What books is Shadow and Bone Season 2 based on? We delve deeper into the fantasy novels that inspired the successful Netflix series Shadow and Bone.
The top-rated Netflix original fantasy series Shadow and Bone is returning for a second, hotly anticipated season this year after a torturous two-year gap. Fans of the series will be dying to know exactly what will happen to the Sun Summoner Alina Starkov, Shadow Summoner Kirigan, and those mischievous trio of Crows in the sequel.
For a few looking at tantalizing clues of what is to be expected from the new season, let’s look back at the source material and the books that Shadow and Bone Season 2 is based on.
What is Shadow and Bone Season 2 going to be about?
The villainous General Aleksander Kirigan, aka The Darkling (Ben Barnes), is back and has created an unkillable army of shadow monsters. The only person who can defeat this wicked leader and his seemingly unstoppable army is Alina Starkov (Jessie Mei Li), the Sun Summoner herself. She needs to grow her strengths to take on this deadly foe. Alina must find and fuse with two new amplifiers (special, mythical beasts) to tackle Kirigan.
The second season of Shadow and Bone focuses on Alina’s quest to find these amplifiers with the help of her childhood friend Mal Oretsev (Archie Renaux) and a new motley crew of swashbuckling pirates. Meanwhile, the Crows: Kaz Brekker (Freddy Carter), Inej Ghafa (Amita Suman), and Jesper Fahey (Kit Young), are thrust into Alina’s path after a dangerous heist in Ketterdam.
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What books is Shadow and Bone Season 2 based on?
Shadow and Bone is a book adaptation based on the trilogy of novels written by author Leigh Bardugo, which are all set in the Grishaverse. The first season was based mainly on the first novel in the trilogy, Shadow and Bone (2012). The second season is based on the second novel, Siege and Storm (2013). If there is to be a third season of the show, it will likely be based on the third novel, Ruin and Rising (2014).
The series has further novels, including the duology, Six of Crows (2015) and Crooked Kingdom (2016). Shadow and Bone include characters and storylines from these novels, which all occur within the same universe. The Netflix original series, developed by Eric Heisserer (Arrival and Bird Box), borrowed heavily from Six of Crows, introducing viewers to the Crows Kaz, Inej, and Jesper, as well as other beloved characters from the same 2015 novel.
If Shadow and Bone continue to be a success for Netflix, there is even room to adapt further novels in the franchise. Leigh Bardugo wrote a second duology after Six of Crows and Crooked Kingdom in 2019; she released King of Scars, followed by Rule of Wolves in 2021.
Shadow and Bone Season 2 Release Date
The streaming release date for Shadow and Bone season 2 is March 16th, 2023. All eight new episodes from the series will be released on this date, allowing fans a chance to return to the magical and murderous Grisha universe once again.
