King of Scars (King of Scars Duology #1)
By Leigh Bardugo
Genre: YA Fantasy
Recommended For: Grishaverse groupies, lovers of fantasy with epic adventures like Chronicles of Narnia, fans of Sarah J. Maas and the Graceling books.
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.
The Hit List:
- An excellent continuation of past Grishaverse books with new and exciting things to learn
- Complex plot with complex characters that drive the story
- Two storylines, each good but some disruption to flow
- Fast-paced and exciting ending that was confusing at times
- I recommend reading The Shadow and Bone trilogy and Six of Crows duology before reading this
The Review:
King of Scars is a thrilling next installment in the Grishaverse catalog. This is the first book in a duology that centers on the POVs of Nikolai, Zoya (from The Shadow and Bone trilogy) and Nina (from the Six of Crows duology). The story jumps back and forth between Nikolai and Zoya trying to rid Nikolai of the beast within to keep Ravka from collapsing, and Nina in Fjerda trying to rescue Grisha.
I’ll start with a recommendation to read the other Grishaverse series (The Shadow and Bone trilogy and the Six of Crows duology) first because there is much more assuming the reader knows the world in this book than her others.
King of Scars is a source of more of the Grishaverse we’ve come to love. But it delves even deeper into the intricacies of the world. Since Nikolai is now King of Ravka, we are introduced to lot more of the political and military behind-the-scenes of ruling a kingdom and what that looks like for the Grishaverse.
Some might say the pacing is too slow in parts. And to their credit, it does feel slow at times. But I didn’t dock points for that because I didn’t view it as being slow, but taking time to paint a richer portrait of a made-up world. It’s something meant to be savored, not devoured. There are lots of rich details that some faster-paced stories miss out on.
Leigh Bardugo is a dream for readers who devour multi-faceted characters full of a mix of flaws, bravery, fear, doubt, perseverance and purpose. Even though most of the characters are ones we’ve met in former books, we really get a peak behind the curtain at the complicated mess of their hearts and minds. We see who they really are and watch them grow through trials. Characters like Nikolai, Nina and Zoya are ones that drive the plot. They aren’t passive. The plot moves because of choices they makes. Now that is an excellent story with rich characters. The more we dive into the story, the more flaws we see in each character, and she has masterfully incorporated them into the plot in a relatable and heart-breaking way.
Another strength of this book is the grouping of characters. There is an interesting juxtaposition of personalities within different groups of people that make for some funny, inciteful dialogue and at times, tense situations.
There are two different stories going on in the book. I would consider the main one is the Nikolai/Zoya one, and the secondary is Nina’s. Both storylines are compelling and riddled with layers of themes and morals. It’s the kind of deep thinking stuff I like more and more in the books I read. But the stories are so disconnected that it felt like they should have been two separate books. Towards the end it became obvious that Leigh was laying the foundation for book two, where they no doubt will be woven together more tightly. But in this book, every time I came to a Nina chapter it felt like a bump in the momentum of the book. Again, that’s not to say the Nina subplot wasn’t good. It really was. It only felt too separate from the main plot.
And as far as the ending goes, I thought it was edge of your seat good, though I have to admit there were times I was confused about what was going on. Almost like there was too much happening at once. But I still was astonished at what happened and pleased with the mix of resolution and cliff-hanger.
Overall, despite the two minor faults I mentioned, I think King of Scars is an intelligent, compelling story with compounding action and roadblocks. It maintains the thoughtful dialogue and playful banter we love in past Grishaverse books and shows even more facets of an already enticing world. In fact, it was such a good story with such incredible characters, I don’t even have it in my heart to dock points, so 5 Lunas it is!
Luna’s Lucky Rating: 5/5 Lunas
