Six of Crows is a high fantasy novel set in the fictional city of Ketterdam. Focused on the not so bright parts of the city, this novel follows six teenagers, each with their own dark past. Together, they have to do the impossible: break into the unbreakable prison in a country that wants most of them dead. 

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Kaz Brekker, dirty hands, the Bastard of the Barrel, is a thief and the honorary leader of The Dregs, a gang in Ketterdam. With black gloves covering his hands and a past he won’t speak a word of, Kaz remains a mystery, even to those closest to him.

Inej Ghafa, the Wraith. One of the most skilled acrobats in the world, there is nothing that she cannot climb, all without making a sound. Inej is paying of her indenture that Kaz has for her after removing her from the Menagerie, a hellish place meant to utilize children stolen from other lands and forced to work for their almost unachievable release. Her trauma from this runs deep and she struggles with her religion being at odds with the actions she must take to survive.

Jesper Fahey is a sharpshooter with a dangerous addiction. There is not a shot that he cannot make, trick shot or otherwise. Jesper came to Ketterman to attend university, being a brilliant student, but his own impulsivity and inability to walk away from a bet lead to him becoming part of the Dregs.

Nina Zenik, the Grisha. Grisha are people born with special abilities, some with the ability to control the elements, some with the ability to control materials, and some with the ability to control parts of the body. She is a heartrender, a Grisha with the ability to manipulate the heart and blood flow. Running from her own past that brought her to Ketterdam, this heist forces her to face that past head on.

Matthias Helvar, the Prisoner. Drüskelle are witch hunters from the country of Fjerda. They hunt down Grisha, believing them to be abnormalities that do not deserve to live (not at all ethically wrong, clearly). Matthias has spent the last year in a Ketterdam prison after being forced there by a betrayal he never saw coming. Now, he is being broken out in return for betraying his country that he believes to be perfect.

Wylan, who has a last name that I am not disclosing because I don’t want to. His past remains a secret from all those around him (except not as much as he thinks because Kaz is not someone who respects others privacy when it could put his “not his family” gang at risk). Eventually, his past comes back to bite him and he is forced to face it to save his newly formed family.

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Built off the back of Bardugo’s previous trilogy, the Shadow and Bone trilogy, Six of Crows immerses the reader in a world of high stakes heists, life-threatening exchanges, and general bad-assery, all from the safety of their pile of blankets they’re cocooned in on their bed.

I have a serious obsession with this book. I own four copies of the first book, and three of the second one. (I honestly wish I could say that this was the most copies I have of a single book, but it isn’t). I also pulled an all-nighter to watch the Netflix show when it first came out (3 am is a great time to have a show come out, Netflix) and screamed/cried so hard I fell of the sofa and hit my head on the table. So, if you too want to become obsessed with 6 fictional teenagers, you should read this book.