This post was originally published on Audible.com.
Gather round, darklings, and let us tell you the tale of Alina Starkov, the star of the Shadow and Bone trilogy by Leigh Bardugo. Though the novel came out almost 10 years ago, the Grishaverse has expanded quite a bit since then. And now with the new Netflix adaptation, interest in Alina Starkov and the series at large is greater than ever. So keep reading to learn the answers to all your burning questions about Alina Starkov! (Warning: spoilers ahead!)
Who is Alina Starkov?
Alina Starkov is the main character and narrator of the Shadow and Bone trilogy. We first meet her in Shadow and Bone. She is a teenage girl who grew up an orphan of the Border Wars. When she is old enough, she joins the First Army as a cartographer. Her best friend is Malyen “Mal” Oretsev, who grew up with her at the orphanage. During a mission to cross the Fold, the dangerous barren land separating their country, Alina emits a blazing light while rescuing Mal, revealing her true identity. Alina is a Grisha, a person with a gift for Small Science: the ability to manipulate matter at its most basic form, such as controlling the elements.
Alina is thought to be the Sun Summoner, a long-rumored saint destined to defeat the Fold. She is whisked away to the Little Palace, home of the Grisha Second Army and their general, the Darkling, a Shadow Summoner and the most feared Grisha in all the land. The Darkling hopes to train Alina and hone her new power so they may defeat the Fold together. While mistreated by some of the Grisha, who are jealous of her power and the Darkling's interest in her, Alina develops feelings for the Darkling and a romance begins to blossom.
But then Baghra, who has been helping her train and is discovered to be the Darkling's mother, reveals a hard truth: Alina is simply a pawn in the Darkling's evil plot. He plans to harness her powers and use the Fold to control the world. Alina runs away from the palace with Mal. They encounter a stag, whose antlers are said to amplify her powers. When Alina can't bring herself to kill it, the Darkling destroys the animal himself. He then puts the antlers around Alina's neck, enabling him to use her powers as his own. Alina eventually manages to break free, and she and Mal run away and go into hiding.
In the second audiobook in the trilogy, Siege and Storm, Alina and Mal attempt to lay low in a small town. When the Darkling and his Grisha find them, Alina and Mal are captured and wake up aboard the ship of a privateer named Sturmhond. He and his ship have been hired by the Darkling so he can find another creature in possession of a magical amplifier. Eventually, Alina, Mal, and Sturmhond escape, and Sturmhond reveals his true identity: Nikolai Lantsov, younger son of the King of Ravka.
Alina becomes determined to lead the Second Army, so the three travel back to Os Alta, the capital city or Ravka, together. Nikolai proposes that he and Alina get married, but she says no. Not long after, the Darkling attacks Os Alta. Fighting back, Alina defeats him using merzost, a corrupt form of Small Science, which causes her hair to turn white and nearly kills both her and the Darkling. At the end of the novel, she flees to the White Cathedral with the others.
The trilogy's culmination, Ruin and Rising opens two months after the battle between Alina and the Darkling. She is weak and hiding out in the underground tunnels of Ravka with the Apparat, a cult that worships her as a saint. Mal and some of the Grisha manage to bring her back to the surface, but it is not long before they are attacked. Coming to the rescue, Nikolai takes them to a mountain hideout, where some rogue Grisha and the remnants of the First Army are staying.
Alina encounters Baghra again, who teaches her new powers and tells her about the Darkling's father. Alina and Mal go off in search of another amplifier, a Firebird, but while holding on to her friend, Alina realizes: Mal himself is an amplifier. The Darkling takes hostages and threatens to cover the west in the Fold if Alina does not surrender. In the ensuing confrontation, Mal convinces Alina to kill him for the amplifier powers. She does, and then also kills the Darkling with the same knife. In the end, Mal is magically healed and the Fold is destroyed, while Alina loses her powers and fakes her own death. She and Mal eventually marry and rebuild the Grisha orphanage.
While Alina Starkov is not in the King of Scars, she appears in the second book of the King of Scars duology, Rule of Wolves. The Darkling has returned in another human form, and demands a meeting with Alina and Mal. He manages to pierce their hands, needing a drop of blood of the one who killed him and also a relative. (Mal was revealed to be related to the Darkling.) Alina and Mal return home to the orphanage, and later attend the coronation of Zoya, who is to be Queen and is now an even more powerful Grisha, capable of using more than one amplifier, like Alina. By the story’s end, Alina and Mal are living happily ever after, running their orphanage.
What are Alina Starkov's amplifiers?
Increasing a Grisha's power, an amplifier can be an animal, a human, or any of their physical remains, usually bones, scales, or teeth. In most cases, an amplifier's powers are available only to the one who killed them. Grisha are able to use a single amplifier, with the exceptions of Alina Starkov and Zoya Nazyalensky. Alina's amplifiers are Morozova's Collar, from the stag antlers; the Sea Whip's Fetter, from the sea whip; and her childhood friend and husband, Mal Oretsev.
Which audiobooks feature Alina Starkov?
You will find Alina in the original Grisha trilogy, comprised of Shadow and Bone, Siege and Storm, and Ruin and Rising, as well as in the second volume of the King of Scars duology, Rule of Wolves. Alina isn't a part of the Six of Crows duology (although characters from those books are used in the Shadow and Bone series on Netflix.)
Who are Alina Starkov's romantic interests?
Alina and the Darkling: In Shadow and Storm, when Alina is first found to be a Grisha, she is brought to the Little Palace by the Darkling. They have a connection, and an attraction, being the two most powerful Grisha, and the only Grisha with their powers. Alina and the Darkling kiss, with him making the first move in the novel and her making the first move on the show. But then she finds out he's actually using her to gain control of the Fold and rule the country, so she flees. Despite his nefarious plans, it is thought the Darkling did love Alina. However, Alina ends up killing him at the end of Ruin and Rising.
Alina and Nikolai Lantsov: In Siege and Storm, despite fleeing together, Mal and Alina begin to drift apart. Enter Nikolai Lantsov, younger son of the King of Ravka. He loves Alina, and even proposes marriage. But despite sharing a kiss in front of a crowd, and even briefly considering his offer of marriage, Alina turns him down. But don't feel bad for Nikolai—he eventually ends up with Zoya Nazyalensky.
Alina and Mal Oretsev: This is the series' biggest "will they or won't they?" romance. Unlike its portrayal in the Netflix series, the sparks between Mal and Alina in the novels are more one-sided, at least at first. Alina has feelings for Mal long before he realizes he loves her back. After all, she's been his BFF since childhood. Nevertheless, his feelings do develop while they're searching for the stag, and Alina and Mal kiss. But their flight from the Darkling takes a toll, and they separate again in Siege and Storm. They find their way back to each other in Ruin and Rising, and despite making the ultimate sacrifice for Alina after being revealed as an amplifier, Mal is saved. They end up marrying and rebuilding a Grisha orphanage together. (As Phoebe Buffay would say: He's her lobster.)
How is Alina Starkov different on the Shadow and Bone show than in the audiobook series?
In the novels, Alina is described as plain, and sometimes even ugly, with dull brown hair. She is often sick and frail, having been that way since she was a child. It is later explained that not using her powers makes her ill. Once Alina comes into her powers, she appears healthier, although her hair turns white at the end of Siege and Storm. Her ethnicity is not mentioned in the books, but in the Shadow and Bone Netflix series, Alina's mother is from Shu Han, making her half Shu, which makes her subject to racism throughout the show. Alina is also a lot more self-aware in the show and less dependent upon validation from the men in her life.
Memorable Alina Starkov quotes:
“I’m not Grisha. I’m a mapmaker. I’m not even a very good mapmaker.” — Shadow and Bone
“If I told you that I’m trying to save the world, would you believe me?” — Shadow and Bone
“You know the problem with heroes and saints, Nikolai? They always end up dead.” ― Siege and Storm
“I'm the Sun Summoner. It gets dark when I say it does.” ― Ruin and Rising
“The world seemed suddenly large again. I wasn't sure I liked it.” ― Ruin and Rising
"I was a soldier before I was a saint." — Rule of Wolves
