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dorhastings 's review for:
Six of Crows
by Leigh Bardugo
adventurous
challenging
dark
hopeful
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:
Yes
How this book ended up on my TBR: I've had my eye on Bardugo's series (this one, but also Shadow and Bone) for awhile. I read this book for The StoryGraph's Onboarding Challenge 2025, Prompt 2: Read a book published between 2010-2020 that fits your reader profile but excludes your most-read genre. (I actually fudged this category; I followed all the instructions for filtering but could not get any responses, so I just kept with fiction and got this.) I have now completed The StoryGraph's Onboarding Challenge 2025!
"Nina is everything you say. It's too much."
"Mmm," Inej murmured, taking a sip from her mug. "Maybe you're just not enough."
So you might say "okay, why the 4.75 out of 5 stars? Feels like you're being picky." And you're not wrong; I do feel kind of weird about that. I was pleasantly surprised to see such high reviews from folks whose thoughts so often match my own. My only explanation is that I had some weird pacing circumstances (traveling, reading another book before I had to travel again), and I hadn't anticipated the library releasing the book to me so soon. If I'd just been at home reading, it likely would have made a difference.
Regardless, I know I need to read the next book in this series. As the first book in a series, it does a really marvelous job of introducing us to the world, the characters, and the immediate problem. There is a lot to learn in the first few chapters, such that I wondered if it would be better to have read Shadow and Bone first (while it's a different series, it seems to be the main Grishna series), but eventually I was able to just accept the confusion and learn. The main characters are all pretty incredible. The chapters focus on each of them (with the exception of Wylan, and I suppose that makes sense later), and at first I thought the switching could be jarring. At times, it absolutely could be. But the narration was third person, and most of the time each character was interacting with all the others, so the flow was not majorly interrupted. The main characters are all young (no older than 20) but they have rich and often tragic backstories. You don't really see the characters get too much into their feelings (least of all Kaz), but their decisions make absolute sense.
"They fear you as I once feared you," he said. "As you once feared me. We are all someone's monster, Nina."
So who are the characters? Most of them are members of a gang called The Dregs, and their symbol is the crow. Kaz is a young lieutenant of the group. Inej was captured by slavers and sold into prostitution; he removes her from that situation, and she becomes his spy. Jesper is a sniper. Nina is a former Grishna soldier from Ravka who uses her abilities to heal gang members. Mattias is unofficially a member; he's a Fjierden witchhunter who wants to return home. Wylan is a merchant's son who leave the business for unexplained reasons, but he's excellent at math and explosions. Each have their reasons for participating in what seems like an impossible heist. There's not much loyalty to the group itself, but more to individual members. I really like Nina's overall backstory and how both she and Mattias struggle with their mission. She's a strong, badass character. I did not expect to like Inej as much as I do. Kaz teases her somewhat for her philosophical responses, but they are never annoying, and I find her to be one of the more profound members of the group. I do hope we see more of Jesper and Wylan as we move along. Since Wylan didn't have any chapters, I had a hard time being truly invested in him. Kaz is a character that can be difficult to like, but that's by design. He's very much a product of his environment, and that's especially sad to see in one so young. But it's Inej who holds him accountable and focuses on her own future.
Inej turned to go. Kaz seized her hand, keeping it on the railing. He didn't look at her. "Stay," he said, his voice rough stone. "Stay in Ketterdam. Stay with me."
She looked down at his gloved hand clutching hers. Everything in her wanted to say yes, but she would not settle for so little, not after all she'd been through. "What would be the point?"
He took a breath. "I want you to stay. I want you to ... I want you."
"You want me." She turned the words over. Gently, she squeezed his hand. "And how will you have me, Kaz?"
So overall, excellent start to the series, and I look forward to the next book!
"Nina is everything you say. It's too much."
"Mmm," Inej murmured, taking a sip from her mug. "Maybe you're just not enough."
So you might say "okay, why the 4.75 out of 5 stars? Feels like you're being picky." And you're not wrong; I do feel kind of weird about that. I was pleasantly surprised to see such high reviews from folks whose thoughts so often match my own. My only explanation is that I had some weird pacing circumstances (traveling, reading another book before I had to travel again), and I hadn't anticipated the library releasing the book to me so soon. If I'd just been at home reading, it likely would have made a difference.
Regardless, I know I need to read the next book in this series. As the first book in a series, it does a really marvelous job of introducing us to the world, the characters, and the immediate problem. There is a lot to learn in the first few chapters, such that I wondered if it would be better to have read Shadow and Bone first (while it's a different series, it seems to be the main Grishna series), but eventually I was able to just accept the confusion and learn. The main characters are all pretty incredible. The chapters focus on each of them (with the exception of Wylan, and I suppose that makes sense later), and at first I thought the switching could be jarring. At times, it absolutely could be. But the narration was third person, and most of the time each character was interacting with all the others, so the flow was not majorly interrupted. The main characters are all young (no older than 20) but they have rich and often tragic backstories. You don't really see the characters get too much into their feelings (least of all Kaz), but their decisions make absolute sense.
"They fear you as I once feared you," he said. "As you once feared me. We are all someone's monster, Nina."
So who are the characters? Most of them are members of a gang called The Dregs, and their symbol is the crow. Kaz is a young lieutenant of the group. Inej was captured by slavers and sold into prostitution; he removes her from that situation, and she becomes his spy. Jesper is a sniper. Nina is a former Grishna soldier from Ravka who uses her abilities to heal gang members. Mattias is unofficially a member; he's a Fjierden witchhunter who wants to return home. Wylan is a merchant's son who leave the business for unexplained reasons, but he's excellent at math and explosions. Each have their reasons for participating in what seems like an impossible heist. There's not much loyalty to the group itself, but more to individual members. I really like Nina's overall backstory and how both she and Mattias struggle with their mission. She's a strong, badass character. I did not expect to like Inej as much as I do. Kaz teases her somewhat for her philosophical responses, but they are never annoying, and I find her to be one of the more profound members of the group. I do hope we see more of Jesper and Wylan as we move along. Since Wylan didn't have any chapters, I had a hard time being truly invested in him. Kaz is a character that can be difficult to like, but that's by design. He's very much a product of his environment, and that's especially sad to see in one so young. But it's Inej who holds him accountable and focuses on her own future.
Inej turned to go. Kaz seized her hand, keeping it on the railing. He didn't look at her. "Stay," he said, his voice rough stone. "Stay in Ketterdam. Stay with me."
She looked down at his gloved hand clutching hers. Everything in her wanted to say yes, but she would not settle for so little, not after all she'd been through. "What would be the point?"
He took a breath. "I want you to stay. I want you to ... I want you."
"You want me." She turned the words over. Gently, she squeezed his hand. "And how will you have me, Kaz?"
So overall, excellent start to the series, and I look forward to the next book!