Netflix’s Shadow and Bone: Who is Alina Starkov?

Alina Starkov’s light flared brightly for the first time in Leigh Bardugo’s Shadow and Bone. The book, which would birth a bestselling trilogy and spin-off into an entire universe dubbed The Grishaverse, introduced YA readers to a world unlike any that had stepped into the pantheon of young adult literature before it.

Readers were transported to Ravka, a country where The Shadow Fold splits the nation in half. Created by a Shadow Summoner, The Fold is treacherous to cross and seemingly indestructible. The one hope the Ravkans have at reuniting their country is the Sun Summoner, a hitherto legendary Grisha who is considered to be a myth.

This, of course, changes when a near-death experience upends Alina’s entire world. Suddenly, the Grisha are looking at her like she is the key to reunification and Ravka’s reinvigorated strength. However, prior to nearly dying at the claws of a Volcra, a creature of The Fold, Alina didn’t know she was Grisha let alone the one foretold to bring The Fold crashing down.

No, she was a cartographer for the First Army. An orphan who made maps for the war effort, nothing more. Strong-willed and quick to speak her mind, Alina’s troubles boiled down to her mouth getting away from her and the feelings she harbored for her best friend, Malyen Oretsev (Archie Renaux).

Alina Starkov is the Sun Summoner in Shadow and Bone

But when she lights up The Fold, bringing what’s left of the troops she accompanied into the bleak, deadly area back to camp safely, Alina stops being an overlooked mapmaker. Not only does she garner the attention of the Grisha, including the Darkling, but also that of foreign forces like the Fjerdans who kill Grisha for being witches.

In Shadow and Bone, Alina is bonded to her best friend through their connection as orphans who grew up on a duke’s estate in Keramzin. The Netflix original series, however, makes a major change to both of their characters.

Alina Starkov is half-Shu in this new adaptation and Mal is mixed as well. With that change comes the inclusion of tension not seen in the books with both of their characters.

Showrunner Eric Heisserer discussed how Alina’s mixed race has been integrated into Netflix’s Shadow and Bone in an interview with Collider:

"I mean, you have a pretty big world in this space. And so we put you on two different tracks really. One is a sort of a grand sweeping Russian-inspired mythology of a First Army [soldier] who’s mixed race, and one half of her is from what they consider one of the enemies of Ravka. So she’s kind of got a tough gig right out the gate.And then it turns out that she has an ability that can save the entire country. And what does that [do to the] inherent prejudices against her, and how sometimes can she use that to her advantage. Spending a young lifetime trying to blend in and be in the background and not be noticed, and suddenly being in the spotlight 24/7, what can that do to a young woman who’s suddenly the most important person in the entire country."

While the Grishaverse isn’t absent of narratives focused on prejudice, Jessie Mei Li’s casting in the role of Alina puts the character on an entirely new journey. This is one informed not only by her class but also her race in a country at war with an enemy who shares her likeness.

Alina’s story has always been one about an unlikely heroine, but this new layer adds a dimension that sets the Netflix adaptation apart from its source material.

We’ll see the beginning of Alina’s journey as the Sun Summoner when Shadow and Bone premieres Friday, April 23.