Crooked Kingdom Is the Rare Fantasy Sequel That Gets Even Better

Today, we are reviewing Crooked Kingdom by Leigh Bardugo, the sequel to Six of Crows and the concluding volume in the original Six of Crows duology.

The first book followed Kaz Brekker and his crew as they attempted an impossible heist inside the Ice Court. Crooked Kingdom brings the action back to Ketterdam, where the group must face the consequences of that dangerous mission.

Unlike many fantasy series that stretch their stories across three or more books, Bardugo completes this particular adventure in a focused two-book series. The stakes are higher, the plans are more elaborate and the characters are pushed further than ever before.

There will be spoilers for Six of Crows and minor spoilers for Crooked Kingdom ahead. If you have not read the first book, now is a good time to stop reading.

Crooked Kingdom Summary

After surviving their mission at the Ice Court, Kaz Brekker and his crew return to Ketterdam expecting to receive the enormous payment they were promised. Kaz arranges to complete the deal with wealthy merchant Jan Van Eck, but things do not go according to plan.

Van Eck double-crosses the crew and uses his power and resources to overpower them. He also kidnaps Inej Ghafa, the skilled Suli acrobat known as the Wraith, intending to use her as leverage against Kaz.

Kaz is furious, but the crew’s problems extend far beyond rescuing Inej and collecting their money. Kuwei Yul-Bo, the son of the scientist who created the dangerous drug jurda parem, is now traveling with them. Governments, criminals and powerful merchants all want to control Kuwei and the knowledge he possesses.

According to the official publisher’s synopsis, powerful forces from around the world begin descending on Ketterdam in search of the drug’s secrets. The crew is already weakened, low on resources and surrounded by enemies.

Kaz must find a way to rescue Inej, protect Kuwei, defeat Van Eck and keep the other members of his crew alive. Matters become even more complicated when Kaz’s old enemy, Pekka Rollins, decides to take advantage of the chaos.

The result is not a single traditional heist. Instead, Crooked Kingdom unfolds as a complicated war of schemes, betrayals and counterattacks across the streets of Ketterdam.

The Characters Make This Series Special

My favorite part of the Six of Crows series is not the elaborate heists or even the fascinating world Bardugo created. It is the characters.

Kaz, Inej, Jesper, Wylan, Nina and Matthias are memorable enough to carry their own individual novels. Each member of the crew has a distinct personality, history and motivation, yet Bardugo brings them together without allowing anyone to feel unnecessary.

Kaz may be the mastermind, but the story never treats the others as pieces he can simply move around a board. Every character contributes a skill that the group needs, and their personal decisions frequently alter the direction of Kaz’s plans.

The shifting perspectives also allow us to understand what each character is hiding. Kaz’s intelligence and ruthlessness are impressive, but his emotional wounds make him much more than another clever criminal. Inej must decide what freedom means to her and what kind of future she wants. Jesper and Wylan are forced to confront parts of themselves they would rather avoid, while Nina and Matthias continue wrestling with the political and emotional consequences of their relationship.

The friendships, romances and disagreements within the group give the novel its emotional center. The crew may be capable of extraordinary things together, but they are still damaged young people trying to survive in a city that rarely shows mercy.

A Slower Beginning That Builds Toward an Excellent Payoff

Crooked Kingdom starts a little slowly as Bardugo establishes the crew’s situation and moves everyone into position. Because the plot involves several competing factions, secret plans and shifting alliances, the opening requires patience.

Once the larger plan begins to take shape, however, the pace improves dramatically. The second half delivers the clever twists, narrow escapes and sudden reversals that made Six of Crows so entertaining.

Bardugo’s timing is one of the novel’s greatest strengths. She knows when to reveal a hidden part of Kaz’s strategy and when to let readers believe that everything has gone wrong. Just as one problem appears to be resolved, another enemy enters the game.

Some of these developments can feel deliberately over-the-top, but that is part of the series’ appeal. Kaz and his friends are constantly placed in situations that should be impossible to escape. Watching them improvise—or discover that Kaz anticipated the problem several steps earlier—is incredibly satisfying.

Ketterdam Becomes the Perfect Battleground

The Ice Court gave the first novel a clear destination and a seemingly impossible objective. Crooked Kingdom replaces that structure with something more personal: a fight for control of Ketterdam.

Bringing the story back to the city was a great decision. Ketterdam is not merely a setting for the action. Its corrupt merchants, criminal gangs, crowded streets and obsession with money influence nearly every choice the characters make.

Kaz understands the city better than most of his enemies. He knows how people think, what they fear and what they can be convinced to believe. Because Van Eck possesses more money and social power, Kaz must turn Ketterdam itself into part of his strategy.

The city’s atmosphere also reinforces the novel’s central ideas about power. Respectable merchants can be as dangerous as criminals, laws often protect the wealthy and nearly everyone has a price. Kaz succeeds because he recognizes the hypocrisy beneath Ketterdam’s polished surface.

Bardugo Expands the Grishaverse Without Losing Focus

Crooked Kingdom takes place in the Grishaverse, the fantasy world Bardugo introduced in the Shadow and Bone trilogy. However, the Six of Crows books explore different characters, cultures and parts of that world.

The novel expands the political importance of jurda parem and shows why so many nations are desperate to obtain it. The drug can dangerously amplify the abilities of Grisha, making its existence a threat to the international balance of power.

Despite the larger conflict, Bardugo keeps the story centered on the crew. Readers learn more about the world because of the dangers the characters face, not through long passages of exposition.

That balance makes the Grishaverse feel expansive without allowing the worldbuilding to overwhelm the plot. Readers who become fans of the setting can continue exploring it through Bardugo’s other books, while the official Six of Crowss eries page identifies Six of Crows and Crooked Kingdom as the core duology.

Do You Need to Read Six of Crows First?

Yes, you should read Six of Crows before starting Crooked Kingdom.

This sequel begins shortly after the first book’s cliffhanger and assumes readers already understand the Ice Court mission, jurda parem and the relationships among the characters. Starting with Crooked Kingdom would spoil the first novel and make many of its emotional moments less effective.

Fortunately, both books are worth reading. Together, they tell one complete story with a clear beginning, escalation and conclusion.

Is Crooked Kingdom Worth Reading?

Crooked Kingdom is absolutely worth reading, especially if you enjoyed Six of Crows. It expands the original story, gives every major character meaningful development and delivers a satisfying conclusion to the duology.

The beginning may move more slowly than expected, but the plot soon gains momentum and maintains a fast pace throughout its later sections. Bardugo balances action, humor, romance and emotional character moments while managing an impressively complicated plot.

Most importantly, the novel never forgets that the characters are the reason readers care about the outcome. The schemes are clever, but the friendships and personal struggles make the story memorable.

Conclusion

Creating an entire fantasy world is difficult. If its rules, cultures and conflicts are not developed carefully, readers will quickly begin asking questions that the story cannot answer. Bardugo has taken the time to build the Grishaverse into a setting that feels much larger than any individual novel.

Still, Kaz and his crew are what truly bring this corner of the world to life. Each character is compelling on their own, but their chemistry makes the duology special.

I enjoyed Crooked Kingdom a lot. It was an exciting, emotional and cleverly constructed conclusion that made me glad I discovered Leigh Bardugo’s work. If you enjoy fantasy novels featuring elaborate schemes, found family and characters who must overcome impossible odds, this series deserves a place on your reading list.

Happy reading!

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