Name: Rule of Wolves
ISBN: 9781713623427

Leigh Bardugo

Lauren Fortgang

(Narrated by: Lauren Fortgang.) The wolves are circling, and a young king will face his greatest challenge in the explosive finale of the instant number-one New York Times best-selling King of Scars Duology. / / /  

The Demon King. As Fjerda’s massive army prepares to invade, Nikolai Lantsov will summon every bit of his ingenuity and charm - and even the monster within - to win this fight. But a dark threat looms that cannot be defeated by a young king’s gift for the impossible. . . 

The Stormwitch. Zoya Nazyalensky has lost too much to war. She saw her mentor die and her worst enemy resurrected, and she refuses to bury another friend. Now duty demands she embrace her powers to become the weapon her country needs. No matter the cost. . . 

The Queen of Mourning. Deep undercover, Nina Zenik risks discovery and death as she wages war on Fjerda from inside its capital. But her desire for revenge may cost her country its chance at freedom and Nina the chance to heal her grieving heart. . . . 

King. General. Spy. Together they must find a way to forge a future in the darkness. Or watch a nation fall.

King of Scars #2

Rule of Wolves

vittoria

Samantha Milfort

Victoria

Destiny Marley

Lauren

Sophie

Haley

Anna Stewart

Amy Powell

Eilidh 

The wolves are circling and a young king will face his greatest challenge in the explosive finale of the instant #1 New York Times-bestselling King of Scars Duology. The Grishaverse will be coming to Netflix soon with Shadow and Bone, an original series! The Demon King. As Fjerda's massive army prepares to invade, Nikolai Lantsov will summon every bit of his ingenuity and charm - and even the monster within - to win this fight. But a dark threat looms that cannot be defeated by a young king's gift for the impossible. The Stormwitch. Zoya Nazyalensky has lost too much to war. She saw her mentor die and her worst enemy resurrected, and she refuses to bury another friend. Now duty demands she embrace her powers to become the weapon her country needs. No matter the cost.The Queen of Mourning. Deep undercover, Nina Zenik risks discovery and death as she wages war on Fjerda from inside its capital. But her desire for revenge may cost her country its chance at freedom and Nina the chance to heal her grieving heart.King. General. Spy. Together they must find a way to forge a future in the darkness. Or watch a nation fall. Read all the books in the Grishaverse!The Shadow and Bone Trilogy (previously published as The Grisha Trilogy)Shadow and BoneSiege and StormRuin and RisingThe Six of Crows DuologySix of CrowsCrooked KingdomThe King of Scars DuologyKing of ScarsRule of WolvesThe Language of ThornsThe Lives of SaintsPraise for the Grishaverse"A master of fantasy." -The Huffington Post"Utterly, extremely bewitching." -The Guardian"The best magic universe since Harry Potter." -Bustle"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

The best finale of the duology. Been a Nina stan from the start and absolutely adore Zoya

Rose Donovan

The Grishaverse will be coming to Netflix soon with Shadow and Bone, an original series! The wolves are circling and a young king will face his greatest challenge in the explosive finale of the instant #1 New York Times–bestselling King of Scars Duology. The Demon King. As Fjerda’s massive army prepares to invade, Nikolai Lantsov will summon every bit of his ingenuity and charm—and even the monster within—to win this fight. But a dark threat looms that cannot be defeated by a young king’s gift for the impossible. The Stormwitch. Zoya Nazyalensky has lost too much to war. She saw her mentor die and her worst enemy resurrected, and she refuses to bury another friend. Now duty demands she embrace her powers to become the weapon her country needs. No matter the cost. The Queen of Mourning. Deep undercover, Nina Zenik risks discovery and death as she wages war on Fjerda from inside its capital. But her desire for revenge may cost her country its chance at freedom and Nina the chance to heal her grieving heart. King. General. Spy. Together they must find a way to forge a future in the darkness. Or watch a nation fall. An Imprint Book 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 Kingdom The King of Scars Duology King of Scars Rule of Wolves The Language of Thorns: Midnight Tales and Dangerous Magic The Severed Moon: A Year-Long Journal of Magic Praise for the Grishaverse “A master of fantasy.” —The Huffington Post “Utterly, extremely bewitching.” —The Guardian “The best magic universe since Harry Potter.” —Bustle “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

I really liked it but at times I was bored by the war but it’s just a me problem, the end with the sparkling felt kind of not right. I be wanted more Nikolai and Zoya!! It was a super emotional book😩🫶🏼

Yalin Tsikun

Anna 

** spoiler alert **
           oh. my. god! I literally fell in love with rule of wolves!! 
I hadn't expected much from it since the king of scars disappointed me quite a lot, but I just really loved the plots and the story overall and mostly nina's pov!! I really don't have anything bad to say about it, I enjoyed SoC scenes, I understood zoya quite well and nikolai seemed funnier and cooler. nina and hanne are my heartstopper, I literally love them a lot! haha so yeah I fell in love with this book almost as much as I fell in love with the crooked kingdom. I sometimes still catch myself thinking about grishaverse, even though it's been a month since I finished all of the books. 
I really love the vibes and the characters and grishaverse became one of my favourite fantasy worlds, without no doubt.

arwen

only read the darklina scenes but considering the emotional damage it caused me i think i can add this to my challenge

Hanna Rybchynska

I like where is the story going! Excited for more !

Isabella 

I didn't like the first half of the book, but it started to pick up in the latter part, and I enjoyed it. However, there was a lot going on that it felt too much. I love how we got everyone together, and it was really a fun read. The ending though?? Are we getting SOC3?? Moreover, I felt a bit disappointed with the way it ended. (view spoiler)[I love Zoya, and I liked how she became queen, but I honestly wish Nikolai stayed as king instead. (hide spoiler)] Overall, I enjoyed it, but not as much as I hoped I would. Definitely liked this better than King of Scars tho. I love Zoyalai so much <33

Julie Rubens

I loved this book so much! This was the only book I hadn't read from the Grishaverse (mostly because it's so big), but I'm really glad I finally decided to read it! Zoya is truly a goddess and all the other characters are wonderful too. I would still say I like the Six of Crows duology better, but this was so good as well! Also, I'm so happy we got the little cameo's and the ending was amazing!

At this point, I just need a book on Tolya and Tamar. They are by far the greatest characters in this franchise and we still know so little about them. I need to know more about my dishy, scary, big boyfriend Tolya. No more Darkling. JUST GIVE ME THE TWINS!!!!

Holly

UM THIS WAS NOT GOING WHERE I EXPECTED IT TO AND I LOVED EVERY BIT OF IT

Nikolai will always be one of my top fav book boyfriends cause what was that??? hello??? does he exist in real life cause if so, you know where to find me ;)

sophie <3

UM THIS WAS NOT GOING WHERE I EXPECTED IT TO AND I LOVED EVERY BIT OF IT

Nikolai will always be one of my top fav book boyfriends cause what was that??? hello??? does he exist in real life cause if so, you know where to find me ;)

I can't believe it's over! I love Leigh Bardugo's writing and characters so much I never want this to end.

In my opinion, this duology is the best one in the Grishaverse. While Six of Crows duology was great as well, I think I prefer the older characters and less points of views in this one.

Going into this duology, Nikolai was my definite favorite. However, by the end it's hard to think of any character I don't love.

Tatiana

Rule of Wolves: 4.75/5

"Grief was the shadow love left when it was gone.”

QWERTYUIOPLKJHGFDSXCVBNM BYE.

Premise:
I don't want to give any spoilers here, so I can't say too much about the book's premise. It's the sequel to King of Scars, and Fjerda has brought the prospect of war onto Ravka. Nikolai, Zoya, Nina, and our other fan favorites must band together to defeat an ancient evil before war decends Ravka.

“This was war. Not parades and boasts but blood and sacrifice, and Ravka would not go quietly.”

Writing & Plot:
Yes. Bardugo truly gets better and better with each book. I cannot give this book 5 stars because the first half is slow (even though a lot happens). It was my same issue with King of Scars where I cannot ignore it even though, as a whole, it is incredible. 

This plot is WILD. I was engaged, enthralled, if you will, throughout the WHOLE THING. The reveals in this book are what keeps me breathing. I was cheering, weeping, and laughing along with all the characters.

And the ending.... iykyk........... teehee

“Because I am greedy for the sight of you. Because the prospect of facing this war, this loss, without you fills me with fear. Because I find I don’t want to fight for a future if I can’t find a way to make a future with you.”

Characters:
I think Zoya may be my favorite character out of any book ever. I'm in love with her. The depth and complexity that each character has baffles me. Bardugo's work to bring these characters to life does not go unnoticed. She is a master at character work, and I cannot praise it enough.

Not only are we getting the continued POVs of our OG favs from King of Scars, but a few unexpected others as well that I loved. I thought the multiple POVs would annoy me, but they didn't. They all seamlessly blended to create one chronological and cohesive story. 

Not only are the POVs fantastic, but we get some unexpected cameos as well... I will say nothing more.

"This is what love does."

Conclusion:
Outstanding. I cannot praise this enough. It is everything that I wanted, even though I didn't even know what I wanted. I agree with everything that happened and could not imagine this book to be any better, besides the beginning I mentioned previously. 

I love this so much. It is such a fantastic ending to the duology, and I cannot recommend the Grishaverse books enough. I can't wait for everything else Bardugo has in store.

Julia Moran 

AAAAA I really liked this one! I love Zoya and Nikolai but my favorite part of this book was the Kaz chapters... sorrynotsorry I just love dirty hands way too much. Anyways I enjoyed this book way more than King of Scars which I found kind of slow and tedious at times, I like it when there's not a dull moment and you spend every second at the edge of your seat wondering what's going to happen, this book does that pretty well. I'm still not reading the Grisha trilogy, I just don't see the point at this time, to be honest.
OK EDIT (and spoilers): I've been reflecting and the only thing I absolutely did NOT like was the Nina ending like what? I just loved Matthias way too much and Nina just seems to forget about him? Like ok I get she's moving on with her life but she only seems to spare like 5 thoughts to him through out the series and it doesn't feel realistic that she just moves on with Hanne like that... also the fact that when she finds out about Joran and she's obviously having this big emotional crisis about THE MAN SHE LOVED WHO DIED IN HER ARMS Hanne is just like yeaaah too bad anyways I'm like in love with you or something and they just proceed to hook up? Like WHAAT? WHY? That just made me SO angry at both of them, I feel like it would've been the perfect moment to kind of make peace with Matthias' death by telling Hanne about him and Hanne being like ok I won't forget this VERY important piece of your history and I hope I can somehow honor him. BUT IT JUST GETS SWEPT UNDER THE FUCKING RUG!!!! And finally, the ending makes me really sad, I find it extremely sad that Nina will just live the rest of her life as someone she's not, She will live the rest of her life pretending and I find that extremely sad for a character with so much spark like Nina.

nina 

UPDATE: this is supposed to be the KING of scars duology, right? can someone tell leigh bardugo that? 

the fact that this book has such a high rating despite the mess of five different plots squished into one book, unneeded character povs that took away from nikolai’s supposed story, too many cameos that were included for fan service instead of narrative progression, and the disaster of an end, just shows that you can’t trust anyone :))

my original thoughts bellows: 

Do not trust this rating at ALL. It is for zoyalai and zoyalai only that I give them that. Also, I’m pretending the last three chapters don’t exist

edit: even though i didn't actually change the actual rating, i took a star off because i in no way want to imply that this is on the same level as book 1 because it definitely is not (and there is a significant plot decision that completely destroys a character's journey which is responsible for that)

fatru tamzil

Final thought: 

It didn't blew my mind the way KoS did, but it did left me feel satisfied. I remember LB said that RoW would be two things: 

Zoya facing her vurnerability and Nikolai at his wit's ends. Both of those things became true in this book, and it is very interesting watching both of their character's grow. Especially Zoya, she had come a long way from what she was, to what she is and, because I projected myself (at least some part of me) to her, it's like watching a version of myself grow and learn that she can be something else, someone else. 

Nikolai is truly on his wit's end here, but if what we learned from him in the past book: he persists. And through all of that he remains what he was. Maybe stronger. 

I admit that the Shu Han's royalty conflict ended rather abruptly and conviniently. I think it could be explored more, and the character's could have been stronger. I like Ehri a lot--in a strange way I feel kinship to her especially in her way of seeing things into a much more subtle attempt as opposed to Makhi's ruthlessness. Makhi is also interesting, I understands her ambition and her needs to fulfill it. 

Nina, my girl, my sweet girl Nina. She has been through so much. I am glad she is better, I am glad she is happy and had found her happiness, at last :") 

I could've cared less for the darkles but seeing his perspetives make me shiver. He really is the villain. This man....I hope he got what he deserves not as a penance for what he done, but as a damnation to what he had done. 

Overall, I think this worth 4.5 stars from me. It really is easy to return to a world I am familiar with, with characters that I love as the central. 

GV is a world I'd return and return again.

Im not completely satisfied with the book, especially as a last from the whole grishaverse, but i LOVEEEE everyone in this book so its all good

matti horckmans

esperanza 

3.5 

really like nina’s storyline, however zoya’s and nikolai’s felt like it was going in circles. but that ending though....

NIKOLAI MY BELOVED! I really really liked this one, up there with the six of crows books as a bardugo fave

fris🐝

Redwineandbookplease

Veronica Segura

I normally don't write reviews but I just have to write about how much I loved this book. I know that the first book in this duology had gotten mixed reviews, I really enjoyed this one because I would be up until 1:00 or 2:00 in the morning just reading. When something would happen that I didn't like the first thing I did like every other book worm was close the book and take a deep breath, and when something really great happened I went running to my dad to tell him. This was defiantly a book that. I would recommend to my family and friends. I will say that I wasn't a big fan of "Siege and Storm" but once I pushed through it, I really enjoyed the Grishaverse.

Lara Engle

For the first half of Rule of Wolves, I was wondering why I got myself into this convoluted, slow, messy book. I loved the first five Grishaverse books and was fine with the sixth. But this one. Ugh. Soooooo unnecessarily drawn out. But, just like King of Scars, the second half really picked up. By the end, I was satisfied and even ready to jump into the next Grishaverse book set up in the last chapter, when Bardugo eventually decides to write it. I do think there were too many shoehorned cameos, too many villains, and too many political intrigues, plus not enough magic, not enough banter, and not enough hijinks. But it was still pretty good. (The second half, anyway.)

I liked to have a comeback for certain characters and it was well written but the comeback of the Darkling seemed a bit unnecessary and forced to me, his kind of redemption arc was somehow nice but i just thought the story could have come to an end without him coming back

Joelina Schlabbach

Ava Gardner

4.6 stars

MAJOR SPOILERS BELOW

Where do I even start? This was an epic conclusion (for now) to one of my favorite universes EVER. I cried, I laughed, I cried some more, and I silently screamed at 2:00am. This book had me all in my feelings. I finished it in two days. TWO DAYS. 608 pages. 

I guess I'll start with my favorite part of the book. Well, ONE of my favorite parts. Zoyalai. I can not tell you how many times I said "HELL YEAH" between pages 548-608. Don't worry, I said it plenty for the scenes before that page frame, however, the love confession that happened on page 551 gave me literal butterflies. To get that confession out of ZOYA . . . ZOYA out of all people, was a lot for me to handle. Nikolai's reaction was EVERYTHING. Throughout the book, their inner monologues were so satisfying to read about, mainly because they always thought about the other A LOT. Zoyalai really served in this book. Whenever Nikolai admitted to himself that he wanted Zoya, I silently screamed. Whenever Zoya admitted to herself that she wanted Nikolai, I silently screamed. When they told each other OUT LOUD that they love each other . . . I SCREAMED. They are so different and powerful in their individualities, but together, they are stronger than ever.

Zoya . . . oh my God, ZOYA. This duology made me fall in love with Zoya just as much as Nikolai did. Her ferociousness, her fire, and her passion are what make her such a badass bitch and I love her so much. She will never, ever take shit from anyone and I could not be more proud of her. She's always been a badass, but seeing her grow and let people in, like Genya and Nikolai, makes my heart sing.

Nikolai. My beautiful privateer. I've been in love with Nikolai since the [b:Shadow and Bone|10194157|Shadow and Bone (The Shadow and Bone Trilogy, #1)|Leigh Bardugo|https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1339533695l/10194157._SX50_.jpg|15093325] trilogy, and he absolutely SERVED in the KOS duology. I loved reading about his journey and internal fight with the demon that lived within him, and watching him come to terms with the monster in this latest installment. He ended realizing that this demon can actually be a tool and gift, instead of a curse. I loved seeing Nikolai scheme, fall in love, and battle for his home, all while facing backlash about being a supposed 'bastard' king (although he denies this until the end of the story).

Nina. Okay, hear me out. I love my girl Nina, I have since [b:Six of Crows|23437156|Six of Crows (Six of Crows, #1)|Leigh Bardugo|https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1459349344l/23437156._SY75_.jpg|42077459], however, her chapters here weren't my fave. Neither were they in [b:King of Scars|36307634|King of Scars (King of Scars, #1)|Leigh Bardugo|https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1525110825l/36307634._SY75_.jpg|57978319], except for her chapter burying Matthias (I sobbed). I don't know why, but a lot of things she did simply felt out-of-character to me in this story. I can't explain it, but a lot of her actions simply did. I also thought it was an incredibly fast-moving-on from Matthias to Hanne. I love Hanne, they're badass and I pity them for having Jarl Brum as a dad LOL, however, I don't think Nina was ready to jump into a relationship so fast. I'm glad she ended up happy, like I'm ecstatic, but I gotta give my girl time to really grieve and let go of Matthias. I know she had his body for months, looking for the perfect spot to bury it, but still, I couldn't imagine loving someone as much as Nina did Matthias, having him taken away from her, and then moving on so fast after that. I'm not saying that she doesn't love him anymore or that she shouldn't be happy, I'm just saying that I think she should've taken more time for herself rather than jumping in so quickly with Hanne. Nina's been through so much and it genuinely makes my heart hurt thinking about how much she's had to suffer. Miss [a:Leigh Bardugo|4575289|Leigh Bardugo|https://images.gr-assets.com/authors/1534446099p2/4575289.jpg] really knows how to make me cry.

David and Genya. David's death had me crying in the club. I was sobbing, especially during the funeral scene. Poor Genya, she's been through so much and she finally found happiness, all for it to be taken away from her again. This shattered my heart and drained me of tears. I love Genya so much and it was so excruciatingly painful to see her hurting again.

Now that I've talked about our three main characters in this duology, you know I have to talk about the cameos and the scenes with the Crows. I figured we were going to get cameos but not CHAPTERS of our fave characters! 

Kaz. Jesper. Wylan. Holy shit. I genuinely SOBBED when Nikolai first mentioned going to Ketterdam. Kaz and Nikolai communicating actually sent me into orbit. I know they'd be besties if given the chance. ALSO, I fucking knew it was Kaz disguised as the old man with the cane. As soon as the cane was mentioned, I shrieked. It was so perfect. The subtle threats made to Nikolai and Zoya were so Kaz-like I cried again, especially because he was threatening them over INEJ. MY GIRL INEJ. Kaz is so whipped for her. I could not get over Kaz doing the job FOR Inej. My Kanej heart was singing, although I wished to see WAY MORE of Inej in this bit. 

Jesper and Wylan have a special place in my heart. I've always pictured how the Crows would be after their heist, and this perfectly played out. Kaz occasionally coming to their door in need of assistance, Jesper and Wylan bickering over helping or not, and then instantly volunteering when hearing that it's for the Wraith, our precious Inej. Wesper is so heart-warming.

Again, I wish we got more Inej and that she had played a part in capturing the titanium, however, seeing her for a little scene at the end of the book has me sobbing, screaming, and jumping up and down. What really got me is when she almost recognized Alina! I was laughing so hard. You know that she probably figured it out in her mind later that day. I do wish we got to see a full reunion with all the Crows and a more in-depth reunion conversation between Nina and Inej. The two besties forever. My God, I wish we got to read about their reunion. That would have made this book a 4.8 I think. 

Now that I've put my very jumbled thoughts into words about the cameos, onto the ending.

In all honesty, the last battle between Fjerda and Ravka left me . . . slightly unsatisfied. I was expecting something a little more epic ? It still was except there were just some parts missing, I think. As the finale to the Grishaverse for now, I was hoping for a big bang to go on out and that battle just left me wanting something more. 

When Nikolai dethroned himself and gave the crown to Zoya, I flipped my shit. Queen Zoya of Ravka. The Dragon Queen. My main bitch. God, I love her. She deserves the crown more than anyone, I think, and Nikolai is genius to give it to her. This was one of my favorite parts of the book.

The very last sentence . . . oh my God. Miss Leigh, please. I actually had to take a run after this to avoid shattering my house with a scream. I feel like there now has to be another book with the whole team-up, and then THAT can be the finale to the Grishaverse. Having like an Avengers: Endgame type of book would be so epic and spectacular that I will consider that one to be the finale. Although I don't wish for a third SOC book because Leigh said that if she writes one, she would kill off one of the Crows and that Kaz probably wouldn't get a happy ending, I am intrigued to see this insane team-up. But again, I'll sacrifice getting that book if it means that Kaz and the Crows and everyone else can get a happy ending.

Overall, this book will forever be memorable to me in every aspect, and I will be praying to Sankta Leigh for this amazing universe, characters, and series.

i loved this a lot, especially with the appearances of characters from earlier books (the crows and alina). i loved the plot and nikolai and zoya together. i think nina's storyline and her healing in this and falling in love with someone else was needed and well deserved, but it also kinda stung a little since i'm still not over matthias death tbh. overall a really good book.

kristin :)

so great. the plotlines of this weren't the neatest in my opinion but bardugo makes up for it with brilliant characters and utterly compelling wordbuilding.

Rule of Wolves King of Scars #2