Reviews

King of Scars by Leigh Bardugo

lisafrdd's review against another edition

adventurous challenging dark emotional inspiring mysterious slow-paced

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

4.0

cbleyer's review against another edition

3.0

"'So many of my old friends, gathered in one place,' said the Darkling from the mouth of a loyal, gullible boy, another fool who had loved him. 'It's good to be home.'"

it was good- but I just miss the chaotic characters and dynamic of Six of Crows- I don't like the Grisha and the Darkling being the center of the story like in KOS and S&B

Nikolai does slay though
Basically in this book Nina is in Fjerda and saves these Grisha who are all pregnant and addicted to Jurda Parem- orchestrated to be slaves- Nina also meets Hanne who we later discover is Jarl Brum's daughter
Nikolai basically is still stuck with a part of the darling beast instilled in him from S&B and he's trying to get rid of it- the beast in him ravages mostly during the night but it does become stronger
There's also a cult that forms around the Darkling- worshipping him
Nikolai also needs an alliance and a wife
Nikolai wants to be a better king than his father- he truly cares for ravka
"But above all else, he did it because he knew he needed to rescue his country."
Zoya and Nikolai's banter is great though

Also- leader of Darkling cult- yuri, zoya, and nikolai get stuck in the depths of the Fold with dead saints who can't escape and die completely until the darkling is completely destroyed
to do this- nikolai's beast must be eradicated
One of the dead saints - Juris- helps zoya develop her power and realize she can be more than a squalor
Grisha- such as Juris used to become one with the amplifier they gained- giving them more power
"We did not just take an animal's life, we gave up a part of ourselves in return. But somewhere along the way, Grisha began killing, claiming a piece of the power of creation without giving anything of ourselves. This is the pathetic tradition of your amplifiers."
also- its realized Grisha don't use their power, they are their power.
Juris dies and zoya takes him as an amplifier- bonded to the dragon- giving her strength
Elizaveta- one of the saints is evil and tries to resurrect the darling in Yuri so she stays alive
Zoya kills her but somehow the darling power is split and half of it is still in Nikolai and half of it is in Yuri- a new manifestation of the Darkling
"He didn't have the heart to tell her he could still feel the monster somewhere inside him- weakened, licking its wounds, but waiting for the opportunity to rise again."

While zoya, yuri, and Nikolai disappear- a guard at the palace- Isaak impersonates Nikolai
Isaak falls in love with the Shu princess- Ehir but she kills Isaak and attempts to kill herself after
But- the girl who was claiming to be Ehir is actually an assassin and the real Nikolai takes hostage of the real Ehir

Also- Nina is saved from an attack of wolves by Trassel- Matthias' wolf?
Nina is left very depressed by Matthias' death and waits to bury him in Fjerda
And Jurl Brum believes Nina saved him from dying under her alias

I also thing Jesper's mom was the one to heal Leoni- a girl who works alongside Nina to save Grisha in Fjerda
"The zowa healer who helped me perished in order to save my life. She died pulling the poison from my body." (pg. 316)

anna77beth's review against another edition

• Loveable characters? Yes

4.0

aqua_lilium's review against another edition

Y'all, I'm going to be honest with you. Reading this book was a pain. If it wasn't for the things I got spoiled already I wouldn't be bothering with finishing the book. And oh my gee how many time I wanted to yeet the book.

And for me the Grishaverse finished with SoC duology. This book was so unnecessary that I cannot even begin to describe.

laurad_reads's review against another edition

3.0

Very much yes and very much no.

secreativa's review against another edition

5.0

Me caí de re ojete mal, tremendo plot twist
Pdt: Te amo Nikolai 

bethbarron's review against another edition

4.0

I was cleaved in two by the grief at the beginning of this. One of the most poignant displays of loss and healing and I am still heartbroken about it. 
The jumps back and forth in perspective got a little tiring at the end but only because I *really needed to know what happened.* 
Zoya and Nina carried the plot, imo, but both of their journeys were wonderful. 
I went full WTF at the end. Cannot wait to dive into Rule of Wolves.

colleenscamera's review against another edition

4.0

infinity war for people who are even bigger virgins than marvel fans 

luciepop's review against another edition

4.0

4,5* i’m so happy to have read about them again. nina my love, her gay vibes were gold and she certainly has a type….. I love Zoya and her backstory, she’s so layered. I love that we finally saw how deep nikolai actually is. and i love that the book is heavily anti-darkling lol, a big punch in darklinas faces don’t come at me

rose_bookblood's review against another edition

adventurous emotional funny reflective sad slow-paced

• 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

3.75