Book Title: Six of Crows
Author: Leigh Bardugo
Date Published: September 29th 2015 by Henry Holt and Company
Number of Pages: 495 (Paperback)
Date I Read: January 2017 (Re-read: April 24-28, 2020)
Synopsis
(From 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.
Book Review
First of all, I first read Six of Crows back in 2017. All I remember back then is being in love with this book because it was so good. Unfortunately, academics and life happened as mentioned in my first post, so I kind of forgot this book until recently.
You see, I found out last April that there would be an upcoming Netflix adaptation of the Shadow and Bone trilogy and Six of Crows duology. So, I was beyond excited and decided to re-read the book all over again! And, oh boy, the magic I first felt was still there!
This book was just amazing!
I love Leigh Bardugo’s writing style. I love the plot twists and turns. And, of course, I freaking love the characters!
“Six people, but a thousand ways this insane plan could go wrong.”
Unfortunately, as much as I love the plot twists and characters to death, I can’t ignore what I disliked about this book.
Things I Disliked About Six of Crows
1. Misleading Blurb
You see, the blurb of Six of Crows talked about a heist. In fact, it’s what made me pick up this book in the first place—I want to read fast-paced action with high stakes. While there’s definitely a heist going on in this book, I felt like it focused more on the characters.
The story is more of character-driven, so if you’re in it for the action scenes, you may be a little bit disappointed.
I am too, at first, but I’m a complete sucker for hidden character motivations and drama. So I absolutely enjoyed this book, especially on the second read!
Do keep this fact in mind, so you won’t have high expectations.
2. World Building
Aside from the kind of misleading blurb, I wasn’t a big fan of the world-building.
Don’t get me wrong—I love the world Leigh Bardugo built! But I remember, as a new reader, when I picked up this book, I don’t understand a thing of what I’m reading. How does the world work? What kind of fantasy is in it?
And the fact that Bardugo just threw a lot of words (Grisha, Squallers, Corporalki, etc.) without any explanation didn’t help at all. It’s like she expected the reader to immediately know all of these weird terms from the start. But then again, maybe she expected to since Six of Crows is basically the 4th installment of the whole Grishaverse series.
Also, I have read in some of the 2 and 3-star reviews on Goodreads that Bardugo seemed to blatantly rip off (Dutch or Russian?) languages and even countries. I can see why, though, as the countries in the Grishaverse are obviously inspired by real-world places (Ketterdam as Amsterdam/Shu Han as China or Mongolia). Personally, I don’t have problems with it (being Asian myself) but I can understand why people can get riled up.
3. Slow Pacing
Lastly, I was extremely let-down by the slow-pacing of this novel.
The first 100 or so pages were excruciatingly slow. Even on my second read, when I already know what’s gonna happen, I still struggled with the pacing.
I mean, when you think about recruiting people for heists with such magnitude, you think about bantering and exciting meet-ups of the characters (think of Ocean’s Eleven or heck, Money Heist). But I didn’t get any of that! Instead, most of the characters already knew each other from the get-go which is kind of a bummer.
Also, just when I think the plot is finally picking up and I get to enjoy the action, well, Bardugo decided to switch from present to past.
I love a good flashback scene but the middle of the book is simply not the time for it! There are simply too many flashbacks which kept the plot from achieving what it’s supposed to achieve—bad-ass thievery.
With all of these problems stated, it would be easy to give this novel 3 stars at best. However, I simply love the characters too much!
Things I Liked About Six of Crows
1. Characters
Six of Crows presented my DREAM CAST!!!
I mean, just look at them! I love the diversity!
Normally, in this cast so big, I am bound to hate one character or so but to my surprise, I didn’t. I also enjoyed reading different POVs and the switch was so natural. Major props to Bardugo for that!
I love the banter between the characters! I also love the platonic friendships! And I ship all the pairings!
My favorite characters, so far, are Inej and Nina. Girl power for the win!
2. Plot Twists
Aside from the characters, I absolutely enjoyed reading the plot twists and turns.
Do remember that I have read this book for the 2nd time already. I should have expected the plot twists coming. But guess what? I was still surprised by some of the revelations in the end!
I won’t go into detail but if Bardugo achieved that, even though I’m merely just re-reading, then I’ll give mad credits to her!
I also love how she told the action scenes! I can clearly see the characters and the chaos ensuing in the Ice Court in my mind’s eye.
Overall Thoughts
I really enjoyed reading Six of Crows! Be warned, though, the pacing and the unclear world-building might keep you from finishing this novel.
You might be confused about all these unexplained terms at the beginning. But trust me, the characters would just sweep you off your feet! Plus, you’ll truly appreciate this novel on the 2nd or 3rd read!
Check out my Goodreads review of this book to read how I practically gush over the characters!
Let’s Talk!
Have you read Six of Crows? Who’s your favorite character? I won’t judge you if you can’t pick a single one because all of them are so awesome! 😉
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