I never want the Grishaverse books to end. It’s a magical world that I just can’t get enough of. The Six of Crows Duology did not disappoint. The characters are mostly different from the Shadow & Bone Trilogy, but the world is the same.

The Stories

Six of Crows

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.

Six of Crows by Leigh Bardugo returns to the breathtaking world of the Grishaverse in this unforgettable tale about the opportunity—and the adventure—of a lifetime.

Crooked Kingdom

Welcome to the world of the Grisha.

Kaz Brekker and his crew of deadly outcasts 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 badly weakened, 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 the Grisha world.

My Thoughts

If you haven’t read the books (especially in order), the rest of this post likely contains spoilers.

Have I mentioned how much I love the world of these books? I really do. It’s a little bit of magic with some mystery with some science and war too.

I wish that there had been a little bit more of a transition of sorts between Ruin & Rising and Six of Crows. The latter makes mention of the “civil war,” and just refers to Ravka (as opposed to the earlier East and West Ravka). Maybe I was just being dumb, but it wasn’t a civil war when I was reading the initial trilogy.

There were a lot of characters to keep up with, but it worked out. Each chapter “focuses” on one character or another, but the writing doesn’t switch perspectives or anything. They’re a “team” (if that’s what you can call a band of criminals… Their gang is the Crows, and a group of crows is called a murder, so maybe that’s what we call them?), so you do get the whole story. Sometimes, it bounces back and forth a few minutes as the heist splits into different groups.

Now, Crooked Kingdom was exponentially less violent to me. It was more methodical and calculated in the execution. The team is back on their home turf, so it’s just a variety of sneakiness. We even get to interact with a few more Grisha from the initial trilogy.

I 100% wish that one of the characters had a different ending. I won’t give it away, but that actually made me very angry. Such a good character arc and they got an ending like that?!

Completely unrelated, they’ve added the characters from Six of Crows to the Netflix series, and I actually really like how they did it. The show creators were able to keep the essence of the trilogy, but change these characters’ story lines in a way that integrated almost seamlessly. I approve.

I’ve moved on to the King of Scars Duology now, so stay tuned for my review as I wrap up all 7 books!

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