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A review by pat26
Crooked Kingdom by Leigh Bardugo
adventurous
emotional
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
3.75
So many mixed feelings about this book. Feel like it contained both some of the best and worst things I've ever read somehow? The first book, 'Six of Crows', is one of my all time favourites - so I had a lot of anticipation for the sequel.
The truly wonderful:
. when the full gang is together, it's always so beautiful!
. any of the deep character scenes, from Wylan and Kaz together to Matthias and Nina - it was so comforting to read
. the character development of Matthias Helvar - just brilliant, and subtle, but profound
The decent:
. the overall comfort and joy I felt from these characters, despite the plot being a bit of a mess at times
The WTF?!:
. the Shu metal birds???
. the number of villains and unnecessary twists by the end - some of the pacing of this was just so weird and out of place?
The painfully "I want to throw this across the room" bad:
. Dunyasha wasting my time, what was the point of her character? And she was just so annoying too??
. Kaz and Inej at the end - just no, they are terrible together as a couple (Inej made so much progress in the first book, and then she just backtracks because a boy shows her the tiniest sliver of kindness and personal growth?? seriously???!)
Overall, still good, and I'd read it again (if just for my wonderful cosy characters and to see Matthias again), but not as good as I was hoping for and not as good as the first.
The truly wonderful:
. when the full gang is together, it's always so beautiful!
. any of the deep character scenes, from Wylan and Kaz together to Matthias and Nina - it was so comforting to read
. the character development of Matthias Helvar - just brilliant, and subtle, but profound
The decent:
. the overall comfort and joy I felt from these characters, despite the plot being a bit of a mess at times
The WTF?!:
. the Shu metal birds???
. the number of villains and unnecessary twists by the end - some of the pacing of this was just so weird and out of place?
The painfully "I want to throw this across the room" bad:
. Dunyasha wasting my time, what was the point of her character? And she was just so annoying too??
. Kaz and Inej at the end - just no, they are terrible together as a couple (Inej made so much progress in the first book, and then she just backtracks because a boy shows her the tiniest sliver of kindness and personal growth?? seriously???!)
Overall, still good, and I'd read it again (if just for my wonderful cosy characters and to see Matthias again), but not as good as I was hoping for and not as good as the first.
Content Warnings
Moderate: Ableism and Addiction
Minor: Xenophobia