Book Review | Ruin and Rising #20booksofsummer22

Book seventeen of my summer reading challenge, even though it wasn’t on the original list, the series is way too good not to get into.

---

Ruin and Rising
Leigh Bardugo

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. 

Bookshop.org | Goodreads | Amazon

---

Wow, what an ending to a fantastic series honestly this book put me through the wringer, I feel like I have experienced all the emotions in this last instalment of the Shadow and Bone series. Ruin and Rising was just non-stop action, this time the book starts with Alina in a bit of a weakened state, not really able to call her power and under the watchful eye of the Apparat.

It is not long though before Alina, Mal and the remaining Grisha hatch a plan to get out from under his control and find the remaining amplifier and what a journey it is. I loved that there was something continually happening because you could really feel the tension in the story and could tell that it was working towards something big. There were so many secrets revealed and questions answered in this book and every time another puzzle piece slotted into place the stakes got higher.

Alina really reached her full potential in this book, you can see everything that she has been through in the decisions that she makes and how she chooses to approach the problems that the Darkling makes for her. I feel like I can’t say much more about what happens but what I will tell you is that I got so emotional, I was in floods of tears, Ms Bardugo certainly created some heart-breaking moments and that made the final clash between Alina and the Darkling even more poignant.

I wish I could say more and I wish I had more words to say how much I loved this book and this series and these characters. What I will say is that this has made me so excited to read more of the series in the Grishverse.

Reviews of other books by Leigh Bardugo
Shadow and Bone | Siege and Storm