“Crows remember human faces. They remember the people who feed them, who are kind to them. And the people who wrong them too. They don’t forget. They tell each other who to look after and who to watch out for.”
Crooked Kingdom by Leigh Bardugo immediately follows the events of Six of Crows. This stunning sequel brings us back to Kaz, Inej, Jesper, Nina, Wylan, and Matthias upon their return from Fjerda and the deadly Ice Court. Betrayed and surrounded by enemies, the six outlaws must now figure out a way to get their money and revenge all at once. However, the group is divided, and political tensions that had merely been simmering in the first book among the different countries are now rising. Every country wants to claim the prize that Kaz’s group managed to steal from the Ice Court, and even within Ketterdam, groups are divided. Even the Dregs have forsaken the members of their own gang. New secrets are revealed and alliances are formed and shattered. What started as a simple heist has become something much larger than the six criminals ever thought it would be, with the price of failure being incredibly steep. With twists and turns and rivals, both new and old, waiting in the shadows and out in the open, this novel delivers an astonishing conclusion to the adventures of Kaz Brekker’s crew, while keeping their story open for years to come.
“I would have come for you. And if I couldn’t walk, I’d crawl to you, and no matter how broken we were, we’d fight our way out together-knives drawn, pistols blazing. Because that’s what we do. We never stop fighting.”
Once again, Bardugo delivers beautiful words and poetic themes that have been delightfully twisted and wrought into true and honest terms. The tension of the high stakes and fraught loyalties are palpable as you read, and the locations are cleverly described. Each member of the crew gets their chapters, allowing us to fully understand Kaz’s cunning, Inej’s faith, Jesper’s recklessness, Nina’s devotion, Wylan’s growth, and Matthias’ inner war as each character is put in daring and impossible situations that often challenge the very essence of who they are. You are shown a black, cruel place full of bloodthirsty criminals and greedy merchants, nations on the precipice of a full-scale war. There is absolutely no hope to be found, and every small flare of the candle is quickly doused by wicked schemes. Regardless, the six characters persevere, and they show you that even when the world is a rotten, miserable thing, there is nothing that can stop you from taking your fate in your own hands and making a better life for yourself and the ones you love.
“What about the nobodies and the nothings, the invisible girls? We learn to hold our heads as if we wear crowns. We learn to wring magic from the ordinary. That was how you survived when you weren’t chosen, when there was no royal blood in your veins. When the world owed you nothing, you demanded something of it anyway.”
