Six of Crows
Written by Laasya Kandula
February 22, 2023
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There’s no doubt that Leigh Bardugo is one of the most prominent YA fantasy authors right now. Some of her works include The Shadow and Bone trilogy, the Six of Crows duology, and the King of Scars duology. All of these series take place within the shared universe and world of Bardugo’s known as the Grishaverse, and are all linked to each other.
An embarrassing fact about me: I consider myself a book lover, but the immensely huge Grishaverse was somehow not something I had ventured into myself. During the release of the Netflix adaptation of Shadow and Bone, I watched barely even half of the first episode before turning off the tv in frustration because I had no idea what was happening.
It was only before exam season that I decided to finally get into the Grishaverse once and for all, and I started with Six of Crows. While it is not the first book in the overall Grishaverse, you can get into it and read it without reading Shadow and Bone (but reading the Shadow and Bone trilogy does make the experience better!) .
To put it simply, I did not expect to love this book so much. I finished Six of Crows in just under 2 days and immediately went on my phone to place a hold on Crooked Kingdom.
The Six of Crows duology follows Kaz Brekker, a 17 year old experienced convict and leader of one of the most prominent gangs in the city of Ketterdam. Kaz is offered 30 million kruge in order to pull off an impossible heist/prison break. Enlisting the help of Inej, a spy known as the wraith, Jesper, a sharpshooter who can’t walk away from a wager, Nina, a heartrender using her magic to survive the slums, Matthias, a convict with a thirst for revenge and Wylan, a runaway with a privileged past.
One of Six of Crows’ biggest strengths is it’s characters. Every single character is nuanced, relatable and enjoyable to read about. The book switches between each character’s POV every chapter, and I looked forward to every single one. Personal favourites for me included Inej and Matthias.
Each character goes through their own journey of confronting their own flaws and issues, whether it be issues caused by trauma or their harmful beliefs. It felt incredibly realistic and authentic, as if I was reading about real people learning to heal and become better people.
The action and overarching heist of SoC was also a treat. It kept me hooked, my eyes glued to the pages reading to find out what Kaz’s new plan was or what new situation they would get into next. The pacing of these scenes is also incredible and keeps you on edge, waiting for what will happen next.
The second book in the SoC duology, Crooked Kingdom, lives up to the expectations of it’s predecessor and is just as amazing. Certain characters get even more exploration and attention and made me like them even more.
The climax of Crooked Kingdom revolves not around a heist, but crashing the sugar stock market. I’ll give it to Leigh Bardugo for making me highly invested in the outcome of the price and demand of sugar.
In conclusion, I think it means a lot that I was able to fall in love with the Six of Crows duology despite having no prior knowledge of the Grishaverse beforehand. Even the google searches I had to do for certain terms in the book didn’t take away any sort of enjoyment that I experienced.
I would recommend the series to everyone, dare I say calling it one of the best YA fantasy novels of the 2010’s. It’s perfectly balanced in great writing, action, worldbuilding, and characters and is a duology I think anybody that enjoys reading should pick up at least some point in time.
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