King of Scars
Books | Young Adult Fiction / Fantasy / General
4.1
(5.1K)
Leigh Bardugo
A 2020 LOCUS AWARD FINALIST!See the Grishaverse come to life on screen with the Netflix series, Shadow and Bone -- Season 2 streaming now!Discover what comes next for daring rogue Nikolai in King of Scars, the start of this captivating new duology from #1 bestselling author, Leigh Bardugo. "[Bardugo] touches on religion, class, family, love — all organically, all effortlessly, all cloaked in the weight of a post-war reckoning with the cost (literal and figurative) of surviving the events that shape both people and nations." —NPR "The story exists at an intersection of past and future selves, and in the dawning understanding that what you most fear may be what you most need." —Washington Post Face your demons...or feed them. The dashing young king, 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, Nikolai 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 general, 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.Read all the books in the Grishaverse!The Shadow and Bone Trilogy (previously published as The Grisha Trilogy) Shadow and Bone Siege and Storm Ruin and Rising The Six of Crows Duology Six of Crows Crooked KingdomThe King of Scars DuologyKing of ScarsRule of Wolves The Language of Thorns: Midnight Tales and Dangerous MagicThe Severed Moon: A Year-Long Journal of MagicThe Lives of SaintsDemon in the Wood Graphic NovelPraise for the Grishaverse “A master of fantasy.” —The Huffington Post “Utterly, extremely bewitching.” —The Guardian “This is what fantasy is for.” —The New York Times Book Review “A world that feels real enough to have its own passport stamp.” —NPR “The darker it gets for the good guys, the better.” —Entertainment Weekly “Sultry, sweeping and picturesque. . . . Impossible to put down.” —USA Today “There’s a level of emotional and historical sophistication within Bardugo’s original epic fantasy that sets it apart.” —Vanity Fair “Unlike anything I’ve ever read.” —Veronica Roth, bestselling author of Divergent “Bardugo crafts a first-rate adventure, a poignant romance, and an intriguing mystery!” —Rick Riordan, bestselling author of the Percy Jackson series
Fantasy
Young Adult
Magic
AD
Buy now:
More Details:
Author
Leigh Bardugo
Pages
528
Publisher
Imprint
Published Date
2019-01-29
ISBN
125014227X 9781250142276
Community ReviewsSee all
"Another great story from the Grishaverse. At first I wasn't as into it as I didn't really care about Zoya and Nikolai from the previous books. But, as always, Bardugo really knows how to build the characters and make you invested. King of Scars goes even more into mythical elements of that world. As opposed to the six of crows duology, which was pretty separate from the Alina story, this book continues with the darkling and Nikolai and the other characters that were introduced in the Shadow and Bone books."
"4.25 ⭐️ This duology is part of the Grishaverse world and follows familiar characters: Nikolai, Zoya and Nina. It took me a minute to get into because it was information heavy, but once it picks up the pace I found it hard to put down. I love these characters and I appreciated getting to see their character development. Excited to get to Rule of Wolves and finish out all the books in this world. "
"Dnf<br/><br/>200 pages in and realized I was tired of forcing myself to read. It was like trudging thru muddy water. The politics and lack of character development had me losing focus. I will possibly come back to these because I love Nickolai. So back story, I started with "Six of Crows" absolutely loved it. Then made myself read "Shadow and Bone" before the show come out and immediately picked this book up. So I'm guessing I need a break.<br/><br/>The new map was gorgeous so much detail. Still, like the others, there are many plot holes. Like Nikolai experimenting on all these airships and subs but has no money to do so. The inner thoughts repetitive. I don't know how but "Six of Crows" was just a whole other breed of story and I find myself struggling with the rest of the seires and the writing style most of all."
"I finshed this book in six hours on a plane ride home. I currently cannot conjure words to appropriately express my many feelings on this book so I’ll be updating this review when my thoughts are collected!<br/>UPDATE: I took a day to collect my thoughts on this novel. I’d first like to start off by saying... the cover to King of Scars is magnificently gorgeous! Now onto the review. This book was amazing from start to finish. The characters were amazingly written and developed. I loved Nikolai’s sass, Juris’s dad-like tough love, Hanne’s fiery spirit, and I especially enjoyed how Bardugo made me go from not caring too much for Zoya to her becoming one of my favorite characters. Her strength amazed me throughout the novel. Bardugo also did a perfect job on writing Nina. He grief was portrayed in a way that made it seem real and she stayed true to herself throughout her whole journey. The ending was a twist I thoroughly enjoyed and didn’t suspect. I can’t wait for the second book to release!<br/><br/>REREAD: Mt appreciation for Zoya grows every time I reread this book. I really didn’t like her in Shadow and Bone but her prickly demeanor in this book resonated with me. She’s sharp and confident and mean. She doesn’t take anyone’s **** and she takes pride in being untouchable. I love that she is unapologetically herself and provides some representation for girls who aren’t super warm and bubbly. I still believe everything I expressed in my original review. Bardugo’s writing just continuously gets better!"
A C
Alyssa Czernek