Hello! I know I'm late to the game, but the Six of Crows duology are now some of my favorite books of all time. Some say they're overhyped, however, to me, these books deserve all the praise they get. Here are my thoughts. Spoilers ahead.
Average Rating: ★★★★★ (I'd give them a 10/10 on Goodreads if I could.)
Six of Crows
Ketterdam: a bustling hub of international trade where anything can be had for the right price–and no one knows that better than criminal prodigy Kaz Brekker. Kaz is offered a chance at a deadly heist that could make him rich beyond his wildest dreams. But he can’t pull it off alone…
A convict with a thirst for revenge.
A sharpshooter who can’t walk away from a wager.
A runaway with a privileged past.
A spy known as the Wraith.
A Heartrender using her magic to survive the slums.
A thief with a gift for unlikely escapes.
Six dangerous outcasts. One impossible heist. Kaz’s crew is the only thing that might stand between the world and destruction—if they don’t kill each other first.
Crooked Kingdom
Kaz Brekker and his crew of deadly outcasts have just pulled off a heist so daring even they didn't think they'd survive. But instead of divvying up a fat reward, they're right back to fighting for their lives.
Double-crossed and badly weakened, the crew is low on resources, allies, and hope. As powerful forces from around the world descend on Ketterdam to root out the secrets of the dangerous drug known as jurda parem, old rivals and new enemies emerge to challenge Kaz's cunning and test the team's fragile loyalties.
A war will be waged on the city's dark and twisting streets - a battle for revenge and redemption that will decide the fate of the Grisha world.
Characters: These two books are really built upon the amazing characters within them. They are each so unique, and you fall in love with them really quickly. They are developed phenomenally over the course of the two books, and it's truly an amazing feeling watching them grow as people and to be able to go on this journey with them.
Kaz, after going through really traumatic experiences, is cold and cruel. He earned the name Dirtyhands for a reason, and honestly, some scenes with him had me going, wow, what a straight up savage. However, my boy really truly cares about the rest of the crew. His love for Inej honestly makes me cry. I feel like Leigh Bardugo wrote him so amazingly well. He is a young man with a disability, PTSD, and probably depression. Yet, he's still one of the most badass characters I've ever read. He's so smart, honestly, I just get so happy whenever he has his "scheming" face on.
Inej is one of the strongest characters in a book full of strong characters. Her trauma from (trigger warning) being kidnapped, put on a slave ship, and bought into the Menagerie was so emotional for me to read about, and the sadness and anger I felt knowing these things are happening all over the world really struck a nerve. The fact that Leigh Bardugo made a point of saying that Inej's race and skin color made her a "fetish" was so important. It highlights many atrocities in our real world. However, the fact that she went through that whole ordeal and still saw good in the world and in others was the most beautiful thing about her. Also, she's a badass spy and is ruthless when she has to be.
Nina is a legend. She loves people a lot, and she loves her country. She saw the good in Matthias before he could even understand the changes in himself. Her strength and talent were displayed again and again throughout the books. Her powers changing was a really big thing for her, but she handled it like a pro. She worked to free the Grisha refugees in Ketterdam and was loyal to her friends until the end. Also, my girl loves waffles so that's already a win in my book.
Matthias honestly surprised me. He came from a near-fascist nation and grew up with a racist and misogynistic mindset, however, throughout the books, he saw the error of his ways. His heart really grew 10 sizes, thanks to Nina, and I really want to cry thinking about it. He struggled with accepting the changes in his life, but that really showed his humanity. He was so loyal to Kaz, Nina, and the rest of the crew, and was strong both physically and mentally. (Spoilers!) The way he died was so surreal. That young Fjerdan soldier was him in his youth and reflects the person he was before the series began. His past had caught with him, and it's tragic to see him go. I miss him.
Jesper makes me so happy. He was a show of comedy, joy, courage, and hope. He struggled with so much internally but was the light of the group during the darkest times. He gained so much strength, from accepting his abilities to learning from his past mistakes. He cares so much for his father (Colm Fahey can honestly adopt me) and he's so in love with Wylan Van Eck. He has a heart of gold, truly.
Wylan is my son as much as he is Kaz's son. His real father is a piece of garbage so I want to shower him with love and protection. He's so smart and deserves so much better than to be called worthless for not being able to read. He has so many other talents to offer the world and he's just so pure until he meets Kaz that is, and becomes the pure criminal.
Plot: Okay, heist plots are my jam. Seriously, the gang breaking into the Ice Court in the first book was so cool. Sure, they had to go through several versions of a plan to accomplish their mission, but they did it and I'm so proud. Admittedly, the first book, Six of Crows started off a bit slow, but that gave us more time to fall in love with the characters. Now the second book, Crooked Kingdom, literally broke me. Things kept going wrong left and right, and I literally couldn't tell who was besting who: Kaz or Jan Van Eck? The kidnappings, the twists, all the bombs! A girl was stressed. The second book was so much more emotional, my heart hurt. Also, after you get halfway through the book, something major was going down every chapter that I was so consistently stressed that I had to put the book down and collect myself so many times. Wow. I'm so glad Van Eck got what was coming to him. (Spoilers!) I'm still not over Matthias' death though.
Writing: The queen, Leigh Bardugo, certainly did a glow up on her writing since the Grisha trilogy. There are so many quotable lines in this series, and I honestly want them all tattooed to my body. Her character development was so incredible. Admittedly, she focused on some more than others in the first book, however, by the end of the second one I had such a strong attachment to all the characters and their stories. One thing I want to point out is that some people say you don't have to read the Grisha trilogy before reading this duology. I think that's true to some extent. I feel like if you don't read those three books first, you might find yourself very confused at times reading Six of Crows. However, if you're a quick learner, you'll be able to grasp the world building after just a few chapters. You might not appreciate some cameos in Crooked Kingdom as much too if you don't read the Grisha trilogy first. But can we talk about the much-needed diversity this book has? There was physical disability rep, mental illness rep, literally half these characters are gay or bi, and Inej, Jesper, and Kuwei were canonically of different races.
Since I love these two books so much, I thought it would be fun to share some book-related Tumblr sh*tposts with you guys. I think they're funny and if you've read the books, I think you'll appreciate them.
I could keep adding more, but I'd be here all day. I hope you enjoyed!
I'm just trash for Leigh Bardugo at this point. If you've read these two books please message me so we can talk about our emotional breakdowns together.
Love, Ru.
Instagram: @ru.reads