Reviews tagging 'Animal death'

King of Scars by Leigh Bardugo

37 reviews

shahdhazem's review against another edition

adventurous challenging dark emotional tense medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? No
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.0

This started off as really bad for me as I went through I was getting more and more disappointed about certain characters and the whole plot of the book but the last bit of the book was such a nice surprise. I was honestly thinking of giving it a 3 star because at the start it was very plain no story literally got no new info about nikolai and ravka than what I already knew from shadow and bone but I adore nikolai very much so I was just pushing on for him. Also I want to mention that I hate leigh for messing up Nina's character like that she's soo different from what she was in six of crows and I know some will say because of a certain tragic event but I honestly don't think that this event should've changed her completely no on the contrary. Also her chapters lacked any connection to nikolai's and zoya's chapters which was irritating. Last thing I'll come to the bit I liked which was the plot twists in the end that were literally mind blowing for me they were really well enacted and I gave a whole star for that and I have kind of some high hopes for rule of the wolves.

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Content Warnings

Moderate: Animal death, Forced institutionalization, Grief, and Pregnancy

Minor: Miscarriage

jelliestars's review against another edition

adventurous dark tense medium-paced

• 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

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Addiction, Death, Drug abuse, Drug use, Violence, Blood, and Grief

Moderate: Adult/minor relationship, Animal cruelty, Animal death, Body horror, Child abuse, Miscarriage, Misogyny, Pedophilia, Sexism, Slavery, Trafficking, Pregnancy, and War

Minor: Ableism, Body shaming, Gun violence, Infertility, Pedophilia, Vomit, Kidnapping, Alcohol, and Injury/Injury detail

nenya's review against another edition

adventurous dark emotional funny mysterious reflective sad tense medium-paced

• 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

I read this book after having read the Six of Crows duology, being excited to continue the Grishaverse. I would not say that I was disappointed but it wasn't entirely what I had expected. The only crow it focusses on is Nina Zenik (who is an icon, I love her with all my heart, don't get me wrong) which is amazing, because she is so developed, driven by her grief and ready to seek revenge -

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 power

, but I did wish for some insight of how the other crows have been going on. Apart from that, the plot was great and the writing very true to Bardugo but I do feel like it can not entirely match the atmosphere and brilliance of Six of Crows and Crooked Kingdom. Nevertheless, the ending took some turns I did not expect and left me pretty shocked. I'm most definitely excited to read the sequel!  

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Addiction, Death, Drug abuse, Drug use, Emotional abuse, Genocide, Gore, Mental illness, Misogyny, Racism, Sexism, Slavery, Torture, Toxic relationship, Violence, Forced institutionalization, Xenophobia, Blood, Medical content, Trafficking, Grief, Religious bigotry, Murder, Pregnancy, Fire/Fire injury, Gaslighting, War, and Injury/Injury detail

Moderate: Animal cruelty, Animal death, Confinement, and Miscarriage

Minor: Infertility, Suicide, Terminal illness, Vomit, Abandonment, and Alcohol

katvou's review against another edition

adventurous medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? N/A
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? N/A

3.0

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Content Warnings

Moderate: Addiction and Death

Minor: Animal death, Drug use, Murder, and Pregnancy

krijemseoddusana's review against another edition

adventurous challenging dark emotional mysterious medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? N/A
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

4.5

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Animal cruelty, Animal death, Death, Blood, and Murder

ju_livros's review against another edition

adventurous dark emotional medium-paced

• 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

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Animal death, Misogyny, and Xenophobia

veganecurrywurst's review against another edition

adventurous slow-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? It's complicated
• Loveable characters? It's complicated
• Diverse cast of characters? No
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.75

Ich gebe dem Buch gerade noch so 3,75 Sterne. Eigentlich war es ganz okay, aber irgendwas hat gefehlt. 
Nina war in diesem Buch wirklich ein Schatz. In den Krähen-Büchern fand ich sie okay und manchmal ein bisschen nervig, aber in diesem Buch hab ich sie geliebt.

nach allem was sie durchgemacht hat, verdient sie sich ihr happy end mit Hanne. Die zwei passen super zusammen. Ich wäre echt enttäuscht wenn die im nächsten Band nur "bffs" sind

Ich muss ganz ehrlich sagen, dass ich Zoya am Anfang dieses Buches auch teilweise nervig fand, aber ihr Wandel im Verlauf des Buches war einfach toll zu lesen. 
Nikolai war ein Charakter mit so viel ungenutztem Potential.

ich finde nicht, (wahrscheinlich als Einzige) dass Zoya und Nikolai zusammen passen. Ich wünsche mir irgendwie was anderes für ihre storyline. Irgendwie hätte ich es auch cool gefunden wenn Zoya Zarin geworden wäre. Ich kann mir vorstellen, dass sie das gut kann. Ich mag Nikolai zwar, aber ich glaub nicht, dass er für die Rolle als Zar geeignet ist. Will aber auch nicht, dass er stirbt. Vielleicht kann er einfach abdanken und sich ein gemütliches Haus irgendwo warmes kaufen und da einfach chillen. Das hätte er sich verdient.

Genya war dieses mal eher ein Nebencharakter, war aber trotzdem super.

und jetzt zu meinem absoluten Liebling: Isaak. Bitte gib ihn uns zurück, Leigh. Der war einfach so knuffig. Wie konnte sie uns das nur antun!!!!!!

Ich glaub das große Problem dieses Buches was, dass alle Vorgänger so verdammt gut waren (vorallem die Charakter waren so richtig gut ausgearbeitet und in den Krähen-Büchern gab es auch etwas mehr Diversität als in den meisten Fantasy-Romanen. Ich wünschte, dass hätte Leigh Bardugo auch in diesen Roman fortgeführt, weil mich diese Repräsentation echt gefreut hat) , da konnte das Buch nur schwer mithalten. Auch den "plottwist" am Ende fand ich jetzt nich sonderlich gut oder überraschend. Die Übersetzung war aber dieses Mal echt Klasse! Großes Lob an Michelle Gyo <3

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Death, Drug abuse, Grief, and War

Moderate: Animal death, Sexism, Murder, and Pregnancy

Minor: Adult/minor relationship and Misogyny

theirgracegrace's review against another edition

adventurous dark emotional mysterious tense fast-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

4.25

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Content Warnings

Moderate: Body horror, Death, Gun violence, Misogyny, Sexism, Violence, Xenophobia, Blood, Grief, Religious bigotry, Murder, and War

Minor: Alcoholism, Animal cruelty, Animal death, Child death, Confinement, Sexual assault, Slavery, Toxic relationship, Death of parent, Gaslighting, Alcohol, Colonisation, and Injury/Injury detail

claudiamacpherson's review against another edition

adventurous emotional funny hopeful inspiring medium-paced

• 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

The Darkling is gone and the Fold is destroyed, but this is Ravka, so nothing is ever easy. Fjerda and Shu Han are at Ravka’s borders, ready to exploit any weakness left by the civil war. The Kerch are already asking Ravka to pay its debts, but the nation will only need more money if they are to survive the coming battles. Miracles have been appearing all across Ravka, and while most of the devout take heart from the old saints, some believe that a new saint should be added to their ranks: the Starless One. Amidst this chaos, King Nikolai is still playing host to the shadow demon forced on him by the Darkling’s nichevo’ya, and it is becoming increasingly hard to hide. Zoya serves by his side, trying to keep her king safe—and others safe from him. Nina is dealing with her grief as best she can, but throwing herself into her work as a spy in Fjerda.

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.

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):

Cliffhanger, of course, because this is Leigh Bardugo and there’s a sequel on the way. Thank god I picked it up almost immediately!

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Content Warnings

Moderate: Addiction, Death, Xenophobia, Blood, Murder, and Pregnancy

Minor: Animal cruelty, Animal death, Body horror, Cancer, Child abuse, Drug use, Miscarriage, Physical abuse, Sexism, Sexual assault, Suicidal thoughts, Torture, Violence, Forced institutionalization, Vomit, Police brutality, Kidnapping, Religious bigotry, Medical trauma, Fire/Fire injury, Gaslighting, Abandonment, and Alcohol

laurennicold's review against another edition

dark medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? Yes

4.25

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Addiction, Animal death, Child abuse, and Misogyny

Moderate: Rape, Sexual assault, Sexual violence, Trafficking, and Pregnancy

Minor: Miscarriage