(King of Scars Duology #1)
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Publication Date: January 29th 2019
Publisher: Imprint
Pages: 528
ISBN: 9781250142283
Genre: Young Adult | Fantasy
Source: Own
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Nikolai Lantsov has always had a gift for the impossible. No one knows what he endured in his country’s bloody civil war—and he intends to keep it that way. Now, as enemies gather at his weakened borders, the young king must find a way to refill Ravka’s coffers, forge new alliances, and stop a rising threat to the once-great Grisha Army.
Yet with every day a dark magic within him grows stronger, threatening to destroy all he has built. With the help of a young monk and a legendary Grisha Squaller, Nikolai will journey to the places in Ravka where the deepest magic survives to vanquish the terrible legacy inside him. He will risk everything to save his country and himself. But some secrets aren’t meant to stay buried—and some wounds aren’t meant to heal. (Goodreads)
While I was SO SUPER EXCITED to finally get my hands on King of Scars by Leigh Bardugo, I was also a little bit terrified to actually read the book. Nikolai was probably my most favorite character in the Grishaverse trilogy, and while I was excited to finally have his story, I was also pretty terrified that I would, for some reason or another, not like the book. Having finally devoured it, I’m pretty happy with how the story went, and I’m super curious to see where it goes next.
As I mentioned above, Nikolai has always been one of my most favorite characters. I just love everything about him, and I couldn’t wait to read more of his story with this new novel. He definitely has an interesting backstory, and I feel like a lot of this were explained in this new book. (And, yes, I definitely love him even more now than I did before.) Besides Nikolai, we also get to see quite a few characters from the previous books, and it was so fun to catch up with them! I can’t wait to see more of all of these characters in the next book.
One thing I loved the most about the book was being back in the Grishaverse world. It’s been a few years since the events of the first three books took place, and it was nice to kind of get an update on what had happened since the last book ended. I’m really glad I re-read the original series before starting this one, but I also wish that I would have taken the time to re-read the Six of Crows series as well, as there were a few things referenced that I don’t seem to remember from those books. Otherwise, the storyline for this book was interesting, thought it almost feels like there are two storylines, and I’m having a hard time figuring out where one of those fits in to the story. (I feel like I’m missing something with it.)
And lastly, I want to say that this book ends with a pretty MASSIVE cliffhanger, one that I TOTALLY DID NOT SEE COMING, and which definitely left me wondering what in the world just happened! I need the next book, like, NOW. The wait for the next book is going to take FOREVER, but at least that will give me time to re-read ALL of the books before the next one is released.
Overall; though I was kind of terrified to read King of Scars, I am SO glad that I did! I really enjoyed the story, and being back with the characters I love, and I’m super curious to get my hands on the next book to see what’s going to happen next! Leigh Bardugo fans are really going to enjoy this newest book, and if you haven’t yet started the series, YOU TOTALLY SHOULD!
First off, that picture of your Leigh Bardugo collection is stunning. I've been trying to find those editions with the old covers but I haven't had any luck. Second, I've kind of been on the fence about reading this book because, unlike you, Nikolai wasn't my favorite character ever, like I really loved the core of the crew from Six of Crows (basically everyone but Nikolai lmao). So I guess I'm wondering, is there enough from Six of Crows to make this book enjoyable to people that aren't really invested in Nikolai? I know Nina is featured, but are people like Kaz in there too? Bardugo is a magician with words and I love her storytelling, but like you, I'm kind of scared to read this and be disappointed.
ReplyDeleteEmily @ Emily's Crammed Bookshelf