okay this is the last book in the grishaverse (for a while, at least!) and not going to lie, when I finished this I genuinely got very depressed😭😭 like I was very very upset for days I'm not even joking😭😭 it was embarrassing. I think because the show was cancelled as well, it just made me even more upset, there's no more content for.me to consume😭😭😭😭 

I didn't hate this book, I didn't think it was the most spectacular ending, especially because it's like the final book of this world. listen. I love Leigh Bardugo. I would die for her. I would give anything for her. however, I don't think she can write war scenes all that well. I think she's way better at doing the more intricate character work and world building; the relationships between countries was so well thought out! I was at the edge of my seat! but the actual scenes of the battle and everything, I didn't think were all that great.

Also, to be honest, I didn't really need to see David create missiles. I didn't need to see everyone having to grapple with what they were creating. I think it's something that a lot of fantasy media does; they'll start the book in a historical setting so that the fantastical elements really shine through. then, they'll have one character that really likes to invent things! but when you have a series that goes on for a while, they have to start inventing more and more things to the point where it gets closer to the real world and then you have david, local genya simp and autistic durast just create missiles😭😭 and now all the characters have to question if they want to use it in the war because while it will help them win, it will also change the scale of all future wars. like yes this is important but that's not really what I want to read about in my historical fantasy books! I want to see magic!! idk maybe that's just me though :// 

On another note, while I liked that we dived deeper into the whole religious aspect of the story and we got to see more of the apparat, it ending up flopping at the end (a theme you'll notice for this book....) the build up was great in the first book and it really felt like it was going somewhere until it just didn't. SPOILERS!!! I think that the darkling coming back really didn't add that much to the story. I did like how, because of that, it brought back other characters, though. I liked seeing Alina and Mal again but they came and went so quick! And the darkling plotline ending up leading practically nowhere to the point where I felt like if he wasn't there think it would have really changed the story that much.

I did like nina's story more this time, though!! however, I didn't really buy the relationship between her and hana. I thought that hana's story was really interesting but I didn't really see them together as romantically I think especially because nina was still grieving that whole time. in my head, I also saw hana as being a lot lot younger than Nina even though there wasn't really an age difference there was one in my head (lol) so I didn't know exactly how to feel. 

something else I didn't know how to feel about was the idea of a (probably) trans boy who was the kid of an actual genocidal maniac stealing the identity of a prince and then ruling a country that like kills this other people like them😭😭 still deciding how I feel about that. nina really did slay and stuff this time though. also nice to see the crows again:)

so yes, definitely not the best but if you've read the other six books don't skip this one lol. i really hope leigh bardugo revisits this world sometime in the future because I love it so much and has become such a comfort for me! but until this happens, I'm excited to read her new stuff!! 3.25 stars