SHADOW AND BONE by Leigh Bardugo – GUEST POST & GIVEAWAY

Welcome to Karin’s Book Nook. Today it is my pleasure to host the Blog Tour for SHADOW AND BONE. Back in March I posted my review and as you can see, I enjoyed it immensely. I am so excited to have the author, Leigh Bardugo, guest posting on my blog today. Without further ado….

JUST WHAT DOES A KEFTA LOOK LIKE?

In Shadow and Bone, the Grisha, Ravka’s magical elite, wear a garment known as a kefta. The term and the design were inspired by the kaftans Russian men wore back in the day and, as someone who can’t resist the opportunity to talk clothes and costumes, I thought it would be fun to share some of my favorite images of vintage and modern kaftans.

(Disclaimer: One thing you’ll notice if you do a google search on “kefta”? It’s also a Middle Eastern meat dish. I debated adding an “h”, but in the end I decided to keep things simple. But no, the Grisha aren’t rocking meat dresses a la Gaga. Given the number of bears and wolves in the woods of Ravka, that would be a most imprudent fashion choice.)

Let’s start with some of the historical inspiration for the kefta:

These are from the Kremlin Armory

An illustration by Ivan Bilibin

But they weren’t just for lounging around. Look at these uniforms warn by the feared Streltsi.

This photograph by Sergei Mikhailovich Prokudin-Gorskii from the early 1900s shows children at their lessons.

I suspect this is a costume and not a real uniform in this vintage photo

And finally, this isn’t technically a kaftan, but I loved the lines and embroidery of the wool coat on the left. It was worn by Peter II.

I always imagined the kefta as something between the long, traditional robe and a coat. The sleeve and hem would have to be kept at a reasonable length since the Grisha are soldiers of the Second Army and frequently called into combat. They would wear wool, fur-lined kefta, silks in the summer.

For the kefta worn at the Winter Fete (the event of the season at the Grand Palace), I was inspired by some of the elaborate modern kaftans being created by designers like Fatna Farkh.

And Ihssan Ghailan

The kefta is a uniform and a way that the Grisha set themselves apart, but I went to an all-girls school where we wore uniforms and we always found ways to make them our own. I figured the Grisha would do the same.

The one thing that wouldn’t change would be color: Red for Corporalki, Blue for Etherealki, and Purple for Materialki. The color of the embroidery at a Grisha’s sleeve and hem indicates his or her designation within the Order. And, of course, only one Grisha wears black.

To see more kefta inspiration and Tsarpunk style, visit my pinterest boards.

To learn more about the Grisha Orders and see the crests created for them by artist Adam F. Watkins, drop by the Paperback Dolls.

Thank you, Leigh. I love all the pictures and your Pinterest boards. I am already a follower.

As part of the Blog Tour I am able to offer you a chance to win a hardback copy of your very own. Just complete the Rafflecopter tasks below before the end of the day on June 24th for your chance to win. Need to know a little more about the book?

Surrounded by enemies, the once-great nation of Ravka has been torn in two by the Shadow Fold, a swath of near impenetrable darkness crawling with monsters who feast on human flesh. Now its fate may rest on the shoulders of one lonely refugee.

Alina Starkov has never been good at anything. But when her regiment is attacked on the Fold and her best friend is brutally injured, Alina reveals a dormant power that saves his life—a power that could be the key to setting her war-ravaged country free. Wrenched from everything she knows, Alina is whisked away to the royal court to be trained as a member of the Grisha, the magical elite led by the mysterious Darkling.

Yet nothing in this lavish world is what it seems. With darkness looming and an entire kingdom depending on her untamed power, Alina will have to confront the secrets of the Grisha…and the secrets of her heart.