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Have you heard of the Grisha Universe or the Grishaverse? This book tells one of many adventures in this universe. Let's start with Jan Van Eck, a member of the Merchant Council and a fancy businessman, decides to kidnap Kaz Brekker. Kaz, renowned for his abilities as a pick-pocket, lock-pick, escape artist, and planner, is surprised by this offer from the man who hates him. The job, an impossible heist in the Ice Court for a prisoner worth a 30 million kruge. With that much money, Kaz cannot help but say yes. He needs a crew for this job. Inej Ghafa, the Wraith, is the first person he chooses to bring along. She knows everything that goes on in the city, used to be an acrobat, and is the only person that Kaz somewhat trusts. Nina Zenik who is a Corporalnik Grisha, a practitioner of Small Science and someone who can alter human anatomy using it, is next on Kaz’s list. Nina is next. She comes along in hopes of the money and possibly recruiting another Grisha. Third is Matthias Helvar, a Fierdan who got kicked out of the Ice Court’s army, is their guid through the defenses and just so happens to know Nina, who betrayed him once before. Fourth is Jesper Fahey, a sharpshooter with a secret gift. The boy needs to pay back the large tabs he has from his addiction to gambling. The final member is Wylan Van Eck who is there as a demolitions expert and an insurance that his father will keep his word. Wylan comes to Kaz under a false name to see if he can join. He wants nothing to do with his father and hopes to move on with his life.
This story is a fast paced young adult novel that keeps you on your toes. It has romance and adventure, but it is also not afraid to be a bit dark and scary. Kaz’s alliances and actions fall into this morally gray area. The things that he has done and how he has gotten where he is now just prove that. On the other hand, this only makes him more entertaining to read about and for the reader to attempt to decipher what will happen next! Once I started this book, I could not put it down. The pacing was perfect and the story telling was on point. Though there is plenty of background information and there are many different characters, each relationship fits together like a puzzle with plenty of depth. None of the book was boring. I had read the Shadow and Bone trilogy before this, which takes place in the same world, and figured that I would try this one. I ended up loving Six of Crows so much more than Shadow and Bone.
If you too enjoyed this book, then I would suggest reading the sequel book Crooked Kingdom. Other books like this one are: the trilogy Shadow and Bone by Leigh Bardugo which is a part of this same world, Red Rising trilogy by Pierce Brown because of the same gritty feeling that it gives you while you’re reading it, or Renegades by Marissa Meyer because it is dark, gritty, and also has a morally gray main character.