WARNING: THIS REVIEW CONTAINS MAJOR SPOILERS
This is the second book in the Six of Crows duology by Leigh Bardugo. It picks up almost immediately (days after) the end of the previous book.
The beginning was simple amd although the way it was going to go was a tad predictable, the process of getting to that was great. The author really compensated the predictableness of the outcome of the first chapters with lots of scheming, deceptions and creative plans the crew performs, I loved that!
STORY
The majority of the story, I'd dare say half of the novel, are flashbacks from all of the characters, which helped me understand them better ; however, at a point it gets a little repetitive and even bordering boring, I was reading some of these scenes only to get to the rest of the story. The ending, agh!! Why did Matthias have to die? WHY? I swear I teared up a bit (I'll talk about this more in just a moment). I was more invested in the characters and the story. BTW characters from the Grisha Trilogy make some appearances here: Zoya, Genya and Nikolai.
There are topics mentioned and/or portrayed like: slavery, human trafficking, prostitution, among others. The author herself addresses human trafficking and forced labor in the Acknowledgements.
CHARACTERS
Kaz
The characters evolved so freakin' much. Kaz gave nearly a 180° turn in this book, while in the previous he refused to show any vulnerability or his true emotions, here he's pushed to doing it by the circumstances. He fights for what he wants, he's brave, yet extremely vulnerable (his fear of touching skin), he puts up this façade of not caring for anyone or anything, and while I will admit he is indifferent to plenty of people and/or situations, he does care, in Inej's case deeply (“I would come for you,” he said, and when he saw the wary look she shot him, he said it again. “I would 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.”). This is exactly why, while Inej is kidnapped, he is insufferable, he's harsher and crueler to those around him, because he is in pain.
Inej
If you've read my review for Six of Crows then you know that while I did not dislike Inej, I wasn't attached to her, that changed. She's brave, incredibly loyal, wise, resilient, empathic, honest, a believer. I admired her conviction and her devotion, and those two qualities moved something in me. I really like her relationship with Kaz, it was amazing to see how deeply they cared for one another and the profound understanding they had of each other, how they never really needed (in fact neither could handle yet) physical contact. Because they have both been hurt so much they still have a long way, especially Kaz, so I was glad when she acknowledges that she wasn't going to spend her life trying to fix him. “She would fight for him, but she could not heal him. She would not waste her life trying.”
Nina
Nina is a strong character, she beat her addiction to parem, but Bardugo managed to make her struggle real, we saw her doing things that actually embarrassed her just to get some of the drug, we do see her going through an abstinence process. Besides she has a new ability, which was unique, like she can control the dead, their bones, their cells, a very original power indeed.
Matthias
MATTHIAS. I like that he finally makes peace with who he is now, he doesn't feel guilty anymore for defending a Grisha. He acknowledges that what Drüskelle do is wrong, but he's not angry at them, how could he? When he understanda their anger, their hate, when he felt it. Which is why I was like NOOOO when he died. Was it necessary? I don't think so, he was finally coming to terms with who he was and he finally had a purpose, with Nina, so why kill him? However, I'll admit his death scene was beautiful ("I promise, Matthias. I’ll take you home." "Nina,” he said, pressing her hand to his heart. “I am already home.”) and it made my eyes water, but why?
Wylan
I liked Wylan's innocence and kindness, he was bullied and betrayed by the person he trusted the must, who should've protected him , not cast him aside and try to kill him (ehem his father). As it is constantly stated in the book, despite his circumstances he hasn't lost that gentleness and goodness.
Jesper
Jesper is funny, he "seems" to be in a "lighter" mood than the rest of them, except Nina probably, "seems" being the key word here. He's a ludopath, he has a problem with gambling. He doesn't accept himself completely as a Grisha, because he was told as a child by his father, who was scared and only trying to protect him, that he should hide that part of him. He accepts he has a problem and he tries not to apologize but to make up for it, to compensate those around him for the repercussions his actions have had on them (as Inej told him to).
Jesper&Wylan
I enjoyed Wylan and Jesper's relationship, they're funny, really cute and kind to each other. They support and understand one another.
CONCLUSION
I loved this book, it's characters and the relationships in it. It's filled with smart, witty, brave and loyal characters, a story filled with plenty of schemes, plans and deceptions that will leave your mouth hanging open. I give this book 4.5 out of 5 stars and I'm pleased to say I will continue to read about this universe in the King of Scars duology.
THANK YOU FOR READING!