"Zoya used to say that fear is a pheonix. You can watch it burn a thousand times and still it will return."(Nina Zenik)
There's not much I can say about Crooked Kingdom that I haven't said about Six of Crows, but if you thought Six of Crows was a good book, then Crooked Kingdom is way better.
I really love the characters in this series. In Six of Crows, I thought that the characters were extremely well-developed and in Crooked Kingdom they become more developed. In Crooked Kingdom the characters know what they're capable of, but we see them overcoming their fears, testing their limits and figuring out who they are. Kaz Brekker is also one of the most unique and badass characters I've ever read about and watching him grow and develop and seeing just how much he cares for his crew is awesome.
The plot in Crooked Kingdom is so complex, rich and fascinating. There are even more plans, counter plans, twists and turns than there was in Six of Crows and everything came together quite nicely. Leigh Bardugo gave a lot of thought and attention to the plot of Crooked Kingdom.
There are three ships in this book and I love all of them! Matthias and Nina are so adorable. When he died and told Nina to go back to Ravka and save Fjerda, I was so sad. Jesper and Wylan are my children and I will hurt anyone who comes after them. I also like the progression of Kaz's and Inej's relationship. They both have their own goals and realise they they can't heal or save each other, but they still care about each other. Also, Kaz and Inej hold hands and *SQUEE*.
There are also appearances from characters in The Grisha trilogy: Sturmhond Prince Nikolai for life!, Zoya and Genya. You don't need to read The Grisha trilogy to enjoy the Six of Crows duology, but if you do, appearances from characters in The Grisha trilogy will have a larger impact.
The Six of Crows duology is one of my favourite series. The way I feel about this duology is the way I felt when I turned the last page of Crooked Kingdom: bittersweet. I'm so sad to say goodbye to this duology for now (because there might be a third book many years later) , but I'm so excited for King of Scars.
"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." (Kaz Brekker to Inej Ghafa)