trintrin's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.25
THE CHARACTERS!!!
Man I was already in love with Nikolai and Zoya and this is not helping!! Nikolai was the sole reason I picked up this book, and I enjoyed every bit of him. I did not expect to love Zoya's POVs but girl snatched my wig fr. I would die for these two at any given time istg. Isaak, you sweetheart, you stole my heart, and so did Hanne. And Nina, of course, I was beginning to worry she didn't contribute as much as she did in SoC, but she pulled through towards the very end. One more thing, I wanted to see Nikolai doing more king-y stuff. I wanted to see him in court. I wanted to see him rule. I wanted to see more of Sturmhond, more of the too-clever-fox, more of him charming people and just doing the Nikolai thing. By the looks of it, it will get more political in Rule of Wolves and I can't wait for that!
I have a love/hate relationship with the multiple callbacks to the previous books. Like yes I was nearly squirming with joy
The plot
I was very surprised when I realised the first 2/3rd - aka the sloooow part where pretty much nothing happens - was actually my favourite. Felt like that's where the characters shined the most. And then after that it was just uhhhh???
Spoiler
I wasn't really vibing with the whole Saints in the Fold thing but yay go Zoya the dragon ig? And I'm absolutely 1000% not a fan of reviving the DarklingSo yeah an exciting-but-confusing-but-still-got-you-wanting-the-sequel read
Graphic: Forced institutionalization, Grief, Pregnancy, Addiction, Drug abuse, Blood, Death, and Drug use
Moderate: Animal death, Religious bigotry, Murder, and War
Minor: Child death, Infertility, Miscarriage, Misogyny, Vomit, and Sexism
lis4so's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.5
Graphic: Violence, Blood, Drug use, Gun violence, Death, Hate crime, Misogyny, Murder, Gore, Addiction, and Grief
Moderate: Gore, Grief, Gun violence, Miscarriage, War, Adult/minor relationship, Domestic abuse, Kidnapping, Violence, Child abuse, Murder, Suicide, Suicide attempt, Fire/Fire injury, and Slavery
Minor: Abandonment, Animal death, Bullying, Rape, Dysphoria, Fire/Fire injury, War, Torture, Slavery, and Vomit
green_amaryllis's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
Graphic: Violence, Grief, and Death
Moderate: Vomit
Minor: Animal death
jelliestars's review
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.75
Graphic: Blood, Death, Drug use, Drug abuse, Grief, Violence, and Addiction
Moderate: Adult/minor relationship, Animal cruelty, Animal death, Body horror, Child abuse, War, Trafficking, Slavery, Sexism, Pregnancy, Pedophilia, Misogyny, and Miscarriage
Minor: Ableism, Alcohol, Body shaming, Gun violence, Infertility, Injury/injury detail, Kidnapping, Pedophilia, and Vomit
nenya's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.25
Spoiler
it is beyond fulfilling to see her get it not only for her but also for the dead women and children by having them speak their truth and avenge themselves through her powerGraphic: Death, Drug abuse, Emotional abuse, Blood, Fire/Fire injury, Forced institutionalization, Genocide, Gore, Grief, Murder, Sexism, Slavery, Medical content, Mental illness, Injury/injury detail, Pregnancy, Racism, Religious bigotry, Toxic relationship, Trafficking, Xenophobia, Violence, War, Addiction, Misogyny, Drug use, Gaslighting, and Torture
Moderate: Confinement, Miscarriage, Animal death, and Animal cruelty
Minor: Infertility, Suicide, Alcohol, Terminal illness, Abandonment, and Vomit
claudiamacpherson's review
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
Okay I know that everyone loves the <i>Six of Crows</i> duology best in the Grishaverse but...I think I might actually prefer <i>King of Scars</i> and <i>Rule of Wolves</i> (review to come)! This book started out a little slow but picked right up and then I could NOT put it down. The tension between Nikolai and Zoya is immaculate, and literally any scene with Nikolai bantering with one of his friends makes my heart explode. Even more than that (if that’s possible), I loved Nina’s storyline as she deals with her grief and throws herself headlong into every dangerous situation she can find.
Spoiler
I am also obsessed with her relationship with Hanne...it might actually be my very favorite wlw relationship that I’ve read!Happy ending meter (no specific spoilers, just the general vibe of the ending):
Spoiler
Cliffhanger, of course, because this is Leigh Bardugo and there’s a sequel on the way. Thank god I picked it up almost immediately!Moderate: Addiction, Blood, Death, Murder, Pregnancy, and Xenophobia
Minor: Abandonment, Alcohol, Animal cruelty, Animal death, Body horror, Cancer, Child abuse, Drug use, Fire/Fire injury, Forced institutionalization, Gaslighting, Kidnapping, Medical trauma, Miscarriage, Physical abuse, Police brutality, Religious bigotry, Sexism, Sexual assault, Suicidal thoughts, Torture, Violence, and Vomit
emily_mh's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.5
Being back in the Grishaverse was a delight, but so was reading Bardugo's writing again. It is wonderfully descriptive, and her plot development here is truly on another level in comparison to Shadow and Bone and Six of Crows. I really enjoyed seeing her expand her world-building, and she REALLY knows how to write incredible endings.
I docked a half-star for two reasons. The first is that I felt extremely disconnected from Nikolai, to the point where (shockingly, given he was one of my favourite characters in Shadow and Bone), I was dreading his POV chapters. The second is that for the first half of this book the plot felt a little directionless in that I didn't really know what the book was going to be about until like 250 pages in.
Spoiler
Also, the return of the Darkling kind of feels like a cheap enemy and I'm worried about how it's going to impact my enjoyment of Rule of Wolves.Graphic: Death and Violence
Moderate: Addiction, Animal death, Blood, Drug abuse, Drug use, Fire/Fire injury, Gore, Grief, Kidnapping, Medical content, Misogyny, Murder, Physical abuse, Pregnancy, Sexism, and War
Minor: Ableism, Alcohol, Animal cruelty, Body horror, Body shaming, Cancer, Child death, Confinement, Death of parent, Excrement, Fatphobia, Gun violence, Infidelity, Miscarriage, Pedophilia, Religious bigotry, Sexual assault, Sexual content, Slavery, Torture, and Vomit
syllareads's review
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.0
This book follows well-known characters from the Grisha trilogy and one of our main characters from the Six of Crows duology, Nina Zenik. Thrust into the role of a king for a land on the brink of one catastrophe after the other, Nikolai Lantsov wrestles with far more than just his everyday share of problems ranging from petty noblemen to Ravka's empty coffers. The war has left his scars on him, both physically and mentally - and there's this tiny thing about him turning into a monster in the night, scaring goose herders shitless and almost killing his only loyal friends. Zoya Nazyalensky, Grisha and general to a crumbling throne, is one of those loyal friends, her memories of the past as sharp and jagged as a knife's edge in her mind - for she fears that forgetting will make her fall for another man's lies again, and again. Nina Zenik has travelled far to lay her love, Matthias Helvar, to rest in his own country - but on the way there she discovers something she cannot let go, as much as she would perhaps like to.
Bardugo's perspectives are always a joy to read, her characters' voices as distinct as humanly possible, her descriptions sharp and accurate. Nikolai and Nina were two of my favourite characters from previous installments in the Grishaverse to begin with and Zoya grew on me (even on my first read) of this book - my sympathies did not diminish during my reread. It was fascinating to read about how differently these three main characters handle grief and memories of the past.
The one thing that I found a bit lacking (which I might have missed the first time around due to sheer excitement lol) was the ending itself - some parts of it felt a bit too hastily done without too much love and I found myself not being as emotionally invested in it as I would have liked. Still, I enjoyed the book almost as much as I did the first time around, and I cannot wait to start Rule of Wolves to finally get to the (as of now) end of the Grishaverse!
Graphic: Addiction, Trafficking, Pregnancy, Miscarriage, Grief, and Drug abuse
Moderate: Vomit
gothicmoon's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
not five stars because nina's story doesn't really connect with nikolai and zoya's. it just feels like two books smashed together, and even though i was interested in both, the cuts were annoying. i didn't want to put nikolai's story down nor nina's once i got back into it, but together they were disconnected. it doesn't help that nikolai's story branches into two later and the three stories just get in each other's way.
nina is bi
Graphic: Blood, Death, Drug use, Grief, Murder, and Religious bigotry
Minor: Animal death, Child abuse, Child death, Confinement, Drug use, Grief, Hate crime, Miscarriage, Misogyny, Pregnancy, Suicide, Trafficking, and Vomit
valyn_grebe's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
Graphic: Death, Murder, and Violence
Moderate: Drug use, Grief, and Gun violence
Minor: Animal death, Child abuse, Kidnapping, Miscarriage, Pregnancy, Sexism, Slavery, and Vomit