Six of Crows by Leigh Bardugo // The master does it again!

Item: Six of Crows (Six of Crows, #1)
Rating: 5
Author: Molly's Book Nook

Six of Crows by Leigh Bardugo // The master does it again!

Six of Crows (Six of Crows, #1) by Leigh Bardugo
Genres: Fantasy (YA)
Pages: 465
Goodreads

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.

Leigh Bardugo does it again – she’s created another masterpiece.

Six of Crows is set in the same world as her Grisha trilogy, but she’s managed to create a whole new experience for her readers. While all the books take place in the same world, the two series are set on different continents and with all new characters.

Six of Crows is set in Ketterdam, a trade city on the island Kerch. Bardugo creates a diverse setting similar to New York City back in the late 1800’s with a wealthy merchant class and slums run by rival gangs. Has anyone seen Gangs of New York with Leonardo DiCaprio? Well, it’s very similar to that. Thieves, convicts, runaways, slavery, brothels and street gangs competing for money, power, and territory. It feels very authentic and much more adult.

Bardugo does a fantastic job at giving her readers a new experience of the Grisha-verse – one less royal and more sordid. It’s quite different from the Grisha trilogy, the opposite of it in fact. It isn’t about saving the country and it doesn’t follow that “chosen one” trite in which one person has to save the world and destroy all evil. Don’t get me wrong, The Grisha Trilogy and many other books with that theme (The Hunger Games, Divergent) are great, we love our Katniss and Tris, but Six of Crows is a breath of fresh air from this YA norm. It’s all about a heist and a bunch of criminals hell-bent on its reward. You may actually forget that there are people with magical powers and that there is the threat of evil taking over. I loved that, it was very unique. It was like I was reading Ocean’s Eleven or The Italian Job.

A little note about the romance: while there is obviously a little romantic tension between certain characters (no spoilers), the romance doesn’t overwhelm the story. It sneaks up and is subtle. Bardugo just teases you with small hints of it, making you cross your fingers that certain people end up together later in the story – or even the sequel. (This is just another way Bardugo makes Six of Crows stand out from other YA novels.)

The characters are written with such attention to detail, creating a band of very remarkable characters. Their history is blended in the story seamlessly, a little bit at a time, that you never get overwhelmed and the characters aren’t superficial. First there is Kaz, the leader of the team. He’s a little mysterious, doesn’t let anyone in and somehow is always one step ahead of everyone else. There’s humor with Jesper and Wylan, although you never get to read Wylan’s perspective. Nina and Matthias bring the tension with their love-hate relationship. And there is Inej, the badass who was forced into this dangerous lifestyle. You begin to care for each of these characters, regardless of their criminal streak, as their backstories and personal struggles really tug at your heartstrings.

The story is told in the third person, from 5 perspectives: Kaz, Inej, Nina, Matthias, and Jesper. This structure is very effective as you get to experience each character while the change in perspective builds up the suspense and allows you to be surprised. There are lots of twists and turns, making this a very fast-paced novel. The world building is once again, beautiful. Even though it’s in the same universe, as stated above, Bardugo gives the reader a whole new experience. If you don’t get hooked into the story, you’d probably be the only one.

Six of Crows is a unique YA fantasy. Overall, the characters are well-written and well-developed, the world building is seamless and beautiful, and the story is exciting, full of surprises and plot twists. The hype around this book is justified and it will just give you another reason to love Leigh Bardugo.

A Couple of Side Notes:

You don’t have to read The Grisha Trilogy to read this one. On Goodreads, Leigh Bardugo said this:

“Six of Crows takes place about two years after the end of the Grisha Trilogy and the Ravkan civil war. You’ll hear a little bit about some of the characters from the trilogy (and one has a tiny cameo), but the story really belongs to the newcomers—Kaz, Inej, Nina (who is a Grisha Heartrender), Matthias, Jesper, and Wylan.”