2,423 books
—
15,476 voters
Goodreads helps you keep track of books you want to read.
Start by marking “Ruin and Rising (The Shadow and Bone Trilogy, #3)” as Want to Read:
Ruin and Rising
(The Shadow and Bone Trilogy #3)
by
▶
Alternative Cover Edition #1
The capital has fallen.
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 ...more
The capital has fallen.
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 ...more
Hardcover, 422 pages
Published
June 17th 2014
by Henry Holt and Company
Friend Reviews
To see what your friends thought of this book,
please sign up.
Reader Q&A
To ask other readers questions about
Ruin and Rising,
please sign up.
Popular Answered Questions
Sarah
This answer contains spoilers…
(view spoiler)
gab ☻
This answer contains spoilers…
(view spoiler)
Community Reviews
Showing 1-30
Start your review of Ruin and Rising (The Shadow and Bone Trilogy, #3)
2 Stars
Overview:

^My face right now.
Let me preface this roast by stating-- my problem isn’t the love triangle. (If you can even call it that.) I’m not upset things didn’t turn out like I wanted, I’m frustrated the conclusion was a hot mess of nonexistent plot and unwinding character development. (Though I do obviously hate one of the love interests with all of my so ...more
Overview:
Then he cupped my cheek, his thumb tracing my lip."You are all I've ever wanted," he said. "You are the whole of my heart.”

^My face right now.
Let me preface this roast by stating-- my problem isn’t the love triangle. (If you can even call it that.) I’m not upset things didn’t turn out like I wanted, I’m frustrated the conclusion was a hot mess of nonexistent plot and unwinding character development. (Though I do obviously hate one of the love interests with all of my so ...more
Holy shit. This was brilliant and terrible and I have so many feels I can't even begin to describe.
Ok ok, listen. I know there are so many conflicting reviews on this book. But as for me? I literally could not choose how I wanted it to end.
I know, I might be a terrible person but I was totally OK with all three ending scenarios. At the beginning of this book, I was literally rooting for Alina to save the Darkling (or turn dark herself), Alina with Nikolai, and Alina and Mal (though this was my l ...more
Ok ok, listen. I know there are so many conflicting reviews on this book. But as for me? I literally could not choose how I wanted it to end.
I know, I might be a terrible person but I was totally OK with all three ending scenarios. At the beginning of this book, I was literally rooting for Alina to save the Darkling (or turn dark herself), Alina with Nikolai, and Alina and Mal (though this was my l ...more
Jul 12, 2014
Khanh, first of her name, mother of bunnies
rated it
it was ok
Shelves:
why-do-i-hate-myself
I AM SO PISSED. I AM SO PISSED.
Please allow me the indulgence of using an extended metaphor to describe this series.
The first book is the first stages of love. It's not true love, but infatuation. You are ensnared by his looks, enamored by everything he does. His quirks are adorable. His faults are overlooked because it's a part of who he is. It's part of what makes him special. So what if he has a habit of scratching his ass in public? It's cute.
The second book is the "settling in" stage of the ...more
Please allow me the indulgence of using an extended metaphor to describe this series.
The first book is the first stages of love. It's not true love, but infatuation. You are ensnared by his looks, enamored by everything he does. His quirks are adorable. His faults are overlooked because it's a part of who he is. It's part of what makes him special. So what if he has a habit of scratching his ass in public? It's cute.
The second book is the "settling in" stage of the ...more
That was an interesting conclusion to the trilogy. I can't say I'm super satisfied with how things came together, but it was still enjoyable! My main gripe with this series is it's lack of plot. I wanted more from the story, all three books feel like this build up to the ending, but nothing happens during those build up moments. (obviously this is just my opinion, you don't have to agree with me!)
...more
They had an ordinary life, full of ordinary things--if love can ever be called that.
<3
4.5 stars
Oh, and Leigh Bardugo talked to me about the glorious, glorious food of the Grisha trilogy here during this fairy tale lunch: http://www.themidnightgarden.net/2014... ...more
<3
4.5 stars
Oh, and Leigh Bardugo talked to me about the glorious, glorious food of the Grisha trilogy here during this fairy tale lunch: http://www.themidnightgarden.net/2014... ...more
la la la la la tis impossible for me to say anything coherent about the Grisha trilogy because I love it so much. What a wonderful conclusion. I'm so happy I finally continued with this series this year.
...more

1.) Shadow and Bone ★★★★★
2.) Siege and Storm ★★★
This book was a whole lot of ruin and not enough rising.
This review is going to have mild spoilers, especially with information about Shadow and Bone and Siege and Storm, so please proceed with caution if you haven't read this trilogy.
Moral of this story:
If you want the super hot guy you've been fantasizing about for years, make sure you never show that you can be more powerful than him in any aspect of your life.

Mal wanted her powerless and he ...more
”They will starve for you, lay down their lives and their children’s lives for you. They will make war without fear and die rejoicing. There is no greater power than faith, and there will be no greater army than one driven by it.”
Three books and I still hate the Apparat! *lol* Guess that says enough about him and his despicable character. XD Despite everything he unfortunately has a point though. Now that Alina has become Sankta Alina for so many people they think that she’s the answer to all t ...more
Three books and I still hate the Apparat! *lol* Guess that says enough about him and his despicable character. XD Despite everything he unfortunately has a point though. Now that Alina has become Sankta Alina for so many people they think that she’s the answer to all t ...more
may 2021 update
i still haven’t finished the show yet but i’m writing darklina/alarkling fic hi: https://archiveofourown.org/works/310...
february 2021 update
anyway the shadow & bone trailer kinda slaps why lie 😭 all my besties make some mfing noise 🌘✨about to get baited and clowned again but oh well
january 2021 update
i caved & am now anticipating the s&b show for no other reason except annoying nostalgia and my love for darklina... (also i love the casting for the darkling & alina? 😭)
anyhow, i’ ...more
i still haven’t finished the show yet but i’m writing darklina/alarkling fic hi: https://archiveofourown.org/works/310...
february 2021 update
anyway the shadow & bone trailer kinda slaps why lie 😭 all my besties make some mfing noise 🌘✨
january 2021 update
i caved & am now anticipating the s&b show for no other reason except annoying nostalgia and my love for darklina... (also i love the casting for the darkling & alina? 😭)
anyhow, i’ ...more
i finally know the context behind "i am become a blade" and ive never wanted to unalive myself more. however, i am become a whore for Nikolai Lantsov, Major of the Twenty-Second Regiment, Soldier of the King’s Army, Grand Duke of Udova, and second son to His Most Royal Majesty, King Alexander the Third, Ruler of the Double Eagle Throne. aka Privateer Sturmhond ;)
...more
"You learn more by losing."
This is how a series is supposed to end! Ruin & Rising made up for any and all complaints I had on the series so far. Whatever I felt was lacking when it came to the depth of characters, or plot in first two books isn't even noticeable anymore: This one is by far my favorite of the trilogy. I've given each of the trilogy a 4-star rating, but the first two felt like 3.5-stars whereas this was like 4.5-stars. Everything's improved beautifully, and ends the trilogy much b ...more
This is how a series is supposed to end! Ruin & Rising made up for any and all complaints I had on the series so far. Whatever I felt was lacking when it came to the depth of characters, or plot in first two books isn't even noticeable anymore: This one is by far my favorite of the trilogy. I've given each of the trilogy a 4-star rating, but the first two felt like 3.5-stars whereas this was like 4.5-stars. Everything's improved beautifully, and ends the trilogy much b ...more
There’s a repeated problem within this novel where the time skips. The first book ends with the leads off to a new adventure. That new adventure is compromised and they are in the same old situation as before the finale less than twenty pages in. The second book ends with the lead characters in a bad situation. They are out of that bad situation less than forty pages into this book. It’s a really weird element and makes this story feel really unpolished.
Now, you might be thinking, Elise, I love ...more
Now, you might be thinking, Elise, I love ...more
*5 “you might make me a better man” stars*
Agony. Pain. Tears. Heartbreak. Acceptance. This is the way the Grisha trilogy ends.

A masterpiece. A gem. Leigh Bardugo gave everything she had in this grand finale. I'm numb and empty inside. I want to sit in silence and contemplate what happened and figure out the reasons why. I came to the conclusion that things were meant to end this way from the ...more
“I will strip away all that you know, all that you love, until you have no shelter but mine.”
Agony. Pain. Tears. Heartbreak. Acceptance. This is the way the Grisha trilogy ends.

A masterpiece. A gem. Leigh Bardugo gave everything she had in this grand finale. I'm numb and empty inside. I want to sit in silence and contemplate what happened and figure out the reasons why. I came to the conclusion that things were meant to end this way from the ...more
4.4/5 Stars ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
Look, I ain't gonna lie, I finished this book two weeks ago but hadn't had the time to write a good review about it (fuck you work) so I left it till this moment. And since then, because I'm a fucking goldfish, I don't remember shit. I delve into so many new stories each week, whether they may be tv shows, movies and books (obvs) that my mind is at its full capacity. My mind is 1tb and the fucking info is 5 ...more
“Na razrusha'ya. I am not ruined. E'ya razrushost. I am ruination.”
Look, I ain't gonna lie, I finished this book two weeks ago but hadn't had the time to write a good review about it (fuck you work) so I left it till this moment. And since then, because I'm a fucking goldfish, I don't remember shit. I delve into so many new stories each week, whether they may be tv shows, movies and books (obvs) that my mind is at its full capacity. My mind is 1tb and the fucking info is 5 ...more
(view spoiler)["br"]>["br"]>["br"]>["br"]>
...more
Jun 30, 2021
Layla
rated it
liked it
·
review of another edition
Shelves:
buddy-reads,
leigh-bardugo
~ 3.5 stars ~
Writing is not that easy. But, Grammarly can help. This sentence is grammatically correct, but it's wordy, and hard to read.
I know that line was purposefully written that way, but making fun of Mal is my passion, so I will take every opportunity I can get.
This book was the best in the series. At least it was the one I enjoyed the most.
~ plot ~
It was easy to follow and enjoyable for the most part. But that ending was horrible. It felt underwhelming and stupid a ...more
"I am become a blade"
Writing is not that easy. But, Grammarly can help. This sentence is grammatically correct, but it's wordy, and hard to read.
I know that line was purposefully written that way, but making fun of Mal is my passion, so I will take every opportunity I can get.
This book was the best in the series. At least it was the one I enjoyed the most.
~ plot ~
It was easy to follow and enjoyable for the most part. But that ending was horrible. It felt underwhelming and stupid a ...more
Leigh Bardugo has come a long way.
Ruin and Rising was actually... okay. It was fine. (I rated the first two books one star. So this is a pleasant surprise.) I'm not exactly sure why it was better, but I think it's because Mal was hardly present. And because it quit the whole mean-girl subplot.
I liked quite a few things about this book. Like the Darkling.
I despised him in the first book and liked him a little more in the second one, but in this book, my favorite scenes were the ones with the D ...more
Ruin and Rising was actually... okay. It was fine. (I rated the first two books one star. So this is a pleasant surprise.) I'm not exactly sure why it was better, but I think it's because Mal was hardly present. And because it quit the whole mean-girl subplot.
I liked quite a few things about this book. Like the Darkling.
I despised him in the first book and liked him a little more in the second one, but in this book, my favorite scenes were the ones with the D ...more
my original review wasnt much of a review, but more like an expression of awe. and gratefully, i still felt those feelings with this reread. so yes, my rating is very much based in nostalgia and personal bias. but man, this book (and series) is something else.
i understand why reviews for this are mixed. where people saw filler, i read character development. and where others felt an imbalance of plot, i noticed the groundwork laid for character conclusions. so i guess what i am saying is the cha ...more
i understand why reviews for this are mixed. where people saw filler, i read character development. and where others felt an imbalance of plot, i noticed the groundwork laid for character conclusions. so i guess what i am saying is the cha ...more
Moral of the story: A woman should never show more strength and power than her boyfriend. Ladies, you must give up everything so you can be with your man.
The end.
....
Also, fuck any defense for this ending. The fucking title is "Ruin and Rising", and by naming the book this, Leigh Bardugo completely misled everyone into believing this book would be something its not.
Read this if you like heavily contrived romance that the actual plot suffers for. ...more
The end.
....
Also, fuck any defense for this ending. The fucking title is "Ruin and Rising", and by naming the book this, Leigh Bardugo completely misled everyone into believing this book would be something its not.
Read this if you like heavily contrived romance that the actual plot suffers for. ...more
Jun 07, 2017
Chelsea Humphrey
rated it
it was amazing
·
review of another edition
Shelves:
favorites,
audiobooks
Guys, I had completely forgotten how much this final installment means to me. I feel like I somehow appreciated it even more by listening as a reread; I wasn't worried about what was going to happen and was able to soak up every detail. Ruin and Rising will remain one of the most cherished books I've ever read, and I'm looking forward to finding out if the SoC duology works out as well to reread as audiobooks.
******************
This book was everything. 💔🖤💔🖤💔🖤 I'm so emotional right now *SOBS UN ...more
******************
This book was everything. 💔🖤💔🖤💔🖤 I'm so emotional right now *SOBS UN ...more
This review has been hidden because it contains spoilers. To view it,
click here.
Nikolai single-handedly saved this book from going down the gutter. And Oh my poor Darkling, didn't you find anyone else to obsess over than ALINA? I could've been your princess all along because I would've never rejected you for a guy with a questionable cranial capacity, just saying.
*Excuse me while I go sulk like a lovestruck teenager* ...more
*Excuse me while I go sulk like a lovestruck teenager* ...more
REVIEW:
Actual rating: 3.5 Stars
So. I am conflicted. I initially gave Ruin And Rising 4 stars. After like half an hour of deliberating and second-guessing my rating, I switched it to 3 stars. If you'll ask me in a week, I'll probably say it was a 4 star read. So to be honest, I think it's a 3.5 from me. There are several reasons why I did this to the last book of one of my favorite series EVER and I'm gonna complain about every one of them, so if I start writing in CAPS, please understand that I' ...more
Actual rating: 3.5 Stars
So. I am conflicted. I initially gave Ruin And Rising 4 stars. After like half an hour of deliberating and second-guessing my rating, I switched it to 3 stars. If you'll ask me in a week, I'll probably say it was a 4 star read. So to be honest, I think it's a 3.5 from me. There are several reasons why I did this to the last book of one of my favorite series EVER and I'm gonna complain about every one of them, so if I start writing in CAPS, please understand that I' ...more
my heart: MORE NIKOLAI MORE NIKOLAI MORE NIKOLAI
my brain: and the rest of them too, you need to know what happens
my heart: MORE NIKOLAI!!
my brain:

RTC! ...more
my brain: and the rest of them too, you need to know what happens
my heart: MORE NIKOLAI!!
my brain:

RTC! ...more
Read 2 | March 2019
I love rereading books and that onslaught of new and old feels. :') Also I'm so so glad I reread this because heck if I remembered even 15% which would've made King of Scars really awkward. (Also shout out to the fact that Nikolai got CALLED King of Scars in this on!! I wonder if the author planned it right from 2014 when she first wrote this?! We stan a foreshadowing queen.)
I definitely felt different things for this book than the first time. This time (1) I do think Mal/Alin ...more
I love rereading books and that onslaught of new and old feels. :') Also I'm so so glad I reread this because heck if I remembered even 15% which would've made King of Scars really awkward. (Also shout out to the fact that Nikolai got CALLED King of Scars in this on!! I wonder if the author planned it right from 2014 when she first wrote this?! We stan a foreshadowing queen.)
I definitely felt different things for this book than the first time. This time (1) I do think Mal/Alin ...more
This review is mostly gifs bc I just cannot write proper English words and the only English word that I am able to write is the word "fuck" and there is enough of that if you scroll down.
Mal
Alina

The Plot


The Darkling



The Ending


If you don't want a whole fuck migraine, don't scroll down. :))
*eye twitches*
*closes book and stares off into the distance*
*takes a deep breath*
*implodes*
Literally trying not to fucking throw my fucking Ipad across the room. FUCK THIS BULL FUCKING SHIT.
FUCK FUCK FUCK ...more
Mal
Alina

The Plot


The Darkling



The Ending


If you don't want a whole fuck migraine, don't scroll down. :))
*eye twitches*
*closes book and stares off into the distance*
*takes a deep breath*
*implodes*
Literally trying not to fucking throw my fucking Ipad across the room. FUCK THIS BULL FUCKING SHIT.
FUCK FUCK FUCK ...more
Mar 06, 2020
The Burning Rose (Jess)
is currently reading it
Ugh... so I stopped reading this book in the middle. Now I don’t know if I should re-read the whole series or just this book...
Jan 14, 2019
may ➹
rated it
really liked it
Shelves:
read-2019,
pov-female,
surprising,
young-adult,
4-star,
rep-lgbtqiap-wlw,
buddy-reads,
fantasy
can you believe I had the NERVE to actually enjoy this book when I didn’t like the first two books I’m so disappointed in myself
| topics | posts | views | last activity | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| The Procrastinato...: * Ruin and Rising (April 2022) Buddy Read Discussion - Sophie & Amanda | 6 | 11 | 3 hours, 21 min ago | |
| Who actually wanted Alina to end up with Mal? (spoilers!!!) | 83 | 2059 | Apr 20, 2022 06:09PM | |
| Book Nerds Unite: Ruin & Rising Buddy Read | SPOILERS!!! | 68 | 25 | Apr 03, 2022 10:14PM | |
| Explain to me what happened | 12 | 642 | Mar 15, 2022 04:48PM | |
| The Grishaverse: Zoya | 40 | 541 | Jan 21, 2022 07:54AM |
13,927 users
5,469 users
1,757 users
1,221 users
1,203 users
683 users
487 users
427 users
272 users
Leigh Bardugo is a #1 New York Times bestselling author of fantasy novels and the creator of the Grishaverse (now a Netflix original series) which spans the Shadow and Bone Trilogy, the Six of Crows Duology, the King of Scars Duology, and The Language of Thorns—with more to come. Her short stories can be found in multiple anthologies, including the Best American Science Fiction & Fantasy. Her othe
...more
Other books in the series
The Shadow and Bone Trilogy
(3 books)
Related Articles
As dedicated readers already know, some of the best and most innovative stories on the shelves come from the constantly evolving realm of...
77 likes · 15 comments
4 trivia questions
More quizzes & trivia...
“Na razrusha'ya. I am not ruined. E'ya razrushost. I am ruination.”
—
1833 likes
“I will strip away all that you know, all that you love, until you have no shelter but mine.”
—
987 likes
More quotes…




















Apr 13, 2022 08:42AM · flag
Apr 17, 2022 06:47AM · flag