The Lives of Saints is a great little book for Grishaverse fans who want to dive further into Leigh Bardugo's YA fantasy universe. If you haven't already read the Shadow and Bone trilogy at the very least, don't pick this up quite yet - The Lives of Saints isn't its own full narrative, but rather, a deeper look into the lore of the world. Objectively, it's probably just a way to rake in some more money, but I appreciate it all the same.

I'm not usually a fan of audiobooks, but I had a lot of fun with this one. It's narrated by Ben Barnes (our very own Darkling) and Lauren Fortgang, and both voice actors do a wonderful job! They have a lot of diversity in their various approaches to different characters/stories and were both successful at captivating me as a reader/listener. Having two readers made it easier to stay with the story, too, which I greatly appreciated.

All in all, if you're as deeply embedded in the Grishaverse as I am, it's worth buying both a physical (which is so incredibly beautiful) and audio copy (just to listen to Ben Barnes, if nothing else) of the Lives of Saints!

I loved this book. The narrators were fantastic and the stories were engaging.

This really fleshed our the grishaverse even more, perfect for Leigh Bardugo fans.

First, don't read this if you haven't read any other book in the Grisha universe. This is 100% a companion novel that just adds to the background and history of the world. It really isn't a story, but instead a bunch of short stories of, you guessed it, the lives of saints.

I completely think that this book was pointless to be written, but that doesn't mean that I'm not grateful for it being here. I have read all of Bardugo's works including the other series of short stories to accompany the Grishaverse "The Language of Thorns". If you liked the world that Bardugo build but want to know more about its history this is for you. If you want answers and more of the old characters you loved, this is not for you.

Overall I enjoyed myself. I listened to the audiobook and really loved hearing Ben Barnes voice in this. I wish I could have had the physical book to look at the words as well, but that can easily be fixed on my part. For a short story collection this was great.

My personal favorite part was the Darklings story. He and Alina got little sections to themselves (less than 10 minutes each), but I liked that it helped show why so much of the population learned to love the Darkling and put him in power.

Thanks to Netgalley and Macmillan Audio for giving me a copy of this audiobook in exchange for an honest review.

The Lives of Saints is a fascinating collection of short stories about, well, the lives of saints, that I’m sure will add greatly to the world building of Bardugo’s Grishaverse. Incredibly reminiscent of books about the lives of Catholic saints, but with more of a fairytale feel, I found the collection charming. I loved the combination of religious and fantastical. The stories are formulaic in the best sense of the word. A collection like this in the real world is supposed to be for spiritual edification first and entertainment second, so I can only assume that’s the feel that Bardugo was going for. However, these were far from dry, and were without a doubt entertaining.

The saints presented in the collection were wonderfully varied, though most of the tales adhered to one common trope or another. There were pious youths who find themselves persecuted, superstitious citizens who killed what they didn’t understand, cowards who took their blessings so much for granted that they refused to protect them, and greedy nobles who insisted on draining a gift completely dry. The inclusion of these tropes imbued the collection with a timeless quality that reminded me of Foxe’s Book of Martyrs. Even the cover art hearkens back to Butler’s Lives of the Saints.

Honestly, I haven’t read most of the Grishaverse books. My sister-in-law has read them all and loves them. The only one I’ve read is Six of Crows, which I enjoyed. But, while I have yet to return to Bardugo’s world, it has always been my intention. I thought this audiobook would be a perfect way to dip my toe back into the Grisha waters, so to speak.

The Lives of Saints is a book that features in the main series, and I love when authors pull out fictional things like this from their world building and make them real. At 128 pages in physical and a little over 2 hours in audio, it’s a very fast read. The audio version is narrated by Lauren Fortgang and Ben Barnes. BEN BARNES. I usually try to always read things in publication order, but BEN BARNES, Y’ALL. Both narrators did an impeccable job conveying these short stories.

While I thoroughly enjoyed the audio, I was very glad to have a digital copy on my phone because the illustrations were gorgeous. There’s something about being read to while also reading the words yourself that reminds me of fairy tales from my childhood, which did nothing but improve my experience with this book. I have no doubt that The Lives of Saints will be a 5 star read for those who are already enraptured with the Grishaverse.

I loved this book and the narrators, they brought the saints to life. Now I really need to read more of the Grishaverse and finish the first series. I love the world Leigh Bardugo and you can almost feel that it is a realy place with all the love she has put into it. I would 100% recommend it for anyone who is a fan of the Grishaverse and anyone who loves to see worlds come alive.

Leigh Bardugo manages to spin lovely stories of the saints within her fantastical world, adding more depth to characters and plots she wrote years ago. These stories feel like home while also being new and fresh.

Thank you so much to Macmillan Audio and Netgalley for letting me listen to the audiobook version of The Lives of Saints by Leigh Bardugo (narrated by Ben Barnes and Lauren Fortgang) early! The print version of the book came out back in October I think, but the audiobook came out today and I really enjoyed learning about all of the saints and how they came to be saints/those they helped! This review is going to be a little different from my normal reviews (format wise) in that my whole review is going to be in this paragraph and then you’ll get my rating and the summary from Goodreads- I figured I should give y’all a heads up since it’s a little different from my normal. Initially, when I heard about The Lives of Saints, I didn’t think I was going to read it, because I didn’t think it was that important in my Grishaverse journey, but I’m really glad I listened to the audiobook version of it. Not only did I get acquainted with Ben Barnes’ voice (oh I am so excited to see him in the show!), but I also really appreciated hearing about where the saints came from and I feel like it really added to their characters, especially since we see them so much in King of Scars. The Lives of Saints is a quick, fun audiobook (it was less than 2 hours for me since I listened to it at 1.5x speed) and I definitely recommend it!

The Lives of Saints 5/5 Stars

Summary from Goodreads:

Dive into the epic world of international bestselling author Leigh Bardugo with this beautifully illustrated replica of The Lives of Saints, the Istorii Sankt’ya, featuring tales of saints drawn from the beloved novels and beyond. Out of the pages of the Shadow and Bone trilogy, from the hands of Alina Starkov to yours, the Istorii Sankt’ya is a magical keepsake from the Grishaverse.

These tales include miracles and martyrdoms from familiar saints like Sankta Lizabeta of the Roses and Sankt Ilya in Chains, to the strange and obscure stories of Sankta Ursula, Sankta Maradi, and the Starless Saint.

I want to start with the narration. It was on point. The narrator felt like they belonged in the world of Leigh Bardugo. From the first sentence i couldn't stop listening. It was melodic and intriguing. It has been a long time since an audiobook drew me in so well and kept me entertained. I will have to see what other works this narrator has done.
The story was well written and if you are a fan of the original series this is a must read/listen.

These stories have the same flavor as Leigh's other stories, but they lack the depth of those in the Language of Thorns (mostly because they're shorter). For a book about the history of Saints, however, it's pretty much what I would expect, and there were some nice tidbits and tie-ins with the rest of the series. Mostly they just made me want to go back and listen to the Grishaverse novels again.

I appreciated them more, with Lauren Fortgang and Ben Barnes reading them, than I would have if I'd read them myself, though I did miss out on the illustrations. The narration was excellent, I loved the intro/finale music, and in general, the audio production was top notch.

The audiobook itself is wonderfully done. Audiobooks are not my preferred reading format, but these stories were simple enough for me to easily follow and keep track of. I love the narrators and the music. It was interesting to hear about the different Saints referenced in Leigh Bardugo’s books, and to have the “actual” Lives of Saints book from the Grishaverse. In comparison to her other short story collection,The Language of Thorns, this collection does t have as rich or developed writing/descriptions, plot, or characters (although it still had poetic turns of phrases). The tales of the saints are shorter and a little more bare-bones. However, I think it was a smart writing choice because of how they may compare to the accounts of our own Saints and holy figures. I think that’s also why I liked to audiobook so much—-if these accounts were real, they most likely would have been spread through the oral storytelling tradition before being written down and compiled.

A beautifully narrated book! I absolutely enjoyed listening to all these stories and would 100% recommend it for anyone who is a fan of the Grishaverse!!

A fun addition to the Grishaverse world novels! I love seeing authors write additional material to support their worlds that aren’t part of the existing storyline. I enjoyed the Shadow and Bone series, wouldn’t say I loved it, but The Lives of the Saints plays a big role in the trilogy and seeing Bardugo actually write the stories and share them just gives the reader more to love.

A little bit inspiring, a little bit terrifying - all the things that make Grishaverse unique and wonderful. If you enjoy her other novels in the world, absolutely recommend picking this up to read (or listen to, as I did).

Audiobook narrators were great - I really liked having the male/female readers for the different saints! Only criticism was possibly in the audiobook production - I typically listen to audiobooks at 1.25 or 1.5x and when put at 1.5x the sound was very shaky. If this was longer than just a couple hours, it may have gotten very annoying. Otherwise great readers!

A must-listen for fans of the Grishaverse, especially with the lovely Ben Barnes (aka the Darkling!!) as narrator. I found both narrators to have pleasant voices which made for a quick, enjoyable listening experience.

The Lives of Saints is a must read for fans of the Grishaverse, though, for me, it's a one and done kind of thing. It's nice to get more into the folklore of the world but it's not something I see myself returning to.

Thank you to the publishers and NetGalley for an audiobook copy in exchange for an honest review.

The Lives of Saints transports us back to Racks and neighboring countries as we learn the origin stories for the saints of the Shadow and Bone Trilogy. Leigh Bardugo stuns with each new story as they pull you back into a world of magic and monsters.

These stories are so captivating, even though each aren't super long. These are saints I would happily pray to, and Bardugo reminds us again that sometimes the worst monsters walk and talk amount us. This audiobook is read for us by Ben Barnes, our Darkling in the Netflix series that follows both pieces of Shadow and Bone as well as Six of Crows. His narration only makes me more impatient to watch the series as I believe he will do a fantastic job bringing the Darkling to life.

If you liked Shadow and Bone you will love this collection of stories. I recommend this title for anyone 12+ after reading the Shadow and Bone Trilogy, though Six of Crow duology is not necessary

So I might have gone a little click-happy when I got this book. Just because Leah is not my favorite author, but I still wanted to give it a chance. Plus the audiobook is short so I said why not, you might end up loving it.

Definitely, one of those books where getting the physical book would have been better for the pictures. I did like the Shadow and Bone Series more than Six of Crows, and I have not read Ninth House yet. So I went into this with an open mind, and I was happily surprised by how much I loved this.

Thank you for the opportunity to review this book. I am so happy I took the chance and listened to this. We all love shorter books at the end of the year.

Title: The Lives of Saints
Author: Leigh Bardugo (@lbardugo )
Rating: 4⭐️
Narrators: Ben Barnes and Lauren Fortgang
Publish date: 12/8/2020

A collection of small stories of the saints from the grishaverse.

Narrated by Ben Barnes (Darkling in Netflix Adaptation) and Lauren Fortgang. They definitely bring the stories to life. The stories are interesting I wish they had more background. Some of the stories are super funny. If you like the grishaverse this is definitely one you will want for your collection. Some of the stories are about the saints and others are about people that pray to them. Not what I was expecting. It’s a quick read/listen.

I received an early copy of the audiobook from @macmillan.audio via @netgalley in exchange for an honest review.

#grishaverse #livesofsaints #sanctaalina #netgalleyreview #netgalleyaudiobooks #youngadult #shortstories #collections #macmillainaudio

“You can choose faith or you can choose fear. But only one will bring what you long for.”

These are short, very short, stories. It felt more like the description of a tarot card. Most were very sad stories. In order to become a saint you have die a tragic death. It was however fascinating. I don’t usually like short stories. I feel like so much is lost. I kind of wish the book was a large deck of cards and it had the picture of the Saint in the front and the story of that Saint on the back. How cool would that be? I’d cherish that book/cards.

Leigh Bardugo is one of my favorite authors and I love her Shadow and Bone series so I was excited to listen to this.

This book is very short, the audio is 2 1/4 hours. If you are expecting to learn about lives of Catholic saints, this book is not the book for you.

I wasn't familiar with Leigh Bardugo's other books and series of books. After listening, I can imagine that this book probably compliments her other books. I found this interesting even though I have never read any of Leigh Bardugo's other works.

Thank you to NetGalley and the author/Leigh Bardugo for the opportunity to review this book in exchange for an honest review.

Lauren Fortgang and Ben Barnes are the perfect narrators for “The Lives of Saints.” Lauren Fortgang narrates Leigh Bardugo’s Grisha series, so I enjoyed the consistency of her narrating this amazing companion story. Also Ben Barnes is starring in the upcoming Netflix adaptation the Grisha series, so it almost felt like a sneak peek into the show.
Fans of Leigh Bardugo will recognize this as the book carried by Alina Starkov in The Shadow and Bone Series (Grisha). I loved hearing the stories of the Saints coming to life. If you love the magical prose of Leigh Bardugo, this is the perfect addition to the collection. I really enjoyed listening short to the Istorii Sankt’ya, but the physical book also includes incredible illustrations, so I highly recommend getting both!