Review: Six of Crows (Six of Crows #1)

Six of Crows (Six of Crows #1)
By Leigh Bardugo

Published By: Orion
Publication Date: September 29, 2015
Date Read: March 20, 2021
Genre: YA – Fantasy
Source: Bought
Format: Paperback
Pages: 465

From Goodreads:
Criminal prodigy Kaz Brekker has been offered wealth beyond his wildest dreams. But to claim it, he’ll have to pull off a seemingly impossible heist:

Break into the notorious Ice Court
(a military stronghold that has never been breached)

Retrieve a hostage
(who could unleash magical havoc on the world)

Survive long enough to collect his reward
(and spend it)

Kaz needs a crew desperate enough to take on this suicide mission and dangerous enough to get the job done – and he knows exactly who: six of the deadliest outcasts the city has to offer. Together, they just might be unstoppable – if they don’t kill each other first.

“They fear you as I once feared you, as you once feared me. We are all someone’s monster, Nina.”

I didn’t really know what to expect when I went into reading Six of Crows. I read the Shadow and Bone trilogy years ago and while I enjoyed them, they weren’t some of my favourite books and I thought that they were just okay. I didn’t really plan on reading any more of Leigh’s Grisha books but after lots of people told me that the Six of Crows duology was better I decided to buy the first book. It has sat on my shelf for a good 2-3 years before picking it up. Honestly, it was the upcoming TV adaptation of Shadow and Bone that finally led to me to picking this one up. As they have incorporated the characters from Six of Crows into it I decided I needed to read it before watching the show. I am so glad I finally picked this one up as I really enjoyed it.

One thing I did love within the original trilogy was this world. The world of the Grisha and the magic and everything, so I actually loved being back in this world. It was awesome. One thing I loved most about Six of Crows is that this book follows a bunch of misfits. I really enjoy reading books about morally grey characters. I find them so fascinating and interesting and this book is filled to the brim with morally grey characters. None of them are wholly good or wholly bad and I loved getting to learn their past and what they had done and their reasons behind it. That’s what made this book fantastic for me.

I really liked the storyline of Six of Crows right from the start. It is so action packed and plot focussed with a little hint of a romance here and there. Those are my favourite kinds of books. I am such a plot driven reader so to have this completely focused on the action and their goal; to pull of this heist was perfect for me. I did however find I could have done with a little bit more romance. It was hinted and it was there but it was a lot of slow build up. I am hoping we might get a little bit more satisfaction with the characters relationships in the second book.

Six of Crows was great! It was so much better than I was expecting it to be and I really enjoyed every moment of this book. I was definitely left reeling and I can’t wait to see what is going to happen in the next instalment. I loved Kaz and Inej and the rest of the gang and I can’t wait to see how it all ends for them. If you love a good fantasy series with characters that have questionable morals, and is more action and plot based, you will love this book! I can’t wait to read more.

“I will have you without armor, Kaz Brekker. Or I will not have you at all.”