Book Review: Ruin and Rising (Grisha, #3) by Leigh Bardugo

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BOOK review

Started on: 26 May 2021
Finished on: 6 June 2021

 

Ruin and Rising (Grisha, #3) by Leigh Bardugo

 

Title: Ruin and Rising (Grisha, #3)

Author: Leigh Bardugo
Publisher: Henry Holt & Company

Pages: 422 pages / 432 pages (e-book)
Year of Publication: 2014
Price: Rp 159,000 (https://www.periplus.com/)

Rating: 4/5

*for those who haven't read the first book, this review may contain spoiler.

Review for Shadow and Bone (Grisha, #1) by Leigh Bardugo here.

Review for Siege and Storm (Grisha, #2) by Leigh Bardugo here.

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"Patience, Alina Starkov. We rise when the time is right and not before."

The capital has fallen and now the Darkling rules Ravka from his shadow throne. After being ambushed by the Darkling, the Second Army only has a few people left. Together with Mal and Alina, they escaped through a deep and ancient network of tunnels and caverns under the dubious protection of the Apparat and those who worship Alina as a Saint. While recovering, Alina still has a plan to hunt the firebird and hoping that Nikolai managed to survive. Acquiring the last of Morozova's amplifiers is the one thing that stands between Ravka and destruction—and claiming it might cost Alina the very future that she's fighting for.

"There is no greater power than faith, and there will be no greater army than one driven by it."

"There were old wants too, to be loved for who I was, not what I could do, to lie in a meadow with a boy's arms around me and watch the wind move the clouds. But those dreams belonged to a girl, not to the Sun Summoner, not to a Saint."

It feels so good to finally finish reading this series! Since this is the last book in the trilogy, there's a lot more tension and thrill towards the final battle with the Darkling. After the events that happened in the previous book, Alina and the rest of the crew who survived the Darkling's ambush escaped through a network of tunnels that was used by the Apparat. Their first mission is to recover and get back to the surface to find Nikolai—who's thankfully alive and managed to escape from the Darkling as well. After regrouping with Nikolai, Alina was able to meet Baghra and learned more about the history of Ilya Morozova and its' correlation with the Darkling. That revelation helped Alina understand the truth about Morozova's third amplifier; a truth that she never thought of before. I feel like these revelations should've been a grand and significant moment, but unfortunately I find myself feeling confused and I had questions popping up in my mind. What should have been a high point in this book ended up feeling a bit anti-climactic for me personally, which is quite a shame.

"This was what Ravka did. It made orphans. It made misery. No land, no life, just a uniform and a gun. Nikolai believed in something better."

"Yes. I was done with hesitation. It wasn't just that we'd run out of options, or that so much was riding on the firebird's power. I'd simply grown ruthless enough or selfish enough to take another creature's life."

For the most part, I thoroughly enjoyed this book because there's a lot of action happening which is exciting and thrilling to read. I was extremely concerned when Nikolai was in danger 😭—since he's still my favorite character from this series. From that point onwards, I couldn't stop reading because I need to know that Nikolai will be okay in the end. Not going to spoil what happened exactly, but I just want to stay that he still manages to become the most interesting character despite his 'condition'. As for Alina's character, she seems a lot more determined now after her previous plans to counter the Darkling's attack all failed miserably. She has concluded that the battle can only be won when she acquired the last of Morozova's amplifier; and the truth about the last amplifier put her in a very difficult position—because it would require a huge sacrifice that she's unwilling to make.

The final battle scene was the part that I am most anticipating for; because throughout this series, the Darkling is portrayed as a very ruthless and menacing character—so I'm eager to find out how he will be defeated. Reading this scene kept me on the edge of my seat because it's so gripping and I don't want to see characters like Tolya and Tamar die. I won't spoil the details of this ending scene because it will definitely ruin the fun for those who haven't read this book, but I have to say I'm slightly disappointed with how the Darkling meet his end. I'm also not really fond of reviving a dead person just for the sake of a happy ending (Again, not going to spoil who died and came back to life). So, some parts I did enjoy, but some parts was just okay for me personally.

"I have waited hundreds of years for this moment, for your power, for this chance. I have earned it with loss and with struggle. I will have it, Alina. Whatever the cost."

Even though I had my disappointments with this series (the main character and romantic chemistry that I don't particularly like), I have to say that I thoroughly enjoyed reading it pretty well (At least Nikolai's character made my reading experience 10 times better 🤣). This is my first time reading a series by Leigh Bardugo and I'm sure it won't be the last time, because I'm planning to read the Six of Crows duology and also King of Scars duology—which are still within the Grishaverse. I absolutely love the world and magic system that Leigh Bardugo created, although it took some time for me to understand it fully. Now that I'm familiar with it, I believe it will be easier for me to enjoy her other books which takes place in the same world. I'm thankful for the TV adaptation that pushed me to start reading this series which has been sitting on my bookshelves for so many years 😅. Can't wait to see how the TV show is going to portray the rest of the story 😆.

"Baghra had warned me: You may not be able to survive the sacrifice that merzost requires. But what was the point of this sacrifice? Had we lived only to be a lesson in the price of greed? Was that the truth of Morozova's madness, some kind of cruel equation that took all our love and loss and added them up to nothing?"

by.stefaniesugia♥ .