Ruin and Rising Review

Ruin and Rising by Leigh Bardugo

Title: Ruin and Rising

Author: Leigh Bardugo

Series: Grisha #3

Publisher: Henry Holt and Co.

Publication Date: June 17, 2014

Genre: Fiction; Fantasy; Romance; Young Adult

Pages: 417

Format: Hardback

goodreads

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.

Let’s get one thing straight: The Darkling literally rules the world. No matter how hard I try, I cannot let go of him. Even when the author makes him obviously evil, I can’t let him go. This book wasn’t as bad as the previous ones, and I actually did have a bit of closure. That is until the very end. No spoilers, I promise, but it was really bad.

Alina is tired of sitting around and waiting for the revolution to arrive. Stowed away from the rest of the world, Alina and her friends decide to break free from the oppressively protective Apparat and defy the Darkling once and for all. As Alina and Mal begin their search for the last remaining amplifier, they will discover secrets about the Darkling and themselves that will reshape their destiny to save Ravka. Alina could lose everything she loves–is Ravka’s future really worth it?

Mal is not bad. He is just not as good as the Darkling. He doesn’t even come close to the magnanimous awesomeness of the Darkling. He’s sweet. I guess. And, okay, he’s a little heroic. And he’s not hella-crazy like the Darkling. Okay, fine, Mal is obviously the better, nicer choice. But that doesn’t mean I have to like it. What can I say? Bardugo did a little too well in crafting a swoon-worthy Darkling prince in the first book. There really is no recovery from it. Does Darkling rehabilitation exist? Because I think I need to attend a session.

Alina was not as strong a female character in this book as she was in the previous two, which really was a shame. I mean, the finale is where it all counts doesn’t it? The finale should be filled with kick-ass, go-get-‘em characters, but, to be honest, I didn’t see as much of that as I would’ve liked. I wanted Alina to be at her strongest. I wanted to see the change in her from Book 1 to Book 3. The search for that transformation was as fruitless as Mal and Alina’s mission for the Morozova amplifiers. It simply, in my opinion, did not exist.

There were some really good moments also. All the scenes with Nikolai Lantsov were fantastic moments for example. It is such a shame was happened to him (again, no spoilers. It’s just…well…yeah. It was bad.), and honestly, I was more emotionally invested in Nikolai than I was in Alina, Mal, and the whole gang combined. Although, the Darkling still rules all. It goes: 1) Darkling 2) Nikolai and 3) Alina, Mal, and everyone else ever mentioned in the book. Can’t you tell I have my priorities in order? And, for future reference Bardugo, when you have made a character as amazing and wonderful as Nikolai Lantsov, you don’t go and just do what you did to him. You’ll save your readers a lot of heartache. 

This book was a solid four. Not quite a five, but not so bad as to be a three. Just a four. Which is considerably better than some of the books out there. Overall, it is worth the time and effort and a recommendable ending to one of my favorite book series.