King of Scars

BOOK ONE in the King of Scars Duology

Face your demons. . . or feed them.

The boy king. The war hero. The prince with a demon curled inside his heart. Nikolai Lantsov has always had a gift for the impossible. The people of Ravka don’t know what he endured in their bloody civil war and he intends to keep it that way. Yet with each day a dark magic within him grows stronger, threatening to destroy all he has built.

Zoya Nazyalensky has devoted her life to honing her deadly talents and rebuilding the Grisha army. Despite their magical gifts, Zoya knows the Grisha cannot survive without Ravka as a place of sanctuary—and Ravka cannot survive a weakened king. Zoya will stop at nothing to help Nikolai secure the throne, but she also has new enemies to conquer in the battle to come.

Far north, Nina Zenik wages her own kind of war against the people who would see the Grisha wiped from the earth forever. Burdened by grief and a terrifying power, Nina must face the pain of her past if she has any hope of defeating the dangers that await her on the ice.

Ravka’s king. Ravka’s general. Ravka’s spy. They will journey past the boundaries of science and superstition, of magic and faith, and risk everything to save a broken nation. But some secrets aren’t meant to stay buried, and some wounds aren’t meant to heal.

King of Scars by Leigh Bardugo

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International retailers

Praise

2 Starred reviews

from the School Library Journal and Booklist

Recipient of the Parents Silver Award, Parents Choice Awards

New York Times Bestseller

An Amazon Best Book of 2019

  • “[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

  • “A richly detailed and refreshingly diverse world inhabited by individuals who, for all their magical talents, are resonantly human.” ―The Washington Post

  • “With twists and revelations cleverly dispersed up until the very last page, this novel is a must-have for any book shelf.” ―School Library Journal, starred review ★

  • “Deadly clever political intrigue, heart-stopping adventure, memorable characters, and several understated, hinted-at romances (how will we wait?!) come together in one glorious, Slavic-folklore-infused package. Bardugo’s star continues to rise.” ―Booklist, starred review ★

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