King of Scars

Bardugo extensively uses animals to symbolize the personality of the character with whom the animal is associated. This is a common device in art and literature, where different animals represent specific vices or virtues (for example, a serpent often represents deceptiveness). In Bardugo’s cosmos, however, the virtues are emphasized. Nikolai’s double eagle signifies the king’s wisdom and providence, while Zoya’s white tiger signifies her willpower and swiftness. The dragon ties to both Zoya and Juris, indicating transformation and hidden knowledge. Grigori the healer is associated with bears, which, in many traditions, symbolize healing.

While the animals’ symbolic traits are generally positive, an exception lies with Elizaveta, who first appears as a swarm of bees. While bees represent queenship, they also sting despite their promise of sweetness; Elizaveta likewise “stings” Nikolai, betraying him after feigning kindness and promising to help him.

Bones symbolize the supernatural, but their meaning is two-fold: death and power.

First, the bones connote death, as with the women’s bodies buried around the factory. When Nina calls, “up through the earth, clawing through the soil, they came, a mass of rotting limbs and broken bones” (457). Throughout Nina’s journey, these Grisha corpses have called to her demanding justice. In a supernatural act, they rise from their graves to administer their justice.