“Shadow and Bone” has been on the number 1 spot after being out for only a week on Netflix and deserves it. 

This show is another book adaptation; the show follows the story written by author Leigh Bardugo’s book, “Shadow and Bone.” The book is a part of her book universe known as the Grishaverse, and the show contains characters from all her books.

The show’s casting has many fresh faces, like Jessie Mei Lei. They are a British-Chinese gender non-conforming actress who played the lead in the show, Alina Starkov, which the show’s main story is about.

The acting performances from the cast were amazing to see, especially Kit Young, who portrays Jesper, a boy with a gambling addiction and sharpshooting skills from the fictional country of Ketterdamn.

Like any other book to show adaptation, this show is not entirely truthful to the books. There are moments in the show that are new to fans of the books and moments brought straight to life from the pages. 

This show falls into one of the most popular genres watched by people, fantasy.

The show follows Alina Starkov (Jessie Mei Lei), who recently found out that she is a special kind of Grisha who the magic users of this fictional universe are. Alina is immediately told she was the missing piece to saving the world from the darkness that loomed over their head for many years. With her identity being revealed, there are people out there that want to use her powers for more evil than good, while others want to kidnap her for money.  

This show checks off every box for a classic fantasy show by including a cunning villain, magic powers, fantastic fight scenes, and romance. 

As someone who has not read all the books, one does not need to read the book to enjoy the series. They only really need to be read to know more about the characters and their unique historical backgrounds.

Of course, a media adaptation of a book usually rarely fulfills the readers’ needs, but this “Shadow and Bone” adaptation is just as amazing as the book and keeps one wanting more.

The show continues to be well received by viewers and remains in Netflix’s top ten list. It is deserving of all the positive feedback it has gotten so far.