Book Review- Ruin & Rising
 |
| Ruin & Rising by Leigh Bardugo |
♥♥♥♥♥
Name: Ruin & Rising
Author: Leigh Bardugo
Year Published: 2014
Publisher: Square Fish
Genre: Young Adult, Fiction, Fantasy
Plot: ♥♥♥♥♥
World Building: ♥♥♥♥♥
Characters: ♥♥♥♥♥
Flow :♥♥♥♥♥
Synopsis:
The capital has fallen.
The Darkling rules Ravka from his shadow throne.
Now the nation's fate rests with a broken Sun Summoner, a disgraced tracker, and the shattered remnants of a once-great magical army.
Deep in an ancient network of tunnels and caverns, a weakened Alina must submit to the dubious protection of the Apparat and the zealots who worship her as a Saint. Yet her plans lie elsewhere, with the hunt for the elusive firebird and the hope that an outlaw prince still survives.
Alina will have to forge new alliances and put aside old rivalries as she and Mal race to find the last of Morozova's amplifiers. But as she begins to unravel the Darkling's secrets, she reveals a past that will forever alter her understanding of the bond they share and the power she wields. The firebird is the one thing that stands between Ravka and destruction—and claiming it could cost Alina the very future she’s fighting for.
The Darkling rules Ravka from his shadow throne.
Now the nation's fate rests with a broken Sun Summoner, a disgraced tracker, and the shattered remnants of a once-great magical army.
Deep in an ancient network of tunnels and caverns, a weakened Alina must submit to the dubious protection of the Apparat and the zealots who worship her as a Saint. Yet her plans lie elsewhere, with the hunt for the elusive firebird and the hope that an outlaw prince still survives.
Alina will have to forge new alliances and put aside old rivalries as she and Mal race to find the last of Morozova's amplifiers. But as she begins to unravel the Darkling's secrets, she reveals a past that will forever alter her understanding of the bond they share and the power she wields. The firebird is the one thing that stands between Ravka and destruction—and claiming it could cost Alina the very future she’s fighting for.
Review*:
Where to even begin. I absolutely loved this series and specifically this final book. The way Leigh finished was perfect with the appropriate amount of loss and love. Her "After" had my heart so full for Alina and Mal it was so perfect.
First, I would like to say that despite me loving this more than the previous two books, it felt like it took longer to get through for some reason. I found myself a little fed up with all of Alina's loses we had seen start to stack against her. Despite the fight at the top of the mountain ending pretty disasterous-ly (Is that a word?), I was happy to see that the crew was finally moving forward to their goal that felt like was becoming less and less important of finding the firebird. When Nikolai turned into that monster, I was so furious I actually put the book in time out for several hours because I couldn't believe the Darkling mutilated him.
I mentioned this in my review for Siege & Storm, but the Darkling actually underwhelmed me in this story as far as being a villain. I felt that the segrigation of grisha and the greed of man was a clearer villain. That being said, I think Leigh did a great job of despite the Darkling being the antagonist, he was still somewhat human. My version of the book also had 'The Demon in The Wood' which drilled in what I felt was the motive of the Darkling. He grew up in a world where grisha were segregated and murdered for their powers, much like in Fjerda & Shu Han. He dreamed of a place where they weren't hunted for their differences, a safe place for grisha. The Little Palace ended up being a safe place and the second army was the Darkling assisting his fellow grisha from not having to feel fear for being what they were.
The story about Mal was actually really beautiful. His true nature being the third amplifier was surprising and heartbreaking-ly sweet. Alina's question about whether or not their relationship was truly them or the bond they shared as grisha and amplified was also really human and grounding. I think Mal specifically changed so much as a character in these books and I think in the end he ended up being my favorite character next to Tamar and Tolya. Both him and Alina losing her powers and his adept ability to track was also super fitting since it wasn't her necessarily sacrificing her powers for a boy. It was more like they both sacrificed themselves for the future of Ravka and understood each others loss.
As much as I was frustrated about Nikolai being harmed by the Darkling, by the end of the book it made me excited to see how he is coping in King of Scars. As Alina said as well, despite the terror Nikolai experienced, this also was something to learn from, which is something common in the entire book. Alina and Mal learned to be resilient a long time ago and I think thats what made them easy for me to immediately feel connected to. Alina understand that despite the horrors and how easy it would be to turn to greed, the mercies of the world were valuable. Mal taught us to be strong after loss and sacrifice, that we should keep moving forward.
I so look forward to whatever Leigh writes in the future and being able to indulge in her current books as well. As much as I want to dive right into King of Scars when I get it, I will refrain until I've finished Six of Crows partially so I can read things in the order they were published and because Leigh stated on Twitter that King of Scars would spoil Crooked Kingdom.
First, I would like to say that despite me loving this more than the previous two books, it felt like it took longer to get through for some reason. I found myself a little fed up with all of Alina's loses we had seen start to stack against her. Despite the fight at the top of the mountain ending pretty disasterous-ly (Is that a word?), I was happy to see that the crew was finally moving forward to their goal that felt like was becoming less and less important of finding the firebird. When Nikolai turned into that monster, I was so furious I actually put the book in time out for several hours because I couldn't believe the Darkling mutilated him.
I mentioned this in my review for Siege & Storm, but the Darkling actually underwhelmed me in this story as far as being a villain. I felt that the segrigation of grisha and the greed of man was a clearer villain. That being said, I think Leigh did a great job of despite the Darkling being the antagonist, he was still somewhat human. My version of the book also had 'The Demon in The Wood' which drilled in what I felt was the motive of the Darkling. He grew up in a world where grisha were segregated and murdered for their powers, much like in Fjerda & Shu Han. He dreamed of a place where they weren't hunted for their differences, a safe place for grisha. The Little Palace ended up being a safe place and the second army was the Darkling assisting his fellow grisha from not having to feel fear for being what they were.
The story about Mal was actually really beautiful. His true nature being the third amplifier was surprising and heartbreaking-ly sweet. Alina's question about whether or not their relationship was truly them or the bond they shared as grisha and amplified was also really human and grounding. I think Mal specifically changed so much as a character in these books and I think in the end he ended up being my favorite character next to Tamar and Tolya. Both him and Alina losing her powers and his adept ability to track was also super fitting since it wasn't her necessarily sacrificing her powers for a boy. It was more like they both sacrificed themselves for the future of Ravka and understood each others loss.
As much as I was frustrated about Nikolai being harmed by the Darkling, by the end of the book it made me excited to see how he is coping in King of Scars. As Alina said as well, despite the terror Nikolai experienced, this also was something to learn from, which is something common in the entire book. Alina and Mal learned to be resilient a long time ago and I think thats what made them easy for me to immediately feel connected to. Alina understand that despite the horrors and how easy it would be to turn to greed, the mercies of the world were valuable. Mal taught us to be strong after loss and sacrifice, that we should keep moving forward.
I so look forward to whatever Leigh writes in the future and being able to indulge in her current books as well. As much as I want to dive right into King of Scars when I get it, I will refrain until I've finished Six of Crows partially so I can read things in the order they were published and because Leigh stated on Twitter that King of Scars would spoil Crooked Kingdom.
*There may be spoilers in this section of the review. If you do not wish to be spoiled, please stop reading.
Comments
Post a Comment