The first sneak peek for Shadow and Bone season 2 dropped during Netflix's 2022 TUDUM event, and it's already potentially setting up a big story from the third Shadow and Bone book. The first season was a hit for Netflix, one of only three shows in Netflix history at that point to stay in the Top 10 for the first 12 days of release. The show drew in plenty of new viewers, but was helped by a preexisting fanbase that had already read the book series. While Shadow and Bone is only approaching its second season, those familiar with the books know that Book 3, Ruin and Rising, starts off with things drastically changed.
Season 1 of Shadow and Bone did an excellent job of adapting Leigh Bardugo's Grishaverse book trilogy, even accounting for the weaving in of the Crows from the Six of Crows duology with a completely original story. Shadow and Bone season 2 will likely be more of the same, making some changes to the exact story while still staying largely true to the narrative. So it's likely that by the time the Shadow and Bone season 2 finale wraps, the story will be considerably different than it was in the books, the same as season 1. However, the sneak peek has hinted that at least one big storyline from Ruin and Rising will stay in the show.
Warning: Spoilers for Books 2 & 3 of the Grisha trilogy, Siege and Storm and Ruin and Rising, are ahead. In one shot, the Shadow and Bone season 2 teaser briefly shows Nikolai (Patrick Gibson), Tolya (Lewis Tan), and a third man carrying a lantern and walking through a flooded tunnel. In the books, it's revealed that behind the Royal Chapel on Os Alta, which is situated about halfway between the Grand Palace of the Lantsov family and the Little Palace of the Grisha, there is a secret tunnel that leads underground. That tunnel is part of a network of tunnels and caverns that leads to what is called the White Cathedral, an absolutely massive underground cavern. It becomes a stronghold for Alina (Jessie Mei Li) and her followers, allowing them to remain undetected by the Darkling (Ben Barnes) and his nichevo'ya shadow creatures–though it also later becomes something of a prison, as Shadow and Bone season 3 will almost certainly cover.
Will The White Cathedral Be In Shadow & Bone Season 2?
Granted, the shot in the teaser was incredibly quick. It's entirely possible that the tunnel isn't the one leading to the White Cathedral. Still, the very fact that the Shadow and Bone season 2 sneak peek even made a point to show the tunnel at all is a good sign that the cavern and cave system will play a big part in the show. The Royal Chapel, which isn't really mentioned at all in the first book or season 1 of the show, becomes an important setting in Siege and Storm. It's likely this will be the case for Shadow and Bone season 2, though the White Cathedral itself will likely be saved for Shadow and Bone season 3, should it happen.
This also hints that the Apparat (Kevin Eldon), who mostly just lurked around the edges being creepy in Shadow and Bone season 1, will get a larger role in season 2, just as he does in the books. He is a fascinating, if hateful character, one whose zealous piety hides a calculating and manipulative political mind. He is both ally and antagonist, and with Alina now away from the Little Palace and Os Alta heading into season 2, it's entirely likely that this season will see the Apparat make his move. What that means for Shadow and Bone season 3 remains to be seen, but it's entirely likely that the White Cathedral and its storyline will be a big part of it.