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Cover of King of Scars

King of Scars

by Leigh Bardugo

🥛clean·spoiler·King of Scars #1

Why Read This?

Bardugo unleashes Nikolai Lantsov as a POV character and the result is devastating charm meets genuine darkness - a cursed king fighting his own shadow while the Grishaverse expands into its most ambitious territory yet.

Synopsis

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.

At a Glance

4.15 ★ Goodreads
Spice Level🥛clean
Endingspoiler
PairingMIXED
Romance Pacingslow burn

Top Tropes

enemies to loversslow burnhidden identity

Mood

darkatmosphericepicintensemysterious

Book Details

Goodreads Rating

4.15 ★

Page Count

527 pages

Published

2019

Primary Genre

Young Adult

Pairing

MIXED

POV

Multi-POV

Romance Pacing

Slow Burn

Cliffhanger

spoiler

Audiobook

Available

Yes

Format

Single Narrator

Narrator

Lauren Fortgang

Narrator Count

Single

Tropes

RomanceMagicActionAngstWorld
Theme Constellation

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Mood & Vibe

Mood

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Characters

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implied sexual assaultchild abusesuicide mentionviolencesubstance addictiontortureanimal deathdeathbody horrorwardrug usegriefimprisonmentfatphobia

World & Setting

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Reading Context

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