Ruin and Rising
by Leigh Bardugo
Series: Grisha Trilogy #3
Published: June 17, 2014
Genres: Fantasy, Young Adult
Format: Hardcover (417 pages)
Source: Purchased
The capital has fallen.
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.
Spoiler free even if you haven’t read the first book in this series.
I’m once again left with the task of writing a book review that I took no notes on whatsoever. That’s usually a good sign since it means I got sucked into the story and I forgot to take notes. So I’m going to do my best.
The theme I loved the most in Ruin and Rising was that life doesn’t always go the way you think it should. No matter how grand your designs, you can almost always count on them going wrong. It’s a quest that doesn’t go the way it should because that’s life.
After reading a few of Leigh Bardugo’s short stories, I really enjoyed how she tied mythology and legend into the plot.
Ruin and Rising made me ask some great questions. Can you do the right thing no matter how hard? What are you willing to give up? Power? Love?
I came across this quote as I was skimming it, trying to write this review.
“I would never know if it was greed or selflessness that moved my hand.”
– Leigh Bardugo, Ruin and Rising pg 377
Now THAT’S a question I had never asked myself. Are greed and selflessness so similar that they are hard to tell apart?
Mal became unexpectedly important. I liked Mal, but he always felt like just a love interest until this book. If you love Mal, this book will make you love him even more.
What a beautiful, happy but also bittersweet ending. Just enough of the bitter to keep me from gagging on the adorably sweet stuff. Like I said, nothing in life ever works out perfectly and there were still consequences that the characters had to deal with. But man I loved that ending.
Overall, it was a great ending to one of my favorite YA fantasy series.
Content Rating: Medium, for some violence and a few make-out scenes.
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About Leigh Bardugo
Leigh Bardugo was born in Jerusalem, grew up in Los Angeles, and graduated from Yale University. These days, she lives in Hollywood, where she indulges her fondness for glamour, ghouls, and costuming in her other life as makeup artist L.B. Benson. Occasionally, she can be heard singing with her band, Captain Automatic.
Her debut novel, Shadow & Bone (Holt Children’s/ Macmillan), is a New York Times Best Seller and the first book in the Grisha Trilogy. Book 2, Siege and Storm, will be published in 2013. She is represented by Joanna Stampfel-Volpe of New Leaf.
My name is Jessica. I love to read Young Adult and classic literature. I’ve been a book blogger for six years and I haven’t gotten tired of it yet. I’m a very curious reader. Writing about all the questions and thoughts I had while reading a book is the best hobby ever.
I still haven’t read the first book in this series. Soon. That’s so weird. Maybe she meant selfishness not selflessness. Without knowing where the quote falls in the story I can’t say but, yeah, weird.
In the context of the book it’s about the greed of getting more power than anyone has before but she needs the power to save everyone. It was interesting to see them in juxtaposition like that.
I adored this book! I do love Mal so I liked how strong and interesting his character became. I liked how hard and beautiful things were like Genya. It was a great bittersweet ending and a grand sort of mythology that led up to it :)
I like reading other people’s reviews because it let me sort of revisit the story.