Six of Crows by Leigh Bardugo

Hi there, guys!


BASICS
Title: Six of Crows
Series: Six of Crows, #1
Author: Leigh Bardugo
Release Date: September 29th 2015
Publisher: Henry Holt and Company
ISBN: 1627792120
Number of Pages: 465
Genre: Fantasy, Young Adult

MY OPINION

“I'm a business man," he'd told her. "No more, no less."
"You're a thief, Kaz."
"Isn't that what I just said?”

Oh, wow. I don't even know where to start.
This book was spectacular, twisted, hilarious at points, you name it.
It had this special something I came to love after reading the Raven Cycle by Maggie Stiefvater.
I'm a huge fan of an eclectic cast of characters. And just as Stiefvater Leigh Bardugo managed to give everyone his or her very own narrative voice and atmosphere.

Speaking of atmosphere: It's been a long, long time since I've read a book with such a dark and twisted feeling to it! It felt even more so because I'd read the fluffy and relatively light-hearted Carry On (by Rainbow Rowell) before. Gosh, what a contrast.
Jesper helped to lighten the mood but it never felt like he was just being comic relief. He mattered as much to the story as the others did.

All of the characters were beautifully written by Bardugo, especially when they did not have much inner beauty to themselves. I may or may not have shared a tear over Kaz's ruthlessness.
Having an anti-hero as the main character of a book is something I just recently came to enjoy - and I can't get enough, so if you know any good books revolving around an anti-hero, tell me in the comments!
The female characters were amazing, too. They kick ass constantly and can still be feminine. They are just themselves, they keep thinking rational in the worst situations and their main concern is survival, not romance.

Here's the summary from the back of the book, I think it sums up the story pretty well:

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.

Reading Six of Crows got me really, really pumped for the Grisha Trilogy, the series Bardugo wrote before Six of Crows. Probably it would have been wiser to read those before SoC because they're taking place in the same world and Bardugo explains rather little in her new release. For example, I'd have really liked learning more about the Grisha. They all seem to have extraordinary powers but I can hardly remember most of them or their exact name.

I really enjoyed that there was romance and love and heartbreak in this book but that it was never the main problem of the characters. Hell, they had so much other thing to worry about. Like, constantly wanting to rip each others heads off. Their various banters were quite hilarious.

If I had to name one book I wanted to be made into a movie, I'd go with Six of Crows. I really hope that will happen at some point in the near future.

Favourite Quotes:   

“It's not natural for women to fight."
"It's not natural for someone to be as stupid as he is tall, and yet there you stand.”

“Jesper knocking his head against the hull and cast his eyes 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.”

 "No mourners. No funerals."

RATING
5 out of 5 stars