The anticipated Netflix fantasy series Shadow and Bone, based on the bestselling books by Leigh Bardugo, is set to release next week! With the trailers and images slowly being released by Netflix, fans get a closer look at what to expect from their favorite stories and characters. With both the Shadow and Bone trilogy and the Six of Crows duology being blended together, fans are wondering just how this might work.

Fortunately, The Nerds of Color got to chat with the stars and creatives of Shadow and Bone — showrunner Eric Heisserer, author and executive producer Leigh Bardugo, and stars Jessie Mei Li, Ben Barnes, and Archie Renaux to learn about what to expect, how much you’re going to ship the characters (as much as I did), and how each of these actors feel for their roles.

Check it out below:

Shadow and Bone Official Synopsis:

Based on Leigh Bardugo’s worldwide bestselling Grishaverse novels, Shadow and Bone finds us in a war-torn world where lowly soldier and orphan Alina Starkov has just unleashed an extraordinary power that could be the key to setting her country free. With the monstrous threat of the Shadow Fold looming, Alina is torn from everything she knows to train as part of an elite army of magical soldiers known as Grisha. But as she struggles to hone her power, she finds that allies and enemies can be one and the same and that nothing in this lavish world is what it seems. There are dangerous forces at play, including a crew of charismatic criminals, and it will take more than magic to survive.

Shadow and Bone premieres April 23 on Netflix.