Match 18: Perry (3) vs. The Darkling (7) goes to The Darkling!

Welcome to The YA Sisterhood's 3rd Annual YA Crush Tourney!  We hope that through this all you will meet a lot of book loving people, discover new books, and of course be introduced to many more dreamy crushes!  

Be aware that we have tried to keep all the posts pretty general, but there might still be some spoilers.  If the spoiler is big, it will be marked.  However, still proceed with caution!

Matches will run for 24 hours, 12am to 12am EST every Monday, Wednesday and Friday.  For more information please check out our Tournament Page.

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The Winner of Match #18 is The Darkling

**WHY HELLO YA CRUSHERS. I'm Nikki over at Fiction Freak and I am here to tell you just how amazing this guy right here is.

Yeah him? Know him? I'll fill you in. 

Perry, our favorite Outsider, is perhaps one of the swooniest YA boys around. And, since I'm me, I'd rather show you than tell you. Be prepared to swoon at the quotes. 

Looks

I asked a few friends on why they love Perry.

"1. His tattoo & his markings bc every time I picture it, I pretty much swoon." -@ _extroadiMARY

Oh my. You mean these?

"He had tattoos, just like in the stories. Two patterned bands around each bicep. When he'd turned his back, she'd seen another design on his skin, some sort of hawk with wings spanning shoulder to shoulder."

Yeah, I would love to touch see them too. here is hot. And then there is Perry. You don't resist Perry."-@Kami178xx

Truest words ever tweeted. Blond hair, bright green eyes, and one sexy athletic body of course. What's not to love?

Personality

"There're lots of adjectives to describe him but passionate sums it all up -- w his bow, Talon, Aria -- everything".-@LPofimagination

“Your voice sounds like a midnight fire. All warm and worn in and golden. I could listen to you talk forever." 
"I could never do that". 
She laughed at him. He brought his lips to her ear. "Your scent is like violets early in spring," he whispered. Then he laughed at himself because though it was true, he sounded like the worst kind of fool.” -Under the Never Sky

Perry responding to Roar (best friend) - "What do you think we are?" and "You're better than a brother."

"He didn't miss once. His name was never sharper than when his blood was up."

"Vale wouldn't fight for Talon, but he would. He was Talon's only hope now."

 yeah. Passionate is definitely something you can call Perry.

Ah, but he's not only passionate. He's loyal and strong and supportive. He'll fight for whatever he believes in and for his people and he'll do whatever he can to help.

The Swoon

Now. Another reason you should totally swoon? He's romantic and sweet. 

“In the afternoon, they stopped to eat on a rocky outcrop. Perry brushed a kiss on her cheek while she was chewing, and she learned that it was the loveliest thing to be kissed for no reason, even while chewing food. It brightened the woods, and the never sky, and everything.” 

"I miss you. I miss you. I miss you, I miss you. Be ready, because when I see you, I'll never let you go again”

"Should we try this again?" he asked. Aria smiled. "The right way," she said, and wove her fingers through his. "Together."

And then...his kisses. Can I have one?

“He kissed her slowly. Everything went slowly so he could follow her temper, and search into her eyes. When they joined, her scent was brave and strong and certain. Perry took it into himself, breathing her breath, feeling what she felt. He'd never known anything as right.” 

“Without thinking, he reached for her hand. Tucked it against her chest, feeling that was where it should be. Perry's heart slammed against his ribs. She had to feel it.” 

“Perry's hand settled on her hip, his grip firm. She felt his kiss settle into something deeper as his mouth moved with more urgency over hers. Suddenly there was more heat between them...” 

“His eyes were heavy with desire, but she saw something else. A gleam that made her suspicious.
"What?" she asked.
His hand slid to her hips. "You're incredible."
"That's not what you were thinking."

"Was so. I always think that." He leaned in, twisting a strand of her hair around his finger as he kissed her bottom lip. 

When the heck do I get to be Aria?

"He smiled and leaned down, kissing her softly, tenderly. She knew she should step away. This was a risk, but she didn't care about anything except him just then. She wove her arms around his neck and parted his lips with hers, stealing a taste of him. Tenderness could wait for another time. Perry went still for an instant; then he cinched her close, momentum sending them thudding into the door behind him. He sank against it, bringing himself closer to her height, kissing her with a sudden urgency. With a hunger she matched. His lips moved to her neck, trailed up to her ear, and the world fell away."

"There are other things I'd rather do when I'm alone with you."

Mmmmm. Perry is definitely the swooniest. Oh, but don't only take my word.

[I love him] because he is my baby. Or is he my baby because I love him? Hmmm-Ananbelle
Bows and arrows and blonds, oh my! Perry is my ideal male protagonist and swoony hero because he is survival strong :)-Alyssa
He is an awesome, protective sexy beast.-Tahereh
You broke me in half when you left sweet Perry-Ammie


SO OMG GO VOTE FOR PERRY

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The Darkling from The Grisha Series by Leigh Bardugo

Cheers my dears! My name is Emily and I run the blog Falling For YA. I will be advocating for The Darkling   from the wonderful Leigh Bardugo's Shadow and Bone & Siege and Storm. From the first page I knew I was going to love the Darkling he is my type of guy; dark, sexy, and just the right amount of evil!

I didn’t ask you for flattery.”

– The Darkling, Shadow and Bone

Oh my dear Darkling you didn’t ask for my flattery but I’m going to freely give it. Of all the YA bad boys out there you take the cake. You truly are the villain we love to love!

The Darkling is the ultimate bad boy

 “He had a sharp beautiful face, a shock of thick black hair, and clear gray eyes that glimmered like quartz. I knew that the more powerful Grisha were said to live long lives, and Darklings were the most powerful of them all. But I felt the wrongness of it and I remembered Eva’s words: He’s not natural. None of them are”

He may not be natural but he is hot! Strong jaw line, eyes like granite, and he’s constantly wearing black clothes with his symbol, the sliver of a moon during an eclipse.

The Darkling is complex, deep, and lonely

“Like Calls to Like”

Maybe that is the reason we swoon over The Darkling? Because like calls to like. We see something in him that is reflected in ourselves. Those dark thoughts that creep in to your soul at night, the loneliness that overtakes when we are truly alone, the longing to change the world for good or better, to leave a mark. The Darkling feels those same things.

I knew he was a practiced liar. He could fake any emotion, play on any human failing. But I couldn’t deny what I’d felt in Novyi Zem or the truth of what the Darkling had shown me: my own sadness, my own longing, reflected back to me in his bleak gray eyes.

         

                                                                               

The Darklings got that Something Special

The Darkling is the leader of the Second Army. He is second only to the Ravkan King and he views the King as nothing more then a child. The Darkling is the most powerful Grisha and he knows it. The Darkling isn’t afraid to use his power for good…or evil…depending on your perspective.

The Darkling also has a host of skills that only he possesses. He can summon darkness to blind his enemies, use darkness to slice his enemies in half (the Cut). He’s also a living amplifier which means that his power can be used to strengthen the power of other Grisha.

The Darkling is someone you want to have on your side in a fight! 

“So I'm the Darkling's prisoner?"

"You're under his protection."

"What's the difference?"

"Pray you never find out.”

 Why should you vote for the Darkling?

The Darkling is:

♥ Powerful

♥ Complex

♥ Lonely

♥ Sexy

♥ Deep

♥ Charming

♥ He is the villain we love to love!

If The Darkling got your vote make sure to tweet using the hashtag #DarklingsDarlings

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*The Polls are now CLOSED*

Blog Tour: Siege and Storm by Leigh Bardugo and Giveaway!

Today we have the absolute pleasure of hosting the Blog Tour for Siege and Storm by Leigh Bardugo!!!!!  Leigh put together a wonderful guest post (with an AMAZING title, if I say so myself).  Be sure to check out my review and enter the giveaway at the bottom of the post!  So, without further ado...

Tales from the Darkling's Bed Chamber: Fun Facts about the Siege and Storm ARC

 

The Advanced Reader Copies (also referred to as ARCs or galleys) of a book can go out anywhere from three to six months before a book is published. I've heard of endings changing or big scenes getting cut, but in the case of both Shadow and Bone and Siege and Storm, the changes we made mostly came down to catching typos, repetitions, and a few not so minor mistakes. (I managed to give the wrong name for an entire town that was destroyed.)

 

Here are a few of the bigger differences you'll find between the ARC and the final version.

 

1. Obviously, the major change is the cover. I actually love the fact that both of my ARCs have covers radically different from what we ended up with on the final. With Shadow and Bone, the ARC cover was in the running for the final and I still have a soft spot for it, though I prefer the cover we ended up with. (To see some of the other cover directions that were discussed and discarded, click here) The cover of the Siege and Storm ARC was just a placeholder, but the feel of it is still in keeping with the series.

 

 

 

2. The Siege and Storm ARC features the map from book 1, but the hard cover will have an expanded map created by Keith Thompson showing more of Fjerda, Shu Han, and the lands across the True Sea.

 

3. There are two different chapter headings in the ARC. The chapter headings with the antlers were first created for Shadow and Bone, but they felt a bit too Celtic and medieval for the world of the book. Somehow a few of them found their way into the ARC of Siege and Storm. (My best theory is art department pixies.) They were created by April Ward and I have to say, I'm actually really glad they got to see the light of day.

 

 

 

4. My favorite difference between the ARC and the final version of the book is the change we made in the description of the Darkling's bed chamber.

 

This is how it appears in the ARC:

 

The chamber was hexagonal, its dark wood walls carved with swirling vines and magical beasts. Above the huge canopied bed, the domed ceiling was wrought in smooth black obsidian and spangled with chips of mother-of-pearl laid out in constellations.

 

In the final:

 

The chamber was hexagonal, its dark wood walls carved into the illusion of a forest crowded with slender trees. Above the huge canopied bed, the domed ceiling was wrought in smooth black obsidian and spangled with chips of mother-of-pearl laid out in constellations.

 

It's a small difference, but a significant one. Each major section of the Little Palace has a distinctive dome, but beyond that, the original description could refer to just about any other room in the building—and my editor called me out on it. Without realizing it, I'd used a kind of narrative shorthand to describe the chamber. It was a lost opportunity, a moment to offer a bit more insight into a character and to give the reader a deeper experience of the world. I spent quite a bit of time deciding what the Darkling would choose for the walls of his chamber, the first thing he'd see when he woke in the morning and the last he'd look at when he went to bed at night.

 

In some ways, it's hard not to cringe over the ARC's imperfections. We tweak bits of language, find a better word, discover things that could be cleaner and clearer. Still I'm glad the ARC exists. It's a window onto where the story was—the same in its essentials, but unique in its details.

 

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Siege and Storm by Leigh Bardugo

ARC received from Macmillan, Henry Holt

Release Date:  June 4, 2013

Reviewed by:  Middle Sis Jenn

The Sisters Say:  Gripping and Powerful, The Perfect Mix of Love and Hate

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.

 

“The Darkling would know where to find me, and when he was strong enough, he’d come looking.  Ready or not, we’d have no choice but to make a stand…I would face him, and one way or another, this would end.” ARC, pg 160

When I read Shadow and Bone last year, I was completely captivated by the dark and unrelenting world that Leigh created.  It was so good that I didn’t think she would ever be able to top such a wonderful debut.  But then Siege and Storm came along, and BAM! I was left breathless, struggling to reign in how much I loved this book!  Beguiling, gut-wrenching, and intoxicating—Leigh’s world calls out the darkness in us all, but even more, it shows us how to take the light and push the darkness back.  My YA world will never be the same.

If you follow my reviews, you know that I like books that blend good and evil so seamlessly that you have a difficult time seeing where one ends and the other begins.  Leigh does this effortlessly with Alina and The Darkling.  My absolute favorite part of this book was seeing Alina struggle with her own darkness.  She is drawn to the power like it’s a missing piece of her own heart, yet she pushes back against the overwhelming desire.  She is so strong, even when it comes to the point where she realizes she might lose everything.  But that is what makes an amazing hero—Harry Potter, Frodo, Tris, Katniss—they know what’s at stake, and still, they make that sacrifice.  Alina is becoming one of those great heroes, and I can’t wait to watch her as she stumbles and fights to the end.

For all you Mal fans out there, you will be pleased to know that he has a huge role in this sequel.  I wasn’t a Mal fan at first because he seemed to quiet, to laid-back.  I didn’t feel the passion in him in the first book (I was a Darkling fan, don’t judge).  But in this book, Mal will take your breath away.  He’s strong where Alina is weak, and his love for her shines brighter than even the darkness slowly coating Ravka.  But, he isn’t perfect.  He’s jealous and broken—feeling caged in a battle that he didn’t choose.  He struggles just as much with Alina does, and it makes the plot so much more realistic and emotional.  My heart broke for Mal as he started to realize the fate that might await he and Alina.  Still, I think we are about to see big things from Mal in the third book.

I love it when authors take time to develop the villain thoroughly.  Many times you just get mentions of them, whispers of their dark deeds, and glimpses of their evil powers.  We get all these with The Darkling, but even more, Leigh shows us his weaknesses.  We see the small parts that remain human—the parts that want to be redeemed, even if fate has handed him a careless heart.  It’s this weakness that makes The Darkling so compelling, and that is why, even though I like Mal, I still feel like Alina and The Darkling are made of the same cloth.  “Like calls to like,” Baghra and The Darkling tell Alina over and over, and I can’t help but agree.  Whatever their souls, their hearts are made of—Alina and The Darkling’s are the same.  That doesn’t mean that I think they are both evil.  On the contrary, I think they are both made of power, but they just both chose different paths.

Leigh’s writing is flawless and beautiful, and her world stands on the edge of a cliff, teetering back and forth, ready to fall into darkness.  Never a dull moment, Alina and Mal’s journey is full of danger, beasts, and romance; and I promise you, from Chapter 1, you won’t want to put this one down. 

Beautiful. 

Terrible.

 Angry. 

Hopeful.

I could go on and on describing the world and characters in Siege and Storm.  Darkness may never die, but in order for the darkness to exist, there must be light.  I can’t wait to see if Alina’s light is strong enough to stamp out the dark.

“Our lips met, and the connection between us opened.  This was not the way he’d touched me in my visions, when he’d come to me as shadow.  This was real, and I could drown in it.”  ARC, pg 418

 

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