Ruin And Rising by Leigh Bardugo
Sep. 22nd, 2014 02:45 pm![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
quippeThe Blurb On The Back:
The Darkling pressed a kiss to the top of my hair. “I will strip away all that you know, all that you love, until you have no other shelter but me.”
For Alina, time is running out. To destroy the Darkling, she must find the elusive firebird, and she must find it soon.
The Darkling’s power is growing. And so is his connection to Alina. Can Alina escape the hold he has over her? Does she want to?
Mal is the one person Alina can rely on. But could giving in to the bond between them be the most dangerous decision of all?
It’s several weeks after SIEGE AND STORM. Alina’s health is improving following her encounter with the Darkling but the Apparat continues to keep her prisoner, refusing her access to the light she needs to access her powers and cutting her off from Mal and the other Grisha. Frustrated, Alina knows that time is running out to find the firebird she needs to defeat the Darkling once and for all, but given the connection between them, she’s torn as to whether she even wants to …
The conclusion to Leigh Bardugo’s Russian-inspired fantasy trilogy is a smartly written, tightly plotted affair that ties up the various plot strands in a satisfying way. I particularly enjoyed the way Bardugo shows the politics at play between the various factions lined up against the Darkling, notably the machinations of the Apparat who seeks to use the people’s belief in Alina’s sainthood for his own political ends. Alina also grows more as a character here, questioning her own desire for power and the conflicted emotions she has for the Darkling. I was a little bored by the repetition of the romance issues between her and Mal (much of which seemed to be a variation on issues already explored in SIEGE AND STORM) and I remain unconvinced by the supposed romantic pull between Alina and the Darkling (a shame as he gains a lot of depth here). That said, I thought that the ending was entirely fitting for the story and tied up the different plot strands in a way that left me satisfied and I even enjoyed the epilogue (a device I’m normally leery of). All in all, I thought this was a solid trilogy with an original premise and I really look forward to reading what Bardugo does next.
For me the best parts of the book relate to the politics at play between Alina, Nikolai and the Apparat as they each seek to oppose the Darkling but also maintain their own agendas. Nikolai in particular gets more growth here thanks to an unexpected development and although his emotions for Alina did make me roll my eyes, he does rise above the usual ‘hot boy’ stereotype and displays qualities that show why people follow him. The Darkling also gets more character development, which steers him away from being a cartoon and gives his storyline some much needed poignancy that gives the ending additional punch.
The Verdict:
The conclusion to Leigh Bardugo’s Russian-inspired fantasy trilogy is a smartly written, tightly plotted affair that ties up the various plot strands in a satisfying way. I particularly enjoyed the way Bardugo shows the politics at play between the various factions lined up against the Darkling, notably the machinations of the Apparat who seeks to use the people’s belief in Alina’s sainthood for his own political ends. Alina also grows more as a character here, questioning her own desire for power and the conflicted emotions she has for the Darkling. I was a little bored by the repetition of the romance issues between her and Mal (much of which seemed to be a variation on issues already explored in SIEGE AND STORM) and I remain unconvinced by the supposed romantic pull between Alina and the Darkling (a shame as he gains a lot of depth here). That said, I thought that the ending was entirely fitting for the story and tied up the different plot strands in a way that left me satisfied and I even enjoyed the epilogue (a device I’m normally leery of). All in all, I thought this was a solid trilogy with an original premise and I really look forward to reading what Bardugo does next.
For Alina, time is running out. To destroy the Darkling, she must find the elusive firebird, and she must find it soon.
The Darkling’s power is growing. And so is his connection to Alina. Can Alina escape the hold he has over her? Does she want to?
Mal is the one person Alina can rely on. But could giving in to the bond between them be the most dangerous decision of all?
It’s several weeks after SIEGE AND STORM. Alina’s health is improving following her encounter with the Darkling but the Apparat continues to keep her prisoner, refusing her access to the light she needs to access her powers and cutting her off from Mal and the other Grisha. Frustrated, Alina knows that time is running out to find the firebird she needs to defeat the Darkling once and for all, but given the connection between them, she’s torn as to whether she even wants to …
The conclusion to Leigh Bardugo’s Russian-inspired fantasy trilogy is a smartly written, tightly plotted affair that ties up the various plot strands in a satisfying way. I particularly enjoyed the way Bardugo shows the politics at play between the various factions lined up against the Darkling, notably the machinations of the Apparat who seeks to use the people’s belief in Alina’s sainthood for his own political ends. Alina also grows more as a character here, questioning her own desire for power and the conflicted emotions she has for the Darkling. I was a little bored by the repetition of the romance issues between her and Mal (much of which seemed to be a variation on issues already explored in SIEGE AND STORM) and I remain unconvinced by the supposed romantic pull between Alina and the Darkling (a shame as he gains a lot of depth here). That said, I thought that the ending was entirely fitting for the story and tied up the different plot strands in a way that left me satisfied and I even enjoyed the epilogue (a device I’m normally leery of). All in all, I thought this was a solid trilogy with an original premise and I really look forward to reading what Bardugo does next.
For me the best parts of the book relate to the politics at play between Alina, Nikolai and the Apparat as they each seek to oppose the Darkling but also maintain their own agendas. Nikolai in particular gets more growth here thanks to an unexpected development and although his emotions for Alina did make me roll my eyes, he does rise above the usual ‘hot boy’ stereotype and displays qualities that show why people follow him. The Darkling also gets more character development, which steers him away from being a cartoon and gives his storyline some much needed poignancy that gives the ending additional punch.
The Verdict:
The conclusion to Leigh Bardugo’s Russian-inspired fantasy trilogy is a smartly written, tightly plotted affair that ties up the various plot strands in a satisfying way. I particularly enjoyed the way Bardugo shows the politics at play between the various factions lined up against the Darkling, notably the machinations of the Apparat who seeks to use the people’s belief in Alina’s sainthood for his own political ends. Alina also grows more as a character here, questioning her own desire for power and the conflicted emotions she has for the Darkling. I was a little bored by the repetition of the romance issues between her and Mal (much of which seemed to be a variation on issues already explored in SIEGE AND STORM) and I remain unconvinced by the supposed romantic pull between Alina and the Darkling (a shame as he gains a lot of depth here). That said, I thought that the ending was entirely fitting for the story and tied up the different plot strands in a way that left me satisfied and I even enjoyed the epilogue (a device I’m normally leery of). All in all, I thought this was a solid trilogy with an original premise and I really look forward to reading what Bardugo does next.
