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4.18 AVERAGE
4.18 AVERAGE
4.25 stars
rep: gay side character
cw: torture, brief mention of implied rape
honestly the first couple of times that I read this, I was annoyed by how slow it was but this time around, I found the pace to be more pleasant than before. the way things unfurl and how arin and kestrel slowly build their relationship back up was more believable and realistic to me.
rep: gay side character
cw: torture, brief mention of implied rape
honestly the first couple of times that I read this, I was annoyed by how slow it was but this time around, I found the pace to be more pleasant than before. the way things unfurl and how arin and kestrel slowly build their relationship back up was more believable and realistic to me.
“You don’t need to be gifted with a blade. You are your own best weapon.”
This book deserves all the stars!
I feel like I’ve seen my baby grown up. Back when The Winner’s Trilogy was a young thing that started off as The Winner’s Curse, I did not enjoy this series as much as everyone else did. Everyone was hyping and acting all excited for this book, and I was just there in the unpopular opinion section just like -.-
My thoughts at the time were that the book focused on a love story I wasn’t even interested in. So you can imagine how funny it is now that I was madly flipping through this book just to get a glimpse of the romance between Kestrel and Arin!
“He changed us both.” She seemed to struggle for words. “I think of you, all that you lost, who you were, what you were forced to be, and might have been, and I—I have become this, this person, unable to—”
She shut her mouth.
“Kestrel,” he said softly, “I love this person.”
Please hold onto my soul to help me keep it from ripping apart.
Besides the obvious fact that things I did not like from the first book developed so wonderfully by the end of this final one, I would also like to point out that with every book in this series, my rating has only gone higher. So that has to mean something. XD
I’ve already said before: Kestrel is one of my favorite YA female heroines. She knows herself. And although the premise of this book doesn’t play out the way you thought it would, I was still so happy and thankful that the qualities in Kestrel that I admired were still there, no matter what happened to her. And that was the most important to me. That she’s managed to grow and be the same person at the same time.
“What am I now?”
Sarsine held both of Kestrel’s hands. “What ever you want to be.”
I really, really loved Arin in this book! Although his character was slightly darker, it made him more realistic and didn’t change the dynamic between him and Kestrel.
Usually, I really hate politics. But in books, I either hate them or love them. It’s no different in The Winner’s Kiss that the strategic planning and the intricate war strategy was what really kept me going on this! So if you’re a fan of political intrigue, be prepared for that! The actual battle scenes were pretty cool, in my opinion. Especially because it was so realistic.
Shout out to Roshar for being awesome! The bromance between him and Arin was amazing and as well as the banter between Kestrel and Roshar!
Overall, great series!
After being let down from the second book I was happy to see Arin and Kestrel reunited. Kestrel really grew in this, showing her cunning war oriented mind but also her more human emotional side. I also enjoyed her relationship with Roshar, who is my favorite character of the series: funny and flawed just like I like them. The ending was bitter sweet as I would have wanted Verex on the throne, but I also think it could be a way to maybe continue this story in a new series of companion novels... Or is that asking for too much?
One of my favorite series I've ever read. Kestrel and Arins' stories were well balanced and played off of each other well...resulted in a really beautiful romance.
Their romance was a major theme throughout the series thats for sure, but there was so much more to the story that made it such a page-turner.
I'm often off put by YA romance that is highly unrealistic, or pushes gender roles too hard. This said, the author creates a "forbidden romance," that could be cliche and nauseating, but instead was balanced, intelligent and interesting.
I just fell in love with how Marie Rutkoski writes dialogue, distinct character development, and builds her world flawlessly. The story was so easy to immerse myself in because of her spectacular word play.
I loved the characters and I found myself really invested by the end of the series, I will miss them!
I look forward to reading Marie's books to come!
Their romance was a major theme throughout the series thats for sure, but there was so much more to the story that made it such a page-turner.
I'm often off put by YA romance that is highly unrealistic, or pushes gender roles too hard. This said, the author creates a "forbidden romance," that could be cliche and nauseating, but instead was balanced, intelligent and interesting.
I just fell in love with how Marie Rutkoski writes dialogue, distinct character development, and builds her world flawlessly. The story was so easy to immerse myself in because of her spectacular word play.
I loved the characters and I found myself really invested by the end of the series, I will miss them!
I look forward to reading Marie's books to come!
4.5
In my opinion, The Winner's Kiss was quite the improvement from the previous book. [b:The Winner's Crime|20443207|The Winner's Crime (The Winner's Trilogy, #2)|Marie Rutkoski|https://d.gr-assets.com/books/1411741455s/20443207.jpg|31174003] was so focused on lies and deception- neither character was very honest with one another and that was what caused most of the problems in the series. Now, Kestral and Arin have begun something new.. honesty. Whaaaat. And it works out! Let's be honest- this book biggest draw is the romance. And the romance is good. The relationship feels real. The other, more political, aspects of war and human relationships in the book are there as well- but definitely not as masterfully done as others. Rutkoski does a good job overall though, and I'd be down to read more.
In my opinion, The Winner's Kiss was quite the improvement from the previous book. [b:The Winner's Crime|20443207|The Winner's Crime (The Winner's Trilogy, #2)|Marie Rutkoski|https://d.gr-assets.com/books/1411741455s/20443207.jpg|31174003] was so focused on lies and deception- neither character was very honest with one another and that was what caused most of the problems in the series. Now, Kestral and Arin have begun something new.. honesty. Whaaaat. And it works out! Let's be honest- this book biggest draw is the romance. And the romance is good. The relationship feels real. The other, more political, aspects of war and human relationships in the book are there as well- but definitely not as masterfully done as others. Rutkoski does a good job overall though, and I'd be down to read more.
I loved everything about this book. I couldn't put it down. The ending was perfect too. It wasn't rushed or vague at anytime like the last book for some series that I've read. The very ending/last scene was just too cute!
adventurous
inspiring
reflective
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
I loved this whole trilogy - each book had a different vibe but it works so well. Kestrel and Arin are both great POV characters and I’m so glad we got to be in both of their perspectives. Without going into detail, it’s so fitting to end where we started.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Death, Gore, Slavery, Violence, Blood, War
Moderate: Animal death, Body horror, Drug use, Gun violence, Torture, Xenophobia
Minor: Sexual content
(review for the entire Winner's Trilogy)
Book One: Slave-Master dynamics were deeply intriguing, but didn't go quite where I wanted it.
Book Two: Frustrating, forgettable.
Book Three: Oh dip, it's the Memory Loss Trope, one of my favorites ever, do I love this series??
Book One: Slave-Master dynamics were deeply intriguing, but didn't go quite where I wanted it.
Book Two: Frustrating, forgettable.
Book Three: Oh dip, it's the Memory Loss Trope, one of my favorites ever, do I love this series??
So good. Loved this book! I grew to love this series more and more and I thought this was the best one for sure. Man I love these characters. I loved the writing... Everything. I've already said this before but WOW Marie Rutkoski likes to make her readers wait. At parts I was so frustrated in this series when people kept missing one another or wouldn't speak their minds until it was too late. That was a huge part of this book was the timing. Loved all of the plotting and strategy in this book. It was so refreshing to read about a main character who wasn't the best at weapons but was intelligent and crafty and used that to her advantage. The love story (while at time just about killed me) was beautiful. Loved all the twists and surprises. This ending was perfect. I'm super happy with how everything wrapped up.