Six of Crows (Six of Crows, 1) Paperback – April 20, 2021

SIX STRONG POINTS1.) Setting・Worldbuilding: Ketterdam and Djerholm, the two main cities where she sets the story, come to life in scene. Description only goes so far, but Leigh brings her world to life by the actions, reactions, and customs of groups: the gangs and merch of Ketterdam with their cleverly named gambling parlors and brothel houses, the initiation rites of the Fjerdan drüskelle, and the magical powers of the Grisha. The world unfolds never in an info dump or description binge, but rather gradually and generously through vivid scenes, where characters interact with the clash of cultures that is Ketterdam.2.) Dialogue: The dialogue is both witty and revealing without ever seeming pedantic, over-the-top, or on-the-nose. The retorts the main characters use to poke fun at each other’s vices made me laugh as I learned new barbs. Most of the banter had a purpose, which meant even the funniest insults carried a side of seriousness or truth vital to the plot or matter at hand; it was never just talk to pass the time, but rather verbal jousting that advanced the plot. Furthermore, Leigh Bardugo creates her own slang native to the Grisha universe, with its own curse words and turns of phrase, but the foreign terms always come with enough context or explanation, without ever seeming forced or excessive.3.) Voice・POV: The story is told from the third-person limited perspective of five of the six main characters and a couple of side characters at the beginning and end. Normally, head jumping can be confusing for the reader, but Leigh pulls this off masterfully because of how unique the characters sound. In short, Six of Crows is a clinic in filtering, a textbook on how to reveal character and conceal plot and backstory through third-person perspective. Kaz’s dry humor and pragmatic efficiency. Inej’s search for meaning and inner tenderness, coated with a tough exterior. Nina’s shameless flirtation and effervescent energy. Matthias’ modesty and soldier honor. Jesper’s carefree thirst for action and danger. (Sheltered Wylan doesn’t receive a POV chapter.) Every character imbues his or her dialogue with a unique, distinctive style and way of speech or viewing the world, that reading the story, told from different perspectives, with little to no overlap in time, was a joy in and of itself. This experience was so good it convinced me to try writing my own fiction from multiple third-person limiteds.4.) Characters: Each of the six main characters has some redeeming quality that makes his or her vices all the more realistic, tolerable, and relatable. Kaz is a merciless demon content to treat his team members as investments or pawns, but it is his sentimentality - which proves to be a weakness - in the book’s final act that redeems his ruthless pragmatism. Moreover, he is just a cool customer, never blinking or showing any weakness through the early scenes. Matthias, too, is hardened in his ways and outlook on life, but as Nina and the others save his life time and time again, he begins to question his own upbringing and soften up. The bonding and trust that characters form with one another - but always with the edge of the task at hand, and the threat of betrayal from muddy pasts - give the entire story a positive, redeeming vibe despite the prevalence of vice in the characters’ pasts and world looming as a possible excuse. Each character has a volume of backstory, but the author never dumps it on the reader; instead, she parcels it out in flashbacks throughout the plot, interleaved skillfully between as interludes between the action. Only Wylan and Jesper don’t reveal much backstory in this book, but their pasts receive ample attention in Crooked Kingdom.5.) Plot Twists: In a world where loyalty changes as quickly as money changes hands, it is remarkable that the six characters collaborating on the heist actually grow closer as the plot unfolds. So much betrayal and surprise happen from page 1 — and even before, with Matthias and Nina’s past — that it isn’t always a given that the characters have any virtue or loyalty. Like a house of cards, every single character experiences a moment — sometimes several — where a well-timed betrayal could end the heist then and there. We learn through early plot twists that anyone could be a traitor, and anyone can be bought or bribed with money. These loyalty plot twists set the stage for a different level of plot twist on the heist, when unforeseen obstacles force the characters to trust each other to stay alive. Finally, the plot twists crescendo toward a final betrayal in the end, further layered with the protagonists’ own counters. In brief, everyone in the story is always trying to stay a step ahead of his peers and rivals, and often that level of gamesmanship - thinking two or three plies ahead - thrills the reader when they are revealed in rapid succession.6.) Action: The action scenes are surprising and well-paced. Not a single character is spared any blood or challenge; everyone faces a demon at some point, and it is those difficult moments of action where the characters truly come to life. Even our introduction to Kaz, where he encounters a rival gang, rings with vivid action, complete with a surprising betrayal and moments of doubt. What Leigh does particularly well is keeping the outcome in suspense: We’re not always sure who will win the battles, and Kaz or one of his characters must often improvise despite maniacal preparations. The amount of stabbing, gunfire, punches, eyeball-ripouts, and Grisha magic (a well-conceived system) rarely seem gratuitous, but they convey the mortal danger these characters face around every corner, and their reactions build character and bring us closer.NEGATIVESBesides the obvious complaint of Wylan’s lack of chapter time — remedied in Crooked Kingdom — I would say the book is like many of its characters: seemingly incomplete and unsalvageable on the outside, but truly substantive and attractive in the middle. Unlike many other books, which are the opposite in how they operate, Six of Crows doesn’t begin with as much relevance, or close with as much closure as I would have liked.Most if not all of the prologue characters never play a tangible role in the rest of the story; they certainly don’t appear in the flesh, only as bits of conversation. Though the beginning sets the stage of the prized drug jurda parem, the characters that first dance on that stage never see the spotlight again.Likewise, the ending, after a sequence of breathtaking plot twists and grand reveals, leaves the protagonist group of six separated, without any sense of closure or accomplishment. Two of them falter, leaving their relationship at a low point, while a third is kidnapped, and the book ends without any firm resolution or plan, although we sense comeuppance is on the horizon. Fortunately, the second book resolves those loose ends and brings much more satisfying closure.Like many of her characters, Leigh Bardugo more than makes up for this by the strength of the novel’s interior. When I started reading, I wasn’t sure how badly I’d want to follow Joost, or when I’d see Anya again, but the farther I read, the more the true main characters came to life, and once I got past Chapter 2, I knew I was experiencing something special. In that sense, the novel itself is like a lesson to look beyond the surface, at the interior, because sometimes the beauty of a person (or book) is in the redeeming qualities inside.As a writer working on my craft, I can't think of a better paragon or more inspiring read to offer hope -- much like hope for Kaz, Inej, Jesper, Wylan, Nina, and Matthias -- and affirmation that this market still has room for a story well-told and prose well-written.

REVIEW: Six of Crows by Leigh BardugoPublished September 29th, 2015 by Henry Holt and Co. Genres: Young Adult, Fantasy Edition: Hardcover Source: Purchased Pages: 465 Rating: 5/5 starsKetterdam: 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.From the moment I heard the description of this book, I was intrigued. A band of thieves attempting to pull off a huge heist? Sign me up! I was counting down the days till it released. I had such high expectations for this book. And believe me, they were met. I couldn’t put this book down. I loved every minute of it. Now, it is one of my favorite books of all time, and I’ve read a lot of books. I titled this “review”. In a review, you usually find criticism of the book. But since I loved this book, it’ll mostly be me gushing about all my thoughts. I just want to run up to people, shove this book in their face, scream “READ IT”, and then go and reread it by myself.the plotIt was so interesting! I loved the whole heist. Something was always happening, and it was always interesting. It kept me surprised: PLOT TWISTS!the charactersThe characters were probably my favorite part of this book. We meet six that, by the end of the book, I had come to love. They’re all so unique. I loved reading from each perspective, that way I got to know the characters a lot better.“No mourners. No funerals. Among them, it passed for “good luck.”Kaz- The leader.“Greed is your god, Kaz.”He almost laughed at that. “No, Inej. Greed bows to me. It is my servant and my lever.”“A liar, a thief, and utterly without conscience. But he’ll keep to any deal you strike with him.”Nina- She’s so brave, snarky, funny, and just an amazing strong female character. I loved that we had a Grisha in the group.Inej-MY FAVORITE. She’s an ex-circus performer who now is a spy known as The Wraith. She struggled between her dedication to the gang and her desire to see her family again.“Besides, she was the Wraith-the only law that applied to her was gravity, and some days she defied that, too.”Jesper- the sharpshooter, who added so much to the story. The chapter told from his point of view are really great, because you see the other characters how he does, and I think he sees them how they truly are.“Take good care of my babies,” Jesper said as he handed [his guns] over to Dirix.“If I see a single scratch or nick on those, I’ll spell forgive me on your chest in bullet holes.”Wylan- He was this adorable, innocent, little boy at first. But his character changed/revealed as the story went along, and I LOVED it. I wished we could have gotten chapters from his POV, but Leigh said there will be in the 2nd!“Always hit where the mark isn’t looking.”“Who’s Mark?” Asked Wylan.Matthias- I loved how he struggled with loyalty to his country and his love for Nina, and I also loved seeing the backstory of how him and Nina met.“And what did you do, Matthias? What did you do to me in your dreams?”“Everything,” he said, as he turned to go. “Everything.”the romance!I loved how the story was not overpowered by the romances in this book. It was a side plot that made the story more interesting. It wasn’t as prominent as the action part, but it was there. And it was amazing. I won’t spoil anything, but let me just say, I have 3 new OTPs just from this book.the settingIn Bardugo’s previous trilogy, which I loved, we get to know the world a little, but it’s mostly set in Ravka, one country. Six of Crows was in a different country in this world, Kerch, and the group travels to a new country, Fjerda. I loved getting to know this world better. Also, the characters are from different countries so we get to know their view on their country and the others.the writingHer writing, like always, was incredible. It flowed beautifully. Some people have said it starts out slow, but once you pass the first 100 pages, things start picking up and getting really interesting. (I was interested the whole time, of course. I loved it from the very beginning.) But if you’re not enjoying it as much, I’m begging you. Keep trying. It’s SO worth it. There’s so many amazing quotes! I literally have notes and notes full of them.This book is funny! It made me laugh out loud a lot (and I was in public, so people stared at me.)“Jesper knocked his head against the hull and cast his eyes heavenward. “Fine. But if Pekka Rollins kills us all, I’m going to get Wylan’s ghost to teach my ghost how to play the flute just so that I can annoy the hell out of your ghost.Brekker’s lips quicker. “I’ll just hire Matthias’ ghost to kick your ghost’s ass.”“My ghost won’t associate with your ghost,” Matthias said primly, and then wondered if the sea air was rotting his brain.”This book is so gorgeous! The cover is beautiful, but my absolute FAVORITE thing about it has to be the black edged pages. And the maps!! There’s two beautiful maps. TWO!what I didn’t likeI honestly can’t think of anything I didn’t like in this book. I tried to come up with something, but I loved it too much.I highly, HIGHLY recommend you check this book out. It brings all the feels. I need the second book, Crooked Kingdom, NOW. Also, if you haven’t read Bardugo’s Grisha Trilogy, you should. A lot of people have asked me, “Do I have to read the Grisha Trilogy before Six of Crows?” My answer has been: No, you don’t have to. Of course I would recommend that you do, as it is one of my favorite trilogies. If you don’t, you might be a little lost in the world, and there are some characters mentioned in here from that trilogy that you wouldn’t understand, but you could understand the story. There are minor spoilers of the end of Ruin and Rising in Six of Crows, but there is also some misleading. If you read the Grisha trilogy, you learn more about Ravka, where Nina is from, which helps you understand her better. Plus, it’s just an amazing trilogy. You SHOULD. But no, you do not have to.Okay, I’ll just conclude my ramblings now. Go read this book, please. This review took so long to write, because I had so many good things to say, and I reread Six of Crows while writing it.AvaBookishnessandtea.wordpress.com

Un muy buen libro, te atrapa en la trama, aprendes muchas cosas (por lo menos en mi caso) y es un muy buen libro de drama, romance combinado con fantasía, traiciones, descubrimientos, acción, etc. Totalmente si te gustó shadow & bone, este te va a encantar

The Collector's Edition of Six of Crows by Leigh Bardugo is a must-have. It features beautiful cover art, illustrations, and extra content. The story of Kaz Brekker and his crew's thrilling heist is captivating. Perfect for both new readers and long-time fans!

This book series is really good and to ally worth buying 😍👏🏻

I recently purchased the "Six of Crows" book, and I must say, I was absolutely blown away by the quality it arrived in! The book I received matched the image perfectly - the cover was pristine, and the pages were crisp and clean. I honestly didn't think it would come in such great condition, and I'm thoroughly impressed. Kudos to the seller.Now, onto the book itself. "Six of Crows" by Leigh Bardugo is a captivating fantasy novel that intertwines intricate characters, high-stakes heists, and a world filled with magic and intrigue. Whether you're a fan of fantasy, adventure, or just great storytelling, "Six of Crows" is an absolute must-read. I can't wait to dive into this mesmerizing world and follow the characters on their thrilling journey.

This book is so pretty! I'm obsessed! <3