Six of Crows

I'm kind of a stickler for reading books in order, but when I found out this series could be read as a standalone, I was excited to dig right in. But before I begin, I must give thanks to all of my GR buddies out there. If not for the community, this book would not have crossed my radar, and I would have missed out on a fun adventure.

❖ Quick Summary: A merchant hires a rag-tag team of miscreants to hunt down the inventor of jurda parem, which gives the user otherworldly abilities.

Okay, so after thinking about the action-packed, rip-roaring last few chapters, I think I have come to a conclusion. I really enjoyed the heck out of this one! It had just the right amount of world-building, humor, charisma, and fun. The author has a keen sense of how to maneuver the characters around some hefty themes while still taking the time to get to know each and every one person in the team. Speaking of, let's do a quick rundown.

“When everyone knows you're a monster, you needn't waste time doing every monstrous thing.”

Kaz Brekker – all-around witty criminal mastermind. cool name, right?
Inej Ghafa – a spy, an acrobat, and a strong-willed idealist. best character IMO
Jesper Fahey – gambler extraordinaire and a heck of a shot.
Matthias Helvar – a grumpy dude who has differentiated opinions on loyalty and love.
Nina Zenik - a kind soul and Heartrender who can manipulate the body.
Wylan Van Eck – explosive expert.

“The heart is an arrow. It demands aim to land true.”

In a nutshell, Kaz must lead the group into a fortified area to retrieve the inventor of the drug and make it out scot-free. Sounds easy, right? Not so fast! They must climb incinerators, take out some guards without raising alarms, and, oh, do it while some of the team members are at each other's throats. It's a fun little espionage thriller where the banter is high and the swashbuckling is intense meteoric. (meteoric?? Wait, does that make sense in this context? Hmm. Well, it sounds good, so I'll keep it. It's staying here. I stand by it. Lol. Look at me internalizing thoughts and writing them down. Geez, move on already.)