King of Scars

 Am I two years late? Does the sequel come out in less than a week? Do I care? 

Nikolai, Zoya, Nina, Schemes, Body Doubles, Saints and Priests, Triumvirate, the Expectations of Kings, Animated Dead, Other Realms, Romance??, Nina/Hanne, Wolf Friends~ 500,000

You Know How the Premise of This Blog is That I Hate Books?

Uh, unpopular opinion time? I did not enjoy The Shadow and Bone series. I read the first two and didn't care enough to even hate them. Alina bored me. Maybe I'll write a longer post about this at a different time, but passive YA fantasy heroines are not for me.  And look, at the beginning of Shadow and Bone Alina's passivity makes sense. She's an orphan, she starts out thinking she's powerless, and then is thrust into a world she's ill prepared for. At some point, her inability to act becomes frustrating, but worst of all, it's boring to read about. In a series populated with so many interesting and charismatic characters, Alina hardly seems to register. Maybe she's more interesting in the last book, the one I never bothered to pick up, but I don't care enough to see (I read a synopsis of it, which seems to be all I needed to enjoy other Grishaverse books).

Everyone loves the Darkling, and I am super into the Darkling when it's not entirely clear that he's evil. Once he's definitely evil, he loses all interest from me. If I remember correctly, that he's definitely bad becomes text pretty quickly within the first book? So, then he's a fine villain, but there's nothing really compelling about him anymore. 

THAT BEING SAID, I love the Six of Crows duology. Though not related to this world, I also loved The Ninth House. So, my distaste for the Shadow and Bone series has nothing to do with the writing, or dislike of Bardugo's style, it merely held no interest for me. Which is okay! Everything isn't for everybody! But I waited so long to read this book because it's positioned much closer to Shadow and Bone. Even though I really liked Nikolai, Zoya, and Nina, would that be enough to hold my interest? 

Well.

The Demon Inside~ 5,000

We meet Zoya and Nikolai as Zoya retrieves the demon that is Nikolai from being maybe, possibly about to eat a little boy on a farm. See, the monster that the Darkling infected Nikolai with has started emerging as the King sleeps. At the palace, they have methods of keeping Nikolai contained, but they're traveling and it's hard to keep a demon in check on a road trip. The triumvirate--Zoya, Genya, David--and Nikolai's main guards Tolya and Tamar, are the only ones who know about the monster. Zoya chains Nikolai to his bed each night and gives him a sleeping draught to keep the demon from emerging. They're hunting for a cure, for a way to make Nikolai wholly human again, but the threat of war and of alienating their allies (and money lenders), means that state craft must come first. Also, Nikolai needs to find a wife and sire an heir to secure the throne. So, like, nbd when you also sometimes spontaneously become a flesh eating monster. The solution to all these problems (well, not the monster one) is a party, of course! Invitations are sent to allies and enemies alike, with a week of diplomatic things to be capped off by a ball which will offer Nikolai the perfect opportunity to find a wife amongst the eligible bachelorettes sent for a chance to marry a King.

The Darkling??Again??~ 5,000

Nikolai, Zoya, Tolya, Tamar, and the rest of the Triumvirate go into crisis mode when Nikolai seemingly undoes his chains and escapes the palace in his monster form. Zoya goes to retrieve him, and they end up fighting on a bell tower. Zoya senses that Monster Nikolai wants to hurt her, and even more, is going to savor it. Monster Nikolai then speaks, but it's the Darkling's voice that comes out. Zoya (and I) attempts to convince herself that it couldn't have been the Darkling, but she's worried enough to be a little afraid of Nikolai. And I'm unhappy that it appears we're doing this again. He could be really dead and we could have a duology that focuses on the dozens of other threats facing our heroes. 

Do you Believe in Miracles~ 5,000

Nikolai and Zoya (and Tolya and Tamar) are traveling around Ravka because of a spate of mysterious occurrences that are being linked to "miracles." A bridge of bone appears overnight, a statue of Sankta Lizabeta blossoms with roses and tears leak from its eyes, blah, blah, blah. Nikolai and Zoya (and the others) hope that these so-called miracles may lead to the discovery of a cure for Nikolai, but a new religious faction has some other ideas. Led by a former monk named Yuri, this group believes that the Darkling should be given sainthood. Zoya is enraged by the Cult of the Starless Saint, but Nikolai thinks that Yuri could help them unravel the new miracles. Yuri and Tolya come up with a theory about a legend of a ceremony that might free Nikolai of the monster called  The Burning Thorn, but it must be performed where the Darkling died--the same place that a thorn wood used to exist--which is now located in the remnants of the Shadow Fold. Nikolai decides to travel around his kingdom, the ultimate goal being to do complete The Burning Thorn ritual. 

Yo, What's Nina Doing?~ 0

Meanwhile, Nina is deep undercover in Fjerda, working with fellow undercover Grisha Leoni and Adrik. Their mission is to help Fjerdan Grisha escape the country that wants to kill them. Also, Nina has Matthias's body that she needs to, and can't stand to, bury. Nina, Leoni, and Adrik are supposed to leave Fjerda but they can't until Nina sees to Matthias's remains. Also, Nina has heard rumors of girls going missing, and the whispers of the dead encourage her to go to a town called Gafvalle. Nina convinces the other two to make the trip to Gafvalle, just to check it out, and unsurprisingly, there's a lot going on. If this seems not to connect with the rest of the book, you're right! But my love for Nina makes the disconnect not matter quite so much (even though it's quite pronounced).

Who's that Girl? It's Hanne~ 5,000

Nina, Leoni, and Adrik arrive in Gafvalle and learn that the water around the town seems to be poisoned and also the military is running some kind of operation out of an abandoned munitions factory (hmmm, could these two things be connected??) The only lodgings available are at a convent. On their way back they encounter a group of disguised women trying to stop a frightened horse dragging its rider through the river. Leoni is able to lasso the horse and they pull the girl to safety. Nina realizes that these girls are from the convent, and their leader, Hanne worries that Nina, Leoni, and Adrik will tell on them. Nina assures Hanne that won't happen, and can't help but be intrigued by this woman.

Also, the woman on the horse died. Not from head injuries, but from exposure to the water (hmmm).

How Do You Solve a Problem like Matthias?~ 5,000

Some time has passed since Matthias has died, but Nina hasn't yet buried his body. It's been preserved so that it won't decompose, and they've been traveling around Fjerda rescuing Grisha with it hidden amongst their stuff. Nina says she hasn't found the right spot to bury him yet, but really she's struggling to let him go. Adrik and Leoni urge her to bury him because they won't be able to explain why they're traveling with his body. Nina agrees and she and Adrik go out to explore more/bury Matthias. After Nina and Adrik complete the burial, Nina asks Adrik for some time alone. Nina says her private goodbye and heads towards the camp Adrik prepared. But uh oh, a blizzard blows up and Nina gets lost. Then, she's surrounded by wolves, who aren't acting quite right, almost as though they're drugged (hmmm). As they attack, another wolf emerges to head them off--Matthias's wolf Trassel. He chases the other wolves away, but before Nina can befriend him, Hanne emerges on horseback. Hanne's prepared to kill Trassel, but Nina manages to get him out of harms way. She and Hanne fight, and Nina learns that Hanne is a Heartrender. Hanne is terrified Nina will tell on her and expose her as Grisha, but Nina realizes she might be able to use Hanne in her efforts to figure out what's happening at the factory. Nina promises Hanne that she won't tell her secrets to the Wellmother at the convent, and they make their way towards a hunting shack. The shack is occupied by a bunch of dudes, but Nina makes up a story about how Hanne's father is wealthy and will pay the men for protecting them. Since they can't sleep, Hanne and Nina talk. Nina can't help but like the other girl. Hanne struggles under the expectations of Fjerdan women, since all she wants to do is ride and be free. But her strict father sent her to the convent to learn to be a better woman, something that Hanne hasn't been successful at yet. Nina offers to train Hanne to use her Heartrender skills. Hanne is suspicious of Nina, but agrees. 

Not In Ravka Anymore~ 15,000

Okay, back to Nikolai and Zoya! So, they've been traveling around and make their way to what remains of the Fold. They journey to the spot where the Darkling died to find a group of Darkling worshipers gathered around a mysterious black cube thing. Zoya is infuriated by the worshipers and by Yuri, and gathers a storm. When she unleashes it , Zoya, Yuri, and Nikolai find themselves in a different (but the same!) place facing down a swarm of bees, a dragon, and some kind of grotesque shapeshifter.

Okay, Let's Check In

Up until this point, the book has been a lot of set-up. What's going on in Gafvalle, why are girls going missing, what's poisoning the water? Why are these "miracles" happening? How can we save Nikolai and also Ravka? Is the Darkling gone? Once Nikolai, Zoya, and Yuri end up in the different realm, the novel feels like it's really going to get going. 

Saints~ 10,000

Nikolai and Zoya try to fight why Yuri cowers, but they're outmatched. The dragon manages to destroy Zoya's amplifier, and Zoya is distraught. They're prepared to die when their attackers speak to them. They aren't monsters, not really. They're saints. Sankt Juris, Sankt Grigori, and Sankta Lizabeta have been trapped in this nothing version of the Shadow Fold by the Darkling for eons. They believed they'd be freed if the Darkling was killed, but that didn't happen. And it didn't happen because part of the Darkling still lives on in Nikolai. They brought Nikolai into their realm because Sankta Lizabeta can call forth the thorn wood and complete the Burning Thorn ritual. The saints will lose all their powers and live a mortal life, but they say it totes worth it to get out of the weird nothing where they live. This is most definitely a Red Flag.

Isaak~ 5,000

So, the king disappears, which is a problem, since he's supposed to be doing diplomacy and finding a wife. The remaining triumvirate members (Genya and David), plus Tolya and Tamar decide to Tailor a palace guard, Isaak, to look like Nikolai and play the role of the king. Isaak is sweet and good. He provides a good life for his mother and sisters, and is satisfied with what he has. He agrees to play Nikolai to save Ravka, but he's not truly comfortable in the role of King. He makes some blunders but does manage to fool everyone. One thing that poor, sweet, well-meaning Isaak does is fall in love with Princess Ehri Kir-Taban, a Shu princess sent as a prospective bride for Nikolai. This is bad news for many reasons, but mostly for Isaak's longevity. 

The Cruelty of Fjerda~ 500

Adrik, Nina, and Leoni don't know how to get into the factory, and they're running out of time. So, Nina steals a novitiate outfit that Hanne has stashed in the convent, and follows the Wellmother and some Springsisters to the factory. There, Nina finds a roomful of pregnant women and infants. The women are Grisha and they're all addicted to something that appears to be a new version of jurda parem. This is what the voices of the dead were leading her to and she knows that mothers and infants are buried all around the factory. Nina is horrified and vows to get the women out. The Wellmother is alerted that an extra Springsister came to the factory, and Nina must flee back to the convent. Nina makes it back and changes just in time, but is caught by a smear of mud on the floor. Before she has to come up with a lie, Hanne appears and covers for Nina. The Wellmother scolds Hanne and promises to contact her father with the tale of her misbehavior. 

Uhhh, Fjerda fucking sucks. So, like, as a plot point this is interesting and as an act is bad.

Training Montage!~ 5,000

Look, I really thought this book was going to Pick Up once Zoya and Nikolai were in the Other Fold with the saints. Instead it just becomes a training montage of Zoya learning from Juris that Grisha can use all kinds of magic, and Nikolai training to command the monster.

There's some nice stuff where Nikolai and Zoya have to confront their pasts, and both come to the conclusion that you can't leave the bad stuff behind but you can use it to become stronger. Except this section goes on for soooo long. 

Papa Don't Preach~ 10,000

Nina convinces Leoni and Adrik that they have to rescue the women and babies from the factory, and she plans to make Hanne help. That plan is complicated a bit by Hanne being in trouble, and it gets even worse when Hanne's father comes to visit the convent BECAUSE HANNE'S DAD IS JARL BRUM. Like, I had the thought that it would be him right before it was him, but in the good "ooohhhh, shiiiiit" way. He doesn't recognize Nina because she's been Tailored to look like a Fjerdan, but she definitely freaks out a little. She holds it together and convinces Jarl Brum that she is a good Fjerdan widow. She also convinces the Wellmother (accidentally) that she's trying to be his mistress. So, Hanne believes that she's bad because she's a Grisha and also that her father has done terrible things out of necessity, and Nina is going to have to prove to Hanne otherwise. 

Let's Break into a Factory~ 10,000

I really dreaded the factory break-in bit. I didn't want it to be a drawn out action set-piece where something terrible happened. And, like, obvs something will go wrong, since Jarl Brum is in town. They try to schedule the break-in after he's scheduled to leave, but you know, it's the darnedest thing that a terrible villain would just happen to show up before all this goes down. 

The whole thing moves pretty quick. Nina, Hanne, Adrik, and Leoni break in. They split up, half to load the women and babies into a wagon, the other half to plant explosives through the factory. Nina plants explosives and on her way back to the dormitory of pregnant women, she comes face-to-face with Jarl Brum, who didn't leave (of course). They have a confrontation but before Nina has to act, Jarl Brum is knocked unconscious BY HANNE. She heard the things he said about the drugged (forcibly?) impregnated women and is disgusted and disappointed. They don't kill him, but they do bring him along back to the wagon. Before falling unconscious, Jarl Brum sounded the alarm, so now our heroes have to race out of the factory. They don't make it out fast enough and are stopped at the gates. It seems dire, but they timed their escape with the time that all the fishermen head to work. When the fishermen hear the first baby cry, they become suspicious and demand to see in the wagon. There's a scuffle, the fishermen are successful, and they discover all the drugged pregnant women and babies. The men are horrified and don't give a shit that these women are Grisha. The soldiers are going to attack, but before they can the factory explodes. But also, so does the dam! Everyone is going to drown and also the water is full of poison that will kill them all with one touch! 

Nina, Adrik, and Leoni Do a Miracle~ 5,000

But they don't because Nina planted extra explosives to blow the dam on purpose. As the water flows towards them, Adrik parts it with wind and Leoni draws out the poison. And using the bones of the women who died, Nina grows an ash tree. Instead of being terrified (I mean, they are afraid, this is a horribly traumatizing event), the Fjerdan's are filled with gratitude and awe. 

Not so much Adrik and Leoni, who Nina didn't tell this part of her plan to, and who are now jeopardized because of it. And also not Hanne, who doesn't know Nina is a Grisha or a spy. This is all cool plot wise, but there's a whole good thing where Nina comes to terms with the parts of herself that are selfish and not "good," and how sometimes she'll do bad things for good reasons and that just has to be okay. 

Nina/Hanne~ 5,000

They end up leaving Jarl Brum in the forest near the factory and telling him that he was hurt in the explosion. He believes that and doesn't remember his confrontation with Nina, I guess, because of the head trauma. Nina and Hanne end up in the Ice Court together, Nina as Hanne's tutor. 

I read Nina and Hanne's relationship as queer, and then I wasn't sure if I was misreading it, but the internet confirmed. Nina thinks Hanne is super pretty with all her long beautiful hair, and Hanne is super strong to fight against the conventions she's supposed to uphold, and she doesn't understand why the common view of Hanne isn't that Hanne is wonderful. I like that Nina knows she still has to betray Hanne a little bit, and that makes Nina sad, but she's still going to do it.

I don't feel like I need them in a relationship right away, and it's unclear if Nina fully realizes her attraction to Hanne or if Hanne reciprocates. Nina is also not over Matthias's or his death, so presumably she isn't actively seeking a new relationship. The fact that it there is potential, though? I'm into it.

Sudden and Inevitable Betrayal~ 10,000 

So now back to the Other Fold. And if you thought the Saints seemed too good to be true, good for you, you were right. Juris and Grigori were truly well-meaning. They just wanted to escape the world of nothing they'd lived in for genuine ages, even if it meant losing their powers and eventually dying. But not Lizabeta. Lizabeta had another plan. She's using Nikolai and the Burning Thorn ritual as a chance to BRING THE DARKLING BACK TO LIFE. Yay, the exact thing that I didn't want. And also, it's so obvious that one of the Saints is going to do a betrayal, that, like who cares, really? 

Lizabeta's been using Yuri the whole time. She sent him visions, used him to unlock Nikolai's chains that one night, and made him believe that the miracles were all connected to the Darkling (they're not not connected to him). Now, Yuri is going to facilitate the monster killing Nikolai so that the Darkling comes back. Except, Nikolai can't let that happen, and ends the ritual in order to stop Lizabeta's plan.

And then Zoya, who was trapped in sap by Lizabeta, manages to break free. She finds Juris, who is dying from wounds inflicted by Lizabeta. Juris asks Zoya to finish the job and combine their power. Zoya does, taking, on the power of the dragon as an amplifier inside herself. Zoya burns the Darkling's corpse for real and fights Lizabeta as Nikolai fights the monster. Zoya kills Lizabeta and Nikolai doesn't actually defeat the monster. Also, Lizabeta kills Grigori.

Yuri is their prisoner now.

Body Doubles~ 5,000

Nikolai and Zoya make it back to Ravka, and end up at the palace during the ball. Nikolai watches Isaak (as Nikolai) meeting with Princes Ehri in the conservatory. Nikolai can tell Isaak is making a declaration of love, but then Princess Ehri pulls out a dagger AND KILLS ISAAK. Nikolai runs in before Princess Ehri can escape, but there's no need to worry because she stabs herself. She doesn't die and they're able to stabilize her enough that she won't. They realize that "Princess Ehri" was actually a Shu guard sent to kill Nikolai, frame the Fjerdans for the murder, and start a war. But because Nikolai isn't actually dead this is a moot point. They find the real princess, masquerading as a guard named Mayu (naturally). To keep the story under wraps, Nikolai decides he's going to marry her. Creating an alliance with the Shu will get them out of debt, and they'll be better prepared when war comes (a pretender to the throne has help from the Fjerdans, and also Nikolai's real dad). 

Nikolai/Zoya~ 5,000

Nikolai is going to marry Princess Ehri, but really he and Zoya are into each other. Neither thinks the other is interested, and also there's a little bit of "we could never be together, anyway." So, it's not a super explicit want between them, but it's just enough to be kind of perfect. Like, no one is pining but also there's a thing. I won't be disappointed if they don't get together, but I like that they both have a similar interest in the other. 

Hello Darkling, My Old Friend~ 20,000

It seems like Nikolai has everything under control, mostly, except uh oh! That wasn't exactly Yuri they took prisoner. Even though Zoya burned the Darkling's body for real, something escaped and now the Darkling is in Yuri. Zoinks! 

Also, I hate this. The story has evolved beyond needing the Darkling. There are so many dire things facing everyone in this book that why does the Darkling need involved at all????? It's adding zero things for me.

Let's Talk About Book Construction~ 0

The way chapters, focal characters, and parts are constructed have meaning. They impact the narrative itself and set-up patterns for the reader. In the case of this particular book, it doesn't quite work. 

There are three primary focal characters in this book, Nikolai, Zoya, and Nina. It's an interesting choice to have Nina being in Fjerda, totally separate from Nikolai and Zoya who are together and having connected experiences. Nina feels out of place (literally and figuratively). It works, but...it feels off. I expect that eventually Nina's story will directly intersect with what's happening for Nikolai and Zoya, but it doesn't in this book. The hanging thread is good for a duology, but also--and I hate to say it because I love Nina--the book would work without her. That's the thing you have to contend with when you have three focal characters when one of them is in an entirely different location; sometimes that one can just lift out.

The novel begins with a focal chapter from the POV of a the little boy, Dima, that Monster Nikolai almost eats, and though Nikolai does not eat him, the boy's part in the narrative is over. So when Isaak is introduced as a new focal character, it seems like he's not going to be around for long. Either the disguise is going to be discovered, or he's going to die, or some other unfortunate fate will befall him. Instead, Isaak lasts quite a while, which was cool but also he still dies, though. And since the novel has already set-up that that a new focal character won't be around for long, Isaak's ultimate fate is not all that surprising. 

This book is separated into two parts, but the split doesn't entirely work. It happens when Nikolai, Zoya, and Yuri are transported into the Other Fold, which makes sense, they're in a different world now. Except, this hasn't also happened to Nina, and her section of the story doesn't split into two sections as nicely as Nikolai and Zoya's. And, based on my expectations, I definitely thought the action would pick up in Part 2. It does, aaaand it doesn't. So much of it is Nikolai and Zoya doing training, and I wanted more things to be happening.

Verdict: Despite some genuine criticisms, I actually enjoyed this book a lot. Not as much as Six of Crows or The Ninth House but leaps and bounds more than either of the Shadow and Bone books I read. I trust Leigh Bardugo and hope that the things that didn't come together in this book will in the next. And also that the payoff for the Darkling being back is worth it.

Also, I'm hoping that the show will help me like Alina more.