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rolien 's review for:
Ruin and Rising
by Leigh Bardugo
The third book is definitely a step up, good to see improvement in this series. Although the start was rocky, I enjoyed it in the end.
The weakest thing about these books is (in my opinion) the character of Alina. It feels a bit of a missed chance, because I think the storytelling is fine. I really thought about what it is that bothers me. It's first person narrative, but somehow she doesn't seem to come alive as a character. It seems she is a vessel that assumes a role which is needed in the story. One of the reasons may be that she is being led by circumstances. Everything happens to her, and there are not enough actions and choices (mainly in the first two books) that really - show - her personality. This becomes somewhat better in the third book.
I really was afraid of more highschool drama after the first book, but it doesn't really become as bad as other reviewers made me believe. I can see dialogue shine in witty banter, but I think the timing was sometimes a bit of (witty banter in situations that are not really calling for it). However, I believe if the author is a bit more careful with this, it can really be done well.
The worldbuilding is okay; I'm not really sure how this book is experienced for Russian people, since the linguistics at least are heavily borrowed from Russia. I will continue in Six of Crows, in anticipation of the Netflix show. I was afraid, after reading the first book, this trilogy would be a complete waste of time. It won't be my favourite, but it was an enjoyable, light series.
The weakest thing about these books is (in my opinion) the character of Alina. It feels a bit of a missed chance, because I think the storytelling is fine. I really thought about what it is that bothers me. It's first person narrative, but somehow she doesn't seem to come alive as a character. It seems she is a vessel that assumes a role which is needed in the story. One of the reasons may be that she is being led by circumstances. Everything happens to her, and there are not enough actions and choices (mainly in the first two books) that really - show - her personality. This becomes somewhat better in the third book.
I really was afraid of more highschool drama after the first book, but it doesn't really become as bad as other reviewers made me believe. I can see dialogue shine in witty banter, but I think the timing was sometimes a bit of (witty banter in situations that are not really calling for it). However, I believe if the author is a bit more careful with this, it can really be done well.
The worldbuilding is okay; I'm not really sure how this book is experienced for Russian people, since the linguistics at least are heavily borrowed from Russia. I will continue in Six of Crows, in anticipation of the Netflix show. I was afraid, after reading the first book, this trilogy would be a complete waste of time. It won't be my favourite, but it was an enjoyable, light series.