Tag Archives: Leigh Bardugo

Waiting on Wednesday: Crooked Kingdom by Leigh Bardugo

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CrookedKingdom

Written by: Leigh Bardugo
Release Date: September 22nd 2016
Pages: ???? (Undoubtedly NOT ENOUGH THOUGH)
Series: Six of Crows, #2
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Kaz Brekker and his crew have just pulled off a heist so daring even they didn’t think they’d survive. But instead of divvying up a fat reward, they’re right back to fighting for their lives. Double-crossed and left crippled by the kidnapping of a valuable team member, the crew is low on resources, allies, and hope. As powerful forces from around the world descend on Ketterdam to root out the secrets of the dangerous drug known as jurda parem, old rivals and new enemies emerge to challenge Kaz’s cunning and test the team’s fragile loyalties. A war will be waged on the city’s dark and twisting streets―a battle for revenge and redemption that will decide the fate of magic in the Grisha world.

WIW
AAAAAHHHHHHH!!! LAKDSFIAERJALKDJF LOOK AT THAT COVERRRR SOMEONE HOLD ME. SOMEONE SAVE MEEEEE. SOMEONE GIVE ME THAT BOOOOOOOK.

I mean, ahem, hello. Welcome to Sorcery In The Bookshelves, totally calm, totally rational, Waiting on Wednesday post for Crooked Kingdom. Oh who am I kidding? Who ISN’T excited for this book? (Based on my twitter feed while the cover reveal was delayed not many people) If you don’t know what this book is then just go click on the GoodReads link, and get thine self educated. Because let me tell you this series is just about the best one I’ve read in such a long time.

I need it to go on forever and ever and ever and ever, yes? Yes. Good. So now just give me this book, let me love it and read it and hold onto it now. And no one gets hurt.

Sondra

ARC Review: Six of Crows by Leigh Bardugo

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Written by: Leigh Bardugo
Release Date: September 29, 2015
Pages: 480, Hardback
Series: Six of Crows, #1
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Thank you to Henry Holt for the ARC!

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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.

LetsTalkI kind of want to marry this book.

Six of Crows is everything I love in a book. The heist-fantasy combination is a wonderful one that I think needs to be used more (see also: Mistborn and The Curse Workers) and oh my god, I just live for books with multiple POVs and different messed-up characters having to work together. I enjoyed the Grisha trilogy, but oh my god, Six of Crows completely exceeded my expectations. It was one of those books where everything came together perfectly, where I was sucked into the book and couldn’t stop reading. (I read the last two hundred pages outside. I started reading when it was warm. By the last fifty pages, the weather had gotten cold, but I refused to close the book, even for a second, even if it meant that I couldn’t feel my arms for two hours after finishing.)

Ways Six of Crows is Different from the Grisha Trilogy:

  • The Grisha trilogy is in first person, and while I enjoyed some of the secondary characters, there were only a few who I considered three-dimensional. Here, with the third person and the alternating points of view and the larger amount of pages, Leigh Bardugo has the time to develop all her characters while still keeping the plot at a fairly good pace.
  • In Six of Crows, the world feels more complete. The characters are all from different areas, and with each of them we get to learn a little more about the culture of that part of the world.
  • The series is darker than the Grisha trilogy–the world is much grittier and bloodier and less polished. But there’s also plenty of humor; the characters are all the epitome of deadpan snarkers, and some of the exchanges between Jesper and Wylan in particular had me laughing out loud.

Jesper knocked his head against the hull and cast his eyees 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 quirked. 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.

My point is that I recommend this book whether you’re a fan of the Grisha trilogy or not. That said, if you ARE a fan of the Grisha trilogy (which I am! I just like this book a lot better) there are some really nice bonuses.

The key to any good book is balance; here, Leigh Bardugo balances darkness and light, action and relationships, fleshed-out characters and engaging plot, to create a truly memorable novel.

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