A review by filipacmiranda
Ruin and Rising by Leigh Bardugo

3.75

Ruin and Rising starts strong with Alina, Mal and all the other Grisha hiding in the White Cathedral, growing Alina's holly following, and escaping the Apparat's schemes. After that, they head towards the Spinning Wheel and reunite with Nikolai. These events also bring back Baghra and a few other (not so) beloved characters. 

Regarding characters, this book creates a few important arcs that open doors for the King of Scars duology. I also enjoyed reading about the group's journey towards the Spinning Wheel and their expedition looking for the Firebird. It allowed space to watch them grow tighter and learn to work together as a team. Despite this, I have liked the Alina-Darkling interactions to be more deeply explored, in the sense that I wanted them to better build up to the ending the author designed for both characters. 

Finally, the Darkling's and Mal's fates annoyed me. While the first one's death was mundane and, in a way, didn't seem fitting for the character's relevance throughout the story, the other's survival sounded unlikely and was poorly explained. I appreciated the trilogy's ending and how it turned into a full-circle moment for the main character, but I believe a few tweaks could have made it more memorable.

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1st Read (2020): 4.25 stars 
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