Ruin and Rising

By Leigh Bardugo

 

"I will strip away all that you know, all that you love, until you have no shelter but me."

 

Ruin and Rising is the third and final instalment in Leigh Bardugo’s Grisha Trilogy, and BOY does it bow out with a bang.

 

The capital has fallen into the Darklings rule. The nation’s fate rests upon the shoulders of a broken sun summoner, a disgraced tracker along with the remnants of the army. Alina and Mal must reach the firebird for the last amplifier to defeat the Darkling, but of course, it’s never going to be an easy ride…

 

We have been waiting so long for this book, to see how it ends, will Mal and Alina forget their differences and find happiness together? Or will Alina accept Nikolai’s proposal and become the future queen, uniting the Grisha with the common people? Or maybe she will choose the Darkling, letting herself be corrupted by him. For months questions have circulated unanswered just WAITING to be laid to rest. What IS the Darkling’s name? Leigh does not disappoint.

 

We are allowed more access to Ravka, which just sounds beautiful. It’s just so different to other fantasy worlds, you expect the usual Tolkien-style medieval world (not that there’s anything wrong with Tolkien-style worlds) but Ravka just has its own uniqueness, which just makes it unforgettable. The Russian style again adds uniqueness; I’ve never read any fiction resembling Tsardom Russia so it just sticks out. Leigh blends so well, it feels Russian and yet it feels completely new and original as she builds her own influence into the world.

 

I must admit I cheered for quite a long time and then shouted about it at my family when one thing is revealed about the amplifiers which had been subtly set up from book to book and I totally guessed it! For month’s id been ranting about how all the evidence and tearing my hair out needing the truth. When you read, you’ll either kick yourself and question HOW DID I NOT SEE THIS?! Or be like Oh, yeah I thought that was odd…

 

The Darkling’s name has been speculated on social networking sites since the book came out, most people guessing the oddest and funniest of names; Bob, Jim, the list was endless. And YET AGAIN Leigh manages to pull a surprise out of the bag.

 

Every time you wonder how on earth Leigh will manage to pull it off and get them out of this trouble, she manages to effortlessly reveal a twist. Leigh just keeps coming back with more and more book clutching, heart-wrenching, tear-jerking action and leaves you wanting more.

 

The character development in this book is phenomenal. The characters, to me, are real, they feel real. They are so human, the heroes and heroines can do bad things, just as the evil guys can do good things. Alina is not perfect, she does bad things and makes mistakes and it just sets her completely apart from previous heroines who can do no wrong, Alina is relatable.

I love that Leigh makes it so hard to hate the Darkling; he’s the ‘bad guy’ of the story, but is he? He does have some good intentions and his charm and wit are just irresistible and yet his actions then repulse me at points. You pity him, you love him, you hate him, Leigh certainly knows how to tease and test her readers! Most people love him BECAUSE he’s evil, I think, loving the ‘evil’ characters nowadays is cooler more common than loving the ‘good’ characters because of their complexity.

 If you get the opportunity to read The Darkling's prequel story- GRAB IT WITH BOTH HANDS. From novellas about how the 'evil' character came to be, the story usually ends with them planning something terrible about how they'll bring death and slaughter in revenge or spite. But The Demon in the Wood portrays The Darkling as the 'good' character and ends with The Darkling wanting to change the world- but for the better. It allows you to see why people followed him, how he got so powerful and you wonder what went SO wrong. You connect with him even more. I love that Leigh has you questioning your judgement of good and evil, you truly understand that no-one is born evil and nobody is truly evil.

Overall, Ruin and Rising left me teary eyed and contented. I didn’t want to leave these characters and yet it just felt SO right. Everything came together and was revealed and resolved and it was just a perfect and beautiful ending and I couldn’t have wished for anything more. Leigh certainly delivered. It did the series justice and lived up to its previous 2 books spectacularly.

Thank you so much for sharing Alina’s adventure Leigh. I, and many others I’m sure, are extremely grateful.

 

Without a doubt: 5 stars!