsayer, so if ten years ago, you’d told me we were going to end up here, I never would have believed you. In fact I'd have shushed you because I'm not about tempting fate. But, as soon as I wrote the Istorii Sankt’ya into Shadow and Bone, I started dreaming about getting to create a collection like this. Seeing it in Jessie’s hands as a prop in our Netflix adaptation? I never could have imagined it. I hope you’ll love this dark, strange collection of stories, some macabre and some hopeful (but also still macabre)."
I’ll be honest. In terms of her novellas, I much prefer the Language of Thorns. While this had pretty illustrations, the stories were rather lacklustre, whereas the Language of Thorns shined in both departments. This is still a great addition to any Grishaverse collection though! <3
January 6, 2021
buzzword: ✧ Ben Barnes ✧
this is like reading a collection of prophet stories in the Quran. its beautiful and magical and has a dark edge. some of the tales end in hope, others in tragedy. however, unlike the Bible, the Quran, or other holy books, this one is rather unmemorable imo.
there are about 28 to 30 short stories. each detailing the origin of the Saints from the Grishaverse in a summarized version with lots of telling and minimal characterization and dialogue. my favorite stories are probably Saint Mattheus and Saint of the Book.
i know people are excited about the Starless Saint chapter, but honestly i dont think it offers anything that you dont already know from reading the S&B series or the KoS duology. as much as i love , i freakin HATE the plot twist in KoS.
anyway, this book (some parts of it) is narrated by BEN BARNES. the whole audiobook is amazing, but his sections of the book, his voice... his accent... ah... it emanates classical vibes. idk its like youre listening to old tales being read to you during bedtime at night.
unfortunately, i dont own a copy of this book (yet). so, i havent seen all the gorgeous illustrations featured inside. theres not much to gain from reading this, but do it if youre a fan of this universe or just plain curious. im sooo ready for the Netflix adaptation in April 2021.
heres the TEASER if you havent seen it.
(read as an audiobook)
this is like reading a collection of prophet stories in the Quran. its beautiful and magical and has a dark edge. some of the tales end in hope, others in tragedy. however, unlike the Bible, the Quran, or other holy books, this one is rather unmemorable imo.
there are about 28 to 30 short stories. each detailing the origin of the Saints from the Grishaverse in a summarized version with lots of telling and minimal characterization and dialogue. my favorite stories are probably Saint Mattheus and Saint of the Book.
i know people are excited about the Starless Saint chapter, but honestly i dont think it offers anything that you dont already know from reading the S&B series or the KoS duology. as much as i love , i freakin HATE the plot twist in KoS.
anyway, this book (some parts of it) is narrated by BEN BARNES. the whole audiobook is amazing, but his sections of the book, his voice... his accent... ah... it emanates classical vibes. idk its like youre listening to old tales being read to you during bedtime at night.
unfortunately, i dont own a copy of this book (yet). so, i havent seen all the gorgeous illustrations featured inside. theres not much to gain from reading this, but do it if youre a fan of this universe or just plain curious. im sooo ready for the Netflix adaptation in April 2021.
heres the TEASER if you havent seen it.
(read as an audiobook)
October 19, 2020
Actual Rating: 3.5 stars
Let's just ignore the fact of how ugly the cover is and jump into the book itself. I should point out that I had been told that the blue part is like an external cover and is removed so the book is completely red and it is actually shown in the last short story in one of the illustrations as that.
Short stories like this are among my earliest memories of reading, I remember getting Aesop's fables as a gift from my English teacher because I got a perfect score in that semester and I still have my copy of that. Short stories were very vital for my love of reading but now as someone who consumes novels on a daily basis, I find it harder to enjoy these short stories because they lack the depth that novels do. I think of those more like a delicacy that can be consumed in small bites when you're bored. This books offers 28 short stories (Hope I counted right) and each one is 2-4 pages long so it is a very fast read.
The stories were not bad at all but as I mentioned above, I don't think I will remember any of them in a year for example. Bardugo is a brilliant writer but her writing abilities are not shown in this simply because there is not much dialogue and character development. Most of the stories are created using the same mold. Someone does something to help the village and then they either become a hero or they are accused of dealing with the devils and are killed thus becoming saints of something.
I should point out that the illustrations were very good though and I think it was a smart idea to include them because the book would have been very bland and short without them so it was definitely an incentive to read the book just to enjoy those different illustrations.
Summary: I will always like short stories like those because of the nostalgia that they give me and because they are such light reads. I think Bardugo did as a good job as could be done for a book of this kind. The illustrations were beautiful and a smart choice. I know you all are gonna read it for The Starless Saint but don't expect too much it is a very short story that won't add much to what we already know!
Let's just ignore the fact of how ugly the cover is and jump into the book itself. I should point out that I had been told that the blue part is like an external cover and is removed so the book is completely red and it is actually shown in the last short story in one of the illustrations as that.
Short stories like this are among my earliest memories of reading, I remember getting Aesop's fables as a gift from my English teacher because I got a perfect score in that semester and I still have my copy of that. Short stories were very vital for my love of reading but now as someone who consumes novels on a daily basis, I find it harder to enjoy these short stories because they lack the depth that novels do. I think of those more like a delicacy that can be consumed in small bites when you're bored. This books offers 28 short stories (Hope I counted right) and each one is 2-4 pages long so it is a very fast read.
The stories were not bad at all but as I mentioned above, I don't think I will remember any of them in a year for example. Bardugo is a brilliant writer but her writing abilities are not shown in this simply because there is not much dialogue and character development. Most of the stories are created using the same mold. Someone does something to help the village and then they either become a hero or they are accused of dealing with the devils and are killed thus becoming saints of something.
I should point out that the illustrations were very good though and I think it was a smart idea to include them because the book would have been very bland and short without them so it was definitely an incentive to read the book just to enjoy those different illustrations.
Summary: I will always like short stories like those because of the nostalgia that they give me and because they are such light reads. I think Bardugo did as a good job as could be done for a book of this kind. The illustrations were beautiful and a smart choice. I know you all are gonna read it for The Starless Saint but don't expect too much it is a very short story that won't add much to what we already know!
September 2, 2021
Loved these stories 💖
A wonderful collection of short dark tales regarding the Saints and how they got their Sainthood.
With all the magical elements you’d expect from Bardugo and lovely illustrations. I highly recommend these - you’ll whizz through them.
A wonderful collection of short dark tales regarding the Saints and how they got their Sainthood.
With all the magical elements you’d expect from Bardugo and lovely illustrations. I highly recommend these - you’ll whizz through them.
December 22, 2020
I don't really know what to say about this, given that I can't compliment the characters. Or the plot.
I just.
I don't even know.
It was okay. In the trilogy, it's said that The Lives of Saints is basically a children's book, so it kind of read like a children's book (besides the brutal deaths, but let's not talk about that).
WELL.
I think my favourite story was the Darkling, aka the Starless Saint. I guess it was more about Yuri, but I found it interesting.
Some of the other stories were kind of boring, but it didn't really matter because they're so short.
But my favourite was definitely the Darkling.
The art was really nice.
See?? What else am I supposed to say about that??
It was colourful and nice and...I don't know??
Overall, a decent book. May or may not reread.
3/5 the half dustcover is very triggering.
I just.
I don't even know.
It was okay. In the trilogy, it's said that The Lives of Saints is basically a children's book, so it kind of read like a children's book (besides the brutal deaths, but let's not talk about that).
WELL.
I think my favourite story was the Darkling, aka the Starless Saint. I guess it was more about Yuri, but I found it interesting.
Some of the other stories were kind of boring, but it didn't really matter because they're so short.
But my favourite was definitely the Darkling.
The art was really nice.
See?? What else am I supposed to say about that??
It was colourful and nice and...I don't know??
Overall, a decent book. May or may not reread.
3/5 the half dustcover is very triggering.
Want to read
June 30, 2020My first reaction: Ohhhhhh!
Followed by the exclamation: Ahhhh!
Continuing with: ADSFJKLMNÖ!!!
Ending with: NEED NOW!!!
No, seriously! I didn't even know this is going to be a thing!
But we all know how I am with Leigh's books: I really dunno how that ended up in my shopping cart but if it's already there... *lool*
The insta-buy is strong my friends! XD
Followed by the exclamation: Ahhhh!
Continuing with: ADSFJKLMNÖ!!!
Ending with: NEED NOW!!!
No, seriously! I didn't even know this is going to be a thing!
But we all know how I am with Leigh's books: I really dunno how that ended up in my shopping cart but if it's already there... *lool*
The insta-buy is strong my friends! XD
December 11, 2020
RATING: 3.5 STARS
for the beautiful prose
Conclusion: the townspeople are the real enemy
Conclusion: the townspeople are the real enemy
November 30, 2021
Listen, this book is what it is. The binding is gorgeous. The illustrations are stunning. The stories are decent. If you’re looking for something pretty for your shelves or are a Grishaverse completionist (me), then The Lives of Saints does the job.
It’s shorter than it even looks, because the font is larger and the illustrations take up at least half the number of pages, but for me that was a selling point. If you’ve read other Grishaverse short story collections you may expect something similar here, though I can’t say that’s completely the case. These are more like little asides than any actual lore that adds to the world-building. Even the familiar faces don’t seem to have much relevance to the rest of the books.
Ah well, at least it can count towards my Goodreads challenge!
**For more book talk & reviews, follow me on Instagram at @elle_mentbooks!
It’s shorter than it even looks, because the font is larger and the illustrations take up at least half the number of pages, but for me that was a selling point. If you’ve read other Grishaverse short story collections you may expect something similar here, though I can’t say that’s completely the case. These are more like little asides than any actual lore that adds to the world-building. Even the familiar faces don’t seem to have much relevance to the rest of the books.
Ah well, at least it can count towards my Goodreads challenge!
**For more book talk & reviews, follow me on Instagram at @elle_mentbooks!
May 28, 2022
Ein wirklicher toller Zusatz zum Grishaverse! Das Buch ist vor allem sehr detailverliebt und fertig aufgemacht, beginnend bei dem schönen Einband bis hin zu den liebevollen farbigen Illustrationen im Buch selbst.
Den Anstoß dieses Büchlein endlich zu lesen gab mir letzte Woche die Netflix Serie "Shadow & Bone" (ja I´m late to the party as usual...), in der Alina genau dieses Buch erhält.
Neben der wirklich schönen Aufmachung konnte mich aber auch der Inhalt überzeugen. Es handelt sich jeweils um sehr kurze Geschichten über die verschiedenen Heiligen aus Ravka, Shu Han, Fjerdan und Novji Zem. Zu jeder/m Heiligen gibt es eine Illustration. Die Geschichten sind zwar allesamt sehr kurz, aber vermittelten mir dadurch total die Märchen-Vibes.
Ich habe das Buch wirklich wirklich gern gelesen, muss aber auch sagen, dass es nur etwas für absolute Fans des Grishaverse ist.
Den Anstoß dieses Büchlein endlich zu lesen gab mir letzte Woche die Netflix Serie "Shadow & Bone" (ja I´m late to the party as usual...), in der Alina genau dieses Buch erhält.
Neben der wirklich schönen Aufmachung konnte mich aber auch der Inhalt überzeugen. Es handelt sich jeweils um sehr kurze Geschichten über die verschiedenen Heiligen aus Ravka, Shu Han, Fjerdan und Novji Zem. Zu jeder/m Heiligen gibt es eine Illustration. Die Geschichten sind zwar allesamt sehr kurz, aber vermittelten mir dadurch total die Märchen-Vibes.
Ich habe das Buch wirklich wirklich gern gelesen, muss aber auch sagen, dass es nur etwas für absolute Fans des Grishaverse ist.
March 1, 2021
fulfilling my 2021 goal to read one book each month by an author i love that i haven’t gotten around to reading yet
March 20, 2023
Dieses Buch besteht aus 3 bis 5-seitigen Kurzerzählungen über die Heiligen aus dem Grishaverse. Es handelt sich dabei nicht um abgerundete Geschichten, die einen emotional involvieren, sondern liest sich mehr wie distanzierte Lexikoneinträge. Ein wenig enttäuscht bin ich, da ich mir einfach mehr Tiefe erhofft habe, andererseits hält das Buch faktisch, was Titel und Klappentext versprechen. So wirklich fasziniert war ich eigentlich nur von der letzten Geschichte: Die Heilige des Buches. Für Fans des Grishaverse sicher lesenswert, auch aufgrund der traumhaften äußeren und inneren Gestaltung. Für mich dennoch kein Must-Read.
January 31, 2023
“You know the problem with heroes and Saints? They always end up dead.”
July 22, 2022
"There have been too many stories in between, miracles and martyrdoms, too much blood spilt, too much ink. There was a war. There were a thousand wars. I knew a killer. I knew a hero. They might have been the same man."
°•*⁀➷
I listened to this simply to listen to Ben Barnes.
- Paige
°•*⁀➷
I listened to this simply to listen to Ben Barnes.
- Paige
December 9, 2020
Fuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuudge sticks.
PSA: if you haven’t read King of Scars, that last story is going to go right over your head, so hold off until you do.
IS IT MARCH YETTTTT
.
.
This definitely isn’t as strong as The Language of Thorns, in my opinion. In fact, I had been leaning towards 2 stars until the last two stories sucker punched me.
This is definitely a beautiful book in the physical sense. And the illustrations are so lovely. But it’s definitely more for hard core fans of The Grisha Verse.
It also reminded me that I’ll need to reread KoS before RoW drops in March.
PSA: if you haven’t read King of Scars, that last story is going to go right over your head, so hold off until you do.
IS IT MARCH YETTTTT
.
.
This definitely isn’t as strong as The Language of Thorns, in my opinion. In fact, I had been leaning towards 2 stars until the last two stories sucker punched me.
This is definitely a beautiful book in the physical sense. And the illustrations are so lovely. But it’s definitely more for hard core fans of The Grisha Verse.
It also reminded me that I’ll need to reread KoS before RoW drops in March.
October 16, 2020
3.5 stars
The Language of Thorns: Midnight Tales and Dangerous Magic is much better for two reasons. One, the stories were longer and allowed room for actual plot and character introspection. Here, the stories are three pages each on average.
Second—and I know I'm going to be skewered for saying this—they're too religious. Yes, yes, I know it's called The Lives of Saints, but I didn't expect this much pious praying. In quite a few stories, the characters just pray their problems away. I expected the stories to focus on the jealousy and ignorance of humans which led them to kill individuals that later become saints.
In terms of Easter eggs, Alina and the Darkling both get their own stories. A few characters that appear in King of Scars get stories too. The saint Nikolai is named after has his own story too.
A disappointment all in all.
“I wander now, lost among the shelves. My hand cramps around the pen. I gather dust. But someone has to set down the words, put them in the proper order. I am the library and the librarian, hoarding lives, a catalog for the faithful.”
The Language of Thorns: Midnight Tales and Dangerous Magic is much better for two reasons. One, the stories were longer and allowed room for actual plot and character introspection. Here, the stories are three pages each on average.
Second—and I know I'm going to be skewered for saying this—they're too religious. Yes, yes, I know it's called The Lives of Saints, but I didn't expect this much pious praying. In quite a few stories, the characters just pray their problems away. I expected the stories to focus on the jealousy and ignorance of humans which led them to kill individuals that later become saints.
In terms of Easter eggs, Alina and the Darkling both get their own stories. A few characters that appear in King of Scars get stories too. The saint Nikolai is named after has his own story too.
A disappointment all in all.
September 19, 2021
“You can choose faith or you can choose fear. But only one will bring what you long for.”
~ Rating- 3 stars ~
Content/ Trigger Warnings- Self-harm
-No mention of these in the review-
The Lives of Saints, by Leigh Bardugo is a novella in the Grishaverse. I’m a fan of the Grishaverse books and I loved the concept and importance given to saints there, which is why I decided to read this one. I enjoyed the book and it’s too short for me to properly ‘review’, but I loved the stories about the Saints here. The writing of the book was great, as always with Leigh Bardugo’s books. My favourite story was of ‘the starless saint’.
“I remember only how I fell into books, never to rise from their pages, how I was never truly awake until I began to dream of other worlds”
I read the audiobook narrated by Ben Barnes and Lauren Fortgang. The audiobook narration was excellent and I’d highly recommend it.
“I am the library and the librarian, hoarding lives, a catalog for the faithful. Erase my name. Indelible is a word for stories.”
My ratings and reviews for other books in this world-
Shadow and Bone- 3.5 stars
Siege and Storm- 3.5 stars
Ruin and Rising- 3 stars
Six of Crows- 3.75 stars
DISCLAIMER-All opinions on books I’ve read and reviewed are my own, and are with no intention to offend anyone. If you feel offended by my reviews, let me know how I can fix it.
How I Rate-
1 star- Hardly liked anything/ was disappointed
2 star- Had potential but did not deliver/ was disappointed
3 stars- Was ok but could have been better/ was average / Enjoyed a lot but something was missing
4 stars- Loved a lot but something was missing
5 stars- Loved it/ new favourite
……………………………………
Finished. 3 stars. Review to come.
December 11, 2020
I loved this! Filled with stunning illustrations, this is a collection of short stories about the Saints from the world of the Grishaverse. Ranging from poignant to grisly to humorous, they are beautifully put together and really flesh out the world. From pious young people killed because of greed or fear, to women called witches for no good reason, there is a lot to provoke thought and conversation. You will find nods to things from the books which is fun, and I'm curious to see if more of these things show up in later books. If you are a fan of the Grishaverse, this is absolutely worth a read! It's quick, but thoroughly enjoyable. I was lucky enough to have access to the audiobook for review via NetGalley and read along with my physical copy- an experience I highly recommend! The audio has two narrators and is well-done. All opinions are my own.
Want to read
July 6, 2020Sis doesn't like Shadow and Bone trilogy much but Sis likes the Darkling. So sis will read The Lives Of Saints because of The STARLESS SAINT aka the Darkling. Sis is me. I am sis.
The Starless Saint.
The Starless Saint.
The Starless Saint.
Correct me if I'm wrong but wasn't Darkling actually The Starless Saint?
*screams*
AHHHHH WE ARE GETTING A STORY ABOUT DARKLING AND I'M WAITING FOR IT!
"These tales include miracles and martyrdoms from familiar saints like Sankta Lizabeta of the Roses and Sankt Ilya in Chains, to the strange and obscure stories of Sankta Ursula, Sankta Maradi, and The Starless Saint."
The Starless Saint.
The Starless Saint.
The Starless Saint.
Correct me if I'm wrong but wasn't Darkling actually The Starless Saint?
*screams*
AHHHHH WE ARE GETTING A STORY ABOUT DARKLING AND I'M WAITING FOR IT!
Want to read
August 15, 2020I absolutely cannot imagine what they were thinking with that cover, THE COLOURS MAKE NO SENSE.
—★—
I don’t even know why I’m adding this seeing as I seem to be considering a breakup with the Grishaverse 😐
Oh, well.
—★—
I don’t even know why I’m adding this seeing as I seem to be considering a breakup with the Grishaverse 😐
Oh, well.
June 24, 2023
3.5 stars
Want to read
September 29, 2020I don't know why I keep adding Grishaverse books to my TBR. Every single one of them I've read (besides my cinnamon roll Crooked Kingdom), I have hated. And yet I am somehow well-versed in the Grisha fandom. It's a mystery to me.
December 30, 2020
The Lives of Saints es un libro complementario de la Grisha Trilogy y, honestamente, es absolutamente precioso, perfecto para una colección. En él nos encontramos las historias de diferentes personas que, por sus actos de valentía o de gran poder, fueron considerados eventualmente en la historia como Santos. Y todos estos relatos añaden un poco de conocimiento a todo ese folklore y religión que Leigh Bardugo nos presentó en su momento.
Si bien es un libro muy corto, cada historia está acompañada de una ilustración increíble y que, en mi opinión, es la mejor característica del libro. Además, amé que en unos de los últimos relatos se hicieran referencias a Alina y a mi amado e incomprendido Darkling. Los extraño muchísimo y no puedo esperar para verlos en la nueva serie de Netflix.
<3
Si bien es un libro muy corto, cada historia está acompañada de una ilustración increíble y que, en mi opinión, es la mejor característica del libro. Además, amé que en unos de los últimos relatos se hicieran referencias a Alina y a mi amado e incomprendido Darkling. Los extraño muchísimo y no puedo esperar para verlos en la nueva serie de Netflix.
<3
Want to read
July 2, 2020I was hoping for an announcement regarding Ninth House book 2, but apparently Leigh Bardugo is currently planning on milking every cent she can from The Grishaverse since there will be a TV show now. And you know what? I don’t blame her. She’s gonna make good money, and get good exposure, and we’d all probably do it too if we were in her shoes.
December 1, 2022
Anything Leigh Bardugo writes I will read! <3
April 16, 2021
The Lives of Saints is a collection of short stories of the saints in the Grisha world. Each story is only a couple pages long but it kept me hooked. Some stories were really good whilst others were a bit meh but overall, this was a nice collection. Even though this book doesn't really add anything to the Grisha world, it was still fun to read.
I have said this before and I will say it again that Leigh Bardugo writes amazing dark and twisted stories full of violence and bloodshed and I don't know how she does it. And to top it off, the illustrations are beautiful and the details are breathtaking.
4.5 stars
I have said this before and I will say it again that Leigh Bardugo writes amazing dark and twisted stories full of violence and bloodshed and I don't know how she does it. And to top it off, the illustrations are beautiful and the details are breathtaking.
4.5 stars
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