Book Review Four: Six of Crows

This one is gonna be similar to my Percy Jackson post – not so much an analysis, more of an appreciation post for this amazing two-book series. I read it first my junior year of high school after watching the Netflix series Shadow and Bone (I’m still very very mad they cancelled it…) and it became one of my favorite YA series to date. Funnily enough, the Netflix series isn’t even about Six of Crows, they’re more of a side plot to the main story based off of Leigh Bardugo’s very successful trilogy. I was much more drawn to their story line however, which may be because I am a sucker for the rag-tag team on a dangerous mission YA trope, and this series executes it perfectly without being too cliche. So, yet again, as ChatGPT would say,

The Six of Crows duology by Leigh Bardugo follows Kaz Brekker, a criminal mastermind in Ketterdam, who assembles a crew of outcasts to pull off an impossible heist—breaking into the Ice Court to rescue a scientist who created jurda parem, a dangerous drug that enhances Grisha magic. His crew includes Inej, a stealthy spy; Jesper, a sharpshooter with a gambling problem; Nina, a powerful Grisha; Matthias, a former soldier torn between duty and love; and Wylan, a runaway demolition expert. Their mission is full of danger, betrayal, and high-stakes action, but after succeeding, they are double-crossed, and Inej is kidnapped. In Crooked Kingdom, the crew fights back against their enemies, including crime lord Pekka Rollins and corrupt merchant Jan Van Eck, while struggling with personal demons. As they plot revenge and Inej’s rescue, they face assassins, betrayals, and a city that wants them dead. Through cunning schemes and sheer determination, they dismantle Van Eck’s empire, but victory comes at a cost. The duology is known for its thrilling heist narrative, morally complex characters, and themes of survival, loyalty, and redemption.

So, in short, a group of morally gray teenage criminals and runaways stealing stuff and going on missions to not only earn money, but also for the greater good. What’s not to like??? Technically, it is better to read Shadow and Bone before Six of Crows to get an understanding of the incredible “Grishaverse” that Bardugo has built, but I didn’t and still thoroughly enjoyed this series.

The most incredible part of these books to me is how Bardugo, while having six main characters, does ALL of them justice with their individual stories and personalities. It’s truly so difficult to have a favorite character when all of them have something so special to them. Of course, they all don’t necessarily like each other in the start, more looking for a job that pays well so they can go their separate ways. They end up forming a bond through the things they experience together, and eventually turn into a “found-family” trope that is very common in YA novels, and of course I am a very big fan of.

I could absolutely go on an in-depth character analysis for the six, but not only would it be excruciatingly long, but it would be very difficult to do that without spoiling literally everything about the series. So, this one is short and sweet. I absolutely recommend this series, and if you don’t wanna read it I absolutely recommend the show as well.