another snippet from chapter 6 cause it’s been hard to write lately, so enjoy Nikolai’s witty little sister Linnea as she enters the scene, more zoyalai banter and an exasperated Zoya. (and funny mentions of the Dregs)
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They reconvened in what looked like a study, except it was twice as big as Zoya’s sitting room in the Grand Palace and she doubted Kirigin had ever dedicated himself to paperwork. Nikolai and Tamar were sorting through reports while Zoya read the signed documents Nikolai had brought back from the Merchant Council, trying to soothe the brewing anger in her heart and the pulsing pain in her temples. Zoya lifted her head toward the door when she heard Nadia’s voice in the hallway, showing their guest the way. Nadia entered the room first, coming to sit beside her wife; behind her, a girl gracefully walked through the door, her steps light and her posture straight.
Linnea Opjer appeared older than her twenty-two years of age, with a knowing smile dancing constantly on her lips, her look quickly scanning every place she entered and studying every person she met. The analytical intensity of her gaze was eavened out by the soft quality of her voice and movements. Linnea was made of inconsistencies that weirdly fitted perfectly together; the lethal quiet with which she swayed through the world rivaled the ravenous chaos of the gears constantly turning in her mind. She looked the spitting image of Nikolai, to the point of absurdity considering they were only half-related; her golden curls were messily held at the top of her head by a pencil she kept adjusting with ink stained fingers. Some strands fell on her face, framed by a sharp jaw and a slightly crooked nose that only added to the memorability of her features. The handsomeness clearly ran in the family; the only difference between them were Linnea’s clear eyes, azure like a river caught by the summer sun. The gleam of brilliance and cunning in them, though, that was all too Nikolai’s not to be noticed. Linnea crutsied in Zoya’s direction.
“Your Highness,” she greeted. Zoya glared muderously at Nikolai, who cautiously averted his gaze.
“Did your brother not advise you that there is no need to do that?”
“He probably did,” Linnea admitted, joining her hands behind her back. Her look kept darting to every corner, lingering on details, as if she was assessing something. “Then again, as I am sure you are aware, my brother tends to provide an excessive amount of talking. I usually tune out the things I consider unnecessary.”
She locked eyes on Zoya’s, a corner of her mouth twisting in a comradely smirk. Her tone was affectionate; even knowing each other for such a brief time, she and Nikolai were already growing very fond of each other. Zoya liked Linnea. She was quieter than Nikolai, more practical, but she had the same creative and restless energy, the same optimistic outcome on life and a convolutive mind. This would be her last year at Ketterdam’s university before graduating in naval engineering. Linnea, like Nikolai, was an inventor though; engineering was just one of her many talents. A small wishful part of Zoya had wanted Linnea to like her too, from the first time they met.
“You’d have to ignore roughly half the things he says.”
“At least,” Linnea shrugged her shoulders. “Sometimes more.”
Tamar laughed, bobbing her chin at the girl. “I like her,” she stated.
“I told you,” remarked Nadia, casting a fond smile at Linnea. Nadia had given her an extended tour of the lab when the girl had visited Os Alta, cushioning her from the incessant enthusiasm Nikolai was showering her with. Linnea had gracefully taken it. Zoya distinctively remembered the night the three of them spent discussing the cooling system for the newest model of flying ship’s engines, while she had drifted to sleep lulled by their muffled excited voices in the sitting room.
“I am standing right here,” came Nikolai’s retort, his tone slightly offended. “And I feel the need to remind you that everything I say has a purpose.”
Zoya would have preferred to entertain this light banter, to grab some lunch on the docks with Linnea and Nikolai, to hear the girl tell them about her university days, about a life Zoya and Nikolai never knew. Ravka demanded everything but lightness, though. She gestured for Linnea to take a seat, ringing for some coffee; Linnea enjoyed it bitter and strong. The girl strode to a chair, taking off her refined wool coat. Underneath, she wore a loose blouse and practical pants and boots; despite her casual attire, she glowed with confidence and surety. Every inch Nikolai’s sister.
“Why has your brother dragged you away from your studies?”
Linnea downed her coffee, adjusting the pencil in her hair. “I asked to come, actually. I knew he would be in town, and I jumped at the chance to update him on some interesting discoveries I made.”
Zoya arched her brow in Nikolai’s direction. Whatever had the fool pulled his sister into? She reminded herself not to underestimate Linnea. The smug sparkle in her look suggested she was not an innocent girl being deceived into action.
“Is it something we need to worry about?”
“Part of it, not anymore. The rest, maybe.” Linnea grabbed a leather briefcase in front of her, pulling out some files. She extended them to Tamar, who began sorting through the papers, growing more worried with every turn of the page. An uncomfortable feeling creeped in Zoya’s stomach. More trouble brewing.
“Tell Zoya what happened, Linnea.” Zoya peered at Nikolai: he was practically beaming with pride, shifting in his seat, barely restraining himself from unleashing an avalanche of words on them.
“Please Linnea, do, before your brother steals the spotlight and doom falls upon us.”
At least Linnea could be a bit more concise than Nikolai and cut straight to the point. The girl straightened her spine and held her chin high. You could witness her clever brain at work, disguised under her sheer beauty. She flicked the pencil from her curls, leaving them to unfurl on her neck. While she talked, her hands scribbled mindlessly on a piece of paper, sketching as if she needed a practical way to soothe her energy and focus.
“As you know, I work at the university. Some laboratories are located in the older buildings, outside the chaos of the city. I used to go there to…experiment with some inventions.” Experiment with some inventions was clearly an elegant way to refer to fiddling with dangerous mechanical devices that could explode. Zoya was sure she was not imagining the envious look on Nikolai’s face. Then again, he had been the one to drop his studies and travel the world as a damn privateer. “One of my colleagues is an expert chemist with a big mouth. She let it slip that they were experimenting on parem.”
A bolt of renewed fear and anger shot through Zoya’s chest. Flames of rage ignited in her lungs, cutting the air short, as her power began stirring. Parem. Her mind drifted back to the stocks hidden in the warehouse. Both West Ravka and Kerch dallying in parem could not just be a horrific coincidence. She felt Nikolai’s hand discreetly brushing her thigh under the table, a reassuring touch to prevent her from summoning another storm inside the room.
“They were trying to make the drug more bearable for Grisha. More serviceable, marketable. The quantities were small, the remnants of a previous stock held in the basement under the laboratories. It was supposed to be shipped here, to Os Kervo.”
Her temper was barely controlled now. Every word Linnea spoke felt like a thorn breaking the skin. More suffering for Grisha at the hand of their people. Linnea sent a reassuring smile her way, no doubt noticing the way her knuckles turned white on the wooden table.
“It’s not a problem anymore,” she declared, firm and confident. Zoya shot her a confused look, sweeping her gaze from her to Nikolai.
“What do you mean?”
“Let’s just say someone might have stolen it.” Nikolai was not able to contain himself anymore. “And destroyed it.”
“With the help of some very expert thieves.” Linnea added.
Zoya’s eyes widened in shock, and her disbelieving gaze snapped to Nikolai. “You let her associate herself with those reprobates? Your younger sister ?” she seethed, utterly stunned. “Are you out of your mind to involve her in this?” Nikolai held his hands up in a surrendering gesture and outright laughed in Zoya’s face.
“You assume I have any kind of influence on what she does. Or that I even knew what she was planning on achieving.” Zoya could not decide which of the two siblings deserved her glare more right now. Perhaps it would be better to disguise the faint admiration for Linnea’s venture and rely on the common annoyance that came along with Nikolai’s recklessness. Yet she really admired what Linnea had accomplished.
“You did this on your own?”
Linnea shrugged her shoulders again. “One needs to know how to navigate the perilous waters of Ketterdam. It was not particularly challenging to find the Dregs, nor to understand which one of them you associated with. Pleasant fellow, I have to say.”
The opinion was given with a satisfied nod, leaving no room for considering its honesty. If there was even the hint of a doubt about Nikolai and Linnea’s parentage, it would be very well swept away by their mutual liking of that disrespectful Brekker individual. Only someone with Nikolai’s same blood and twisted brain could find the thief pleasant.
“Besides, it was threatening my brother’s fianceè’s rule. Could not ignore it.”
Zoya rolled her eyes, anticipating Tamar’s overly amused comment. “Not his fianceè.”
Linnea arched a brow in Nikolai’s direction. “Have you not asked her yet?”
“Just drop it”, suggested Tamar again, throwing the files on the table. “Nikolai is stubborn like hell and Zoya is getting impatient. But you won’t get this out of them.” Zoya clicked her tongue, refusing to admit how accurately Tamar grasped the absurd situation.
“I have to say I’m feeling cornered to justify myself, but I am courting her.”
“You are such an idiot.”
“I kindly suggest romantic.”
“Are you sure we’re related?”
“Can we go back to the business at hand?”
Linnea shot him a look that clearly read they would be resuming this conversation. She turned thoughtful, keeping her attention on him. “The sharpshooter kept asking about your flying ships. I revealed to him I knew Sturmhond just for the sake of seeing him squirm with excitement.”
Thrill sparked on Nikolai’s face. Nothing like a boost to his ego to raise his mood even more. “I know. I already promised I would take him for a ride, before we caught up with you.”
“Don’t bother.” The girl crumpled her sketch, twisting the pencil up in her hair once more. “I told him I could build him a small one.” Of course she could. Should Zoya even ask? “He practically proposed to me on the spot, much to his boyfriend’s amusement. Oh,” she seemed to remember Zoya’s presence, “you know he’s a Fabrikator, right? Not that good at hiding it, might I add.”
At this point, the queen was rendered speechless. Linnea smirked at Nikolai; she propped her elbows on the table and leaned her chin in her joined hands, in a pose that could pass as childish but looked nothing but mischievous. His brother grinned back with an eerily identical expression and winked at her.
Saints, Zoya realized with an exasperated grunt, there’s two of them.
I consumed Six of Crows and I’m forcing myself to wait to read the second book until I write this review.
The audiobook for this book is amazing. I appreciated the casting and the acting was phenomenal. I’m picky with my audiobooks and this one was really well done.
Most important aspect of this book, the characters. Each member in the gang has specific skill sets to perform the the heist. Kaz, the leader of the gang was the most developed character but all members had intriguing and unique backstories that explains how they got into this situation.
These people aren’t fairy tale teenagers who do bad things because it’s fun–they are criminals, some by choice and others were forced into it by crippling debt or enslavement. The balance of hardened criminal and young teenage energy was well done and understandable. The dialogue and banter between the characters felt natural.
This book deals with some heavy trauma and I thought it was cleverly used, especially within Kaz. The horrifying flashbacks of feeling his dead brothers body has made him overly sensitive to touch of any kind. The constant wearing of gloves has created myths about the secret he hides and it becomes a trademark of his. I don’t know if this kind of thing exists in the real world but it makes sense within the story.
The characters were the focal point of the story, then the heist. This story takes place in two cities. The world building isn’t very expansive but for the story that was being told, it suited the book. The personal growth of each character and getting through the heist is what makes this story good. Each character had a satisfying arc and none got left behind by other characters.
I’m not usually a fan of heist movies or books so I wasn’t totally enthralled by the plot but I stayed for the characters. One thing I did appreciate was the fact that the entire plan went to shit. Literally every step failed or didn’t go as expected. Even at the very end the entire premise of the book falls apart.
This book is good YA heist story with enjoyable characters. I enjoyed it and now I will go read Crooked Kingdom.
Do you constantly think about how Leigh Bardugo consistently creates the most compelling aesthetics for her fictional settings from the foggy harbours and gambling dens of Ketterdam to the pristine halls and libraries and uniforms of the Little Palace, not to mention the snowy villages and forests of Fjerda…….. or are you normal
“Kaz leaned back. “What’s the easiest way to steal a man’s wallet?” “Knife to the throat?” asked Inej. “Gun to the back?” said Jesper. “Poison in his cup?” suggested Nina. “You’re all horrible,” said Matthias.”
“No mourners,”Jesper said as he tossed his rifle to Rotty. “No funerals,”the rest of the Dregs murmured in reply. Among them, it passed for “good luck.”
“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.”
I’m on episode 3 but my favourite bit of the show thus far is Kaz being all like ‘Jesper stop asking for a demolitions expert for every job.’ I was like OH MY GOD WESPER REALLY ARE SOULMATES
So I know some Scorpios and they are deep af. They are always in their feels but would never show their emotion lol. And the minute someone pisses them off, they are TERRIFYING and would literally kill someone so what I’m saying is I think Kaz is a Scorpio.
The obvious choice for Nina is Taurus which she could be tbf. But she gives me Gemini vibes. They are known for being two-faced. But some of the best people I know are Geminis I think because they are so easily adaptable and are able to talk and make friends with anyone.
Jesper is probably Leo. They’re described as ‘the ultimate showman.’ Very lovable and a bit vain lol. That’s Jesper.
I just feel like Inej is a Virgo. She’s so talented and meticulous. Like I’d trust her to do any job really well. They are literally described as having excellent spacial awareness and need to feel useful.
I’m a Pisces irl and they are dreamy and artsy and love romance. Wylan is pretty creative so could be Pisces but I don’t get those vibes from him. Matthias however. Big brooding romantic over there. I think he’s a Pisces. Either that or a Capricorn, bound by duty.
Wylan is either a cancer or an Aquarius I think. He has that sensitive but also brave and feels like an outcast but is also loved by everyone thing. I would do anything to be Wylan’s friend ngl.
The fact I’ll be off at uni when Shadow and Bone airs and I promised I’d watch it with my sister means I’m gonna have to WAIT to watch it!! But all my social medias are full of the grishaverse ahahaha I’m gonna go insane trying to avoid spoilers
This is completely factually accurate I assure you…
The Crows Favourite Musicals:
I don’t know why I’m doing this but it absolutely makes sense.
Nina: Something like Chicago or Heathers. Shows that make you feel like a bad b*tch who’s ready to murder.
Matthias: His favourite show is definitely Frozen but he would never admit it.
Inej: Okay so Inej would go for a really fun show on the surface that has really sinister undertones. Like Into the Woods! Also she sings the Sound of Music as she’s Wraithing because it reminds her of her parents.
Kaz: I don’t think Kaz is a musicals fan but I bet he’d secretly quite like Sweeney Todd. He’s also a secret romantic who likes death so West Side Story would be his fav.
Wylan: 100% Wylans favourite hobby is belting and crying to sad musical songs, no one can tell me otherwise. Les Mis and Waitress and Miss Saigon. And I bet he sounds good as well.
Jesper: He gives me major Beetlejuice vibes. Even his fashion sense is represented in this show. ‘The whole being dead thing’ is probably his favourite. And Avenue Q is another one he loves.
Just thought I’d make a quick little appreciation post for:
“I need to see Jakob Hertzoon.“
"Who?”
Kaz felt like he was about to climb out of his skin. He pointed through the window. “Jakob fucking Hertzoon. I want to talk to him.”
Because that for me was the most cathartic thing I’ve ever read ever. I could hear the frustration in my head. It’s also amplified by the fact it’s the only time (I think. Correct me if I’m wrong) that the F word is said in the books. And any swearing at all really. It’s beautiful. 10/10. Like the reading equivalent of a chesty scream or a sigh of relief.
Photoshoots of herself in pretty red dresses, taken using a timer because Matthias won’t take them for her. Sometimes pretends she’s a vlogger on stories.
@mattihelvar
Matthias Helvar
Uses Instagram like an old man. Only has 3 pictures, all of wolves. He uses those really old, awful Instagram filters.
@thewraith
Inej Ghafa
Just a few pictures of her stood on rooftops with sunsets in the background. All taken and posted by Nina because she thinks Inej looks beautiful in them <3 Inej doesn’t know how to delete them.
@user0692741
Kaz Brekker
Would never use his real name on the internet. Posts nothing. Follows no one. Uses the account to stalk everyone he need to. Wylan once followed him and Kaz threatened to slit his throat because of it.
@_wylan
Wylan Van Eck
Just follows his friends and posts pictures of his big house in the rain or videos of his music. Uses his private stories a LOT to rant and sends filtered selfies to the crows when he’s bored. Kaz has him blocked.
@faheyitsjesper
Jesper Fahey
Has the most followers. Thinks he’s an influencer and actually puts effort into his outfit photos. Very Pinterest-like. Mostly shots of him posing and some of Wylan looking cute when caught off guard.
