#i just love the friendship between kaz & jesper ok

[cameliawrites]

For the fic asks, people probably beat me to them but: 🤡✨🦅 and just for funsies... 🧠 for Jesper since I'd love to know some of your thoughts on him

Cat, my beloved! Have some answers (with a bonus Kaz/Jesper friendship ficlet at the end, because I love these fools)!

🤡 What's a line, scene, or exchange you've written that made you laugh?

Maybe this errs on the sweeter side of funny, but there’s one tiny exchange in “what a mother wants” that I’m really fond of.

The backstory is that a few summers ago, I babysat quite frequently for some dear friends of mine. Their kids have an impressive collection of stuffed toys, and of course, each and every one of them has to have a name—and to my surprise and amusement, these little fuzzy pandas and sloths and such are often named after fully-grown, real-life adults in their lives. Like, first AND last name and all. 😂

SO. All that to say, I’m very very fond of this exchange between Kaz and his daughter, which I not-so-slyly slipped into a parenthetical aside near the end of the fic:

Say thank you to Aaji, Kaz had instructed her, and when Lieze complied, he’d asked her, What will you name it? Lieze had contemplated for a moment, face taking on an expression reminiscent of her father. Jesper Fahey, she’d finally declared decisively, and Kaz had groaned.

✨ Give you and your writing a compliment. Go on now. You know you deserve it.

Oh goodness! Okay. Um…

Well, I’ve always been fond of this line near the very end of “someone to watch over me:”

When she entered her room, she noticed that the four showy flower arrangements had been removed. Instead, atop her pillow sat a small bouquet of geraniums, clearly hand-picked, and tied with a single red ribbon.

Inej opened the small note attached to the ribbon, already grinning widely, her heart fluttering like petals tossed to the wind.

I drew the imagery of “petals tossed to the wind” from that (iconic) scene where wild geranium petals rain over her when Kaz rescues her at the Goedmedbridge in Crooked Kingdom. The simile felt quite apropos for a fic scene where Kaz is leaving a little geranium bouquet for her. 🥰

🦅Do you outline fics or fly by the seat of your pants?

👖👖👖My fics usually come together in patches—I’ll have a scene here, a scene there, a scrap of dialogue, a concept of a given’s scene choreography… but then all the connective tissue between those points isn’t determined until I’m actually writing. This is part of why I mostly write one shots; I think outlining a multi-chapter fic would be a nightmare for me. 😅 (And also, the time constraints of law school make it hard for me to plan ahead that much.)

I really enjoy the freedom I have in this creative process. For me, writing fic is a total escape from the strictures of academic/professional writing, and I worry that holding myself to a strict outline would suck a bit of the joy out of it. But I know that for other people, it’s just a helpful organizational tool! I spend more time on the back end of fic writing (editing and revising and figuring out how to piece existing scenes together) than on the front end (planning and outlining). Everyone’s process is so different!

🧠 Pick a character, and I'll tell you my favorite headcanon for them. - Jesper

(why did this turn into a mini-fic? why do I do this? ….here, have a thing:)

Jesper is the first person to whom Kaz confesses that he loves Inej.

The moon is high and the bottle of whiskey is running dangerously low. The two of them are sprawled out on the grass of the Van Eck garden looking at the night sky, because it was suddenly very important for a very drunk Jesper to point out all the constellations Colm Fahey taught him, and to pass along the stories Colm had learned growing up on the Wandering Isle.

The first mistake Kaz makes is disputing Jesper’s account: “No, you’ve got it all wrong,” he slurs, “My Da told me and Jordie this other story about those three stars on the right…”

And because Jesper knows a bit about Jordie by now, he becomes solemn and quiet; sobered, even in his utter drunkenness, as Kaz tells the story.

“I’m sorry you lost him,” Jesper finally whispers, and for a long moment, the trickle of the water in the nearby canal is the only sound between them.

Kaz grumbles something unintelligible at first, refusing to meet Jesper’s gaze. “It’s been ten years,” he finally articulates, and Jesper can see him clenching the grass at his sides with his pale, ungloved hands. “It shouldn’t still hurt. If I were stronger…if I were stronger, it wouldn’t still hurt. I got even with Pekka Rollins. I got my revenge. What’s left?”

“What’s left?” Jesper retorts a bit too loudly, pushing himself up to sit on his elbows, then immediately collapsing back to the ground at the wave of dizziness that follows. “What’s left is that you loved him, Kaz. Like I loved my Ma—like any of us still love anyone we lost. The love doesn’t just…fade away, just because they’re gone,” Jesper spits out, gesturing wildly with his hands. “And you’re an even bigger podge than I thought if you think that makes you weak,” he finishes resolutely, waggling one drunken finger near Kaz’s face.

Kaz rolls his eyes at the insult (and the finger), but seems to let the words sink in; the expression on his face tells Jesper how intensely he’s turning them over in his mind.

“Ugh,” Jesper groans, “what are you scheming about right now?”

“I love Inej,” Kaz starts simply—and it is a simple statement; a simple truth; one that neither Kaz nor Jesper is really surprised by, even if Jesper is a smidge surprised Kaz is actually willing to admit it out loud. “But I haven’t told her. Just in case…” Kaz’s mouth clamps shut, then opens once more, as though he cannot resist the drunken spill of words from his mouth at this moment. “I don’t want to be left alone with that kind of hurt ever again.”

And the pain, the fear, that washes over Kaz’s face for an uncontrolled instant—too long to believe Kaz doesn’t feel anything, even if he tried to deny it—has Jesper sliding his hands over the pearl-handled revolvers at his hips, trying to resist the urge to reach out and do something stupid, like hug his best friend.

“You wouldn’t be left alone,” Jesper promises fiercely. “Not this time. Not ever again. I haven’t always made myself trustworthy, but tell me you trust me about that much?” he pleads.

Kaz nods slowly, his throat bobbing as his gaze remains fixed determinedly on the sky.

“Good,” Jesper breathes. “That’s—that’s good.”

When their voices fade to silence once more, something like relief rises in the quiet that they’ve left behind.

“Kaz?” Jesper can’t help but ask a few minutes later.

“Hmmph.” The hangovers are going to hurt tomorrow.

“You’ve gotta make me your best man, okay?”

Kaz shoots up in a panic. Jesper maintains his position on the ground, arms tucked lackadaisically beneath his head. “We’re not getting married, Jesper.”

“Of course you aren’t,” he laughs airily. “I mean, you’d be a real asshole if you didn’t tell her you loved her before you proposed.”

“Fuck you, Jes.”

“Love you too, Kaz.”

#i just love the friendship between kaz & jesper ok #see accidentally writing mini-fics when I get asks is why it takes me so fucking long to reply to each one lmao #camelia answers #lia talks #camelia writes

[tangerinecherrygal]

Small S&B S2 rant for my two followers or; SOC and S&B shouldn't have been combined (opinion)

Hi, this is my opinion and if anyone here enjoyed both seasons then I'm so happy for you. There are things that I enjoy that my friends don't and them pointing that out isn't a personal attack on me. Different strokes for different folks :)

Ok, first, since season 1 I hated that they combined both series. The story between Alina and the crows was completely different and felt disjointed.

I do wanna say I have read the first S&B book and I don't think I'm finishing the series because, i didn't like the way it was written. I also couldn't finish season 2 for some of the reasons I'm going to list now. However, I'm still able to critique how the show felt and it felt messy.

The relationships: (Season 1 mostly)

The relationships between everybody but Mal and Alina felt very forced and sudden. Like when she kissed the Darkling I was like, you've talked for a total of 45 minutes??? and it feels like those were their only interactions. In the book it was also like that but I feel like if they just focused on the s&b storyline then the writers could rectify this.

Also the 15 minutes of Nina and Matthias and then they're in love?? Even if this is a backstory that isn't in the books they could explore it in a different show. That storyline was so interesting and could've easily been a show by itself. The same for the rest of the crows.

Kaz and Inej's interactions mostly involved Jesper (who I loved). So I didn't really feel the chemistry with them. Buuut... the friendship between them felt very real and was so fun to watch. These actors are so charming and suited the characters I think.

The pacing (Both):

Because they combined the storylines they couldn't explore the relationships much like I said before. Also, they couldn't show much development, especially Alina developing her powers. In the books they explained why she was so weak but didn't in the show. I think it was a nice point. (The analytical part of me wants to say it's a good allegory for how suppressing parts of yourself can wear you down. Since this is a YA series I feel like it still has life lessons so that's how I took it). They could have given us more time with Mal and Alina's friendship too, instead of those flashbacks. Alina getting 'over' Mal also felt like it came out of nowhere.

In season 2 it's even worse. Already in the first episode it felt like we had no time to settle into the new situation. Of course, it's going to be fast paced bc they're on the run. I'm talking about how it feels like I'm watching a a playlist of under 5 minute s&b then soc videos. I saw someone say that they were trying to combine all 6 other books. In the 8 episode slots that stupid Netflix gave them??? Ok guys.

Things they should have changed: When Alina got mad at Mal for not responding. It makes their friendship seem less authentic. Yes, I know she's quite young and scared (me too), but she's also able to be a bit rational. It's unbelievable that she wouldn't consider there may also be some other reason that he hasn't responded even if it's for a moment. If she maybe thought that he might not have been able to respond or if he was outside of the base camp and he couldn't get the letters yet. Then she could realize that she can't rely on him so much and needs to support herself. This would also make her confidence later feel more reasonable because it feels like she's working on it for herself.

More time with the Darkling in the first half. In the books I was annoyed that she went from being terrified of him to trusting him implicitly without much reason. Maybe if he was more involved with giving her advice then she might feel like she would be able to trust him.

Genya's hair. I can't deal with bad tv wigs, I think since I started being more interested in drag. This is a more petty thing but in the words of drag queen, Katya: If you have a fantasy show you're adapting for the screen, you can pull it together. If there is a fantasy world that you're adapting, [you've] got to say one thing, "this world is not real." This is not Ken Burns, we can take a little bit of liberty. We can do a low light, do a bang, we can experiment with some texture, we can make it whatever we want. Just make it look good. People get hung up on the good part. Like they could have at least given her some side swept bangs to hide the hairline. That was so twisted and evil I think. My girl was done so dirty.

This is more of a question. Why isn't Alina's surname Starkova?

The dialogue: What the hell? The downgrade between the writing from the previous season to this one. I'm not going back to watch and find exactly what I mean. But some of the dialogue felt so unedited and cringey. They are capable of snark and one-liners, they proved that in the first season. I think it was Nikolai that was the worst so far and the actor was working hard to make those lines work.

Finally, I hate you Netflix: (impromptu netflix rant)

I understand that most of the problems I mentioned could be fixed if they had more time. They could have a better chance of making the combined stories work. The other option is to keep the eight episodes and just adapt s&b.

The 8-10 episode format can't work for everything. GOT could do it but it takes a lot to pull that off for a fantasy show and not every production can do that with the constraints.

Also netflix clutches it's purse tight when it comes to non Stranger Things related content. $28m? For a FANTASY SHOW of a hugely successful book series? That's less than a single ST episode. Netflix open your purse girl, we know you have the money.

It's obvious they crammed a bunch of stuff into this season so if netflix cancels it, then they could have appealed to all the fans and wrapped it up. At the expense of quality :/. If netflix wouldn't cancel all their shows after one or two seasons, then i believe this wouldn't have happened. Idk how they expect to make legendary shows if they won't take that risk and let the fanbase gradually grow. That's how GOT, the office and breaking bad etc became so iconic.

I liked season one and thought it had a lot of potential. I was so disappointed that i didn't like this season.

#*gemma collins voice* these producers are fuckin idiots #wait I like my version lemme start an ao3 #wig rant #s&b season 2 #s&b s2 #s&b season 1 #shadow and bone #grishaverse #sab #shadow and bone netflix #grammar isn't real #especially at the end #impromptu netflix rant #the darkling #alina starkov #genya's wig was not giving #i laughed so much writing the wig part #i care about wigs ok #s&b spoilers #s&b #malina #six of crows #netflix is a joke

[raindroplady]

Shadow and Bone: A Long-time Fangirl’s Incoherent Rambles

uhh ok the show was SO GOOD! it had no right being so so fucking good. Kanej and Helnik were perfection!!! And the show actually made me like and root for Mal, guess there’s a first for everything.

I thought that they did a really good job intertwining all the plot lines, Helnik was a bit removed from the rest of the story but they definitely set up S2 really well (NINA-JOINING-THE-DREGS ORIGIN STORY ASDHAISFHBAKSJFH)

MY FAVE PARTS/CHANGES IN NO PARTICULAR ORDER (SPOILERS)

- alina being a character with agency (i really loved that they made it her choice to go on the skiff, instead of her being assigned, it really showed how much she cares for Mal and makes her a more active protagonist instead of a passive/reactive protagonist like I felt she was in the books, also when she climbed into the crow’s get-away ride LMAO)

- Alina being half Shu, being an outsider all along for her race and how she deals with that isolation and the new isolation of being the Sun Sumonner

- Ivan/Fedyor (the ship I didn’t know I needed #heartrenderhusbands)

- the Morozova’s collar melding into Alina’s collarbone isntead of just being a collar really emphasized how fucked up the Darkling is and how far he’s willing to go to use Alina for her power, I thought it also made it clear to Alina that she did not matter to him, plus it was just horrifying to see her have to deal with her body being modified like that :(

- MAL, just Mal, they changed so much of his character, this boy would do anything to protect Alina and he loves her so SO much omg

- THE HINTS TO JESPER KNOWING ABOUT KAZ’S PAST MAYBE MORE THAN INEJ DOES (like when he asks if Pekka recognized Kaz) THEY’RE BESTIES YOUR HONOR

- just the Crows man, they have such good chemistry, I thought their character’s were all well-written and even though the tension between Kaz and Inej is OBVIOUS, Jesper never feels like he’s third-wheeling too much - it’s obvious he’s an integral part of their crew as well and both Kaz and Inej care deeply for him

- Jesper killing Volcra while cuddling a goat

- MILO 

- Kaz being his true mastermind self and having figured out that Arken was going to kill Alina

- ALINA GIVING INEJ HER KNIFE

- Inej being the only one to hurt the Darkling, there’s nobody doing it like her

- Jesper wanting a demolition expert (oh baby you will get a demo expert, Wylan crumbs leave me alone I’m such trash for him)

- the way they showed Kaz’s touch-aversion (like when Inej was hurt and he was clearly conflicted between wanting to help her and not wanting to touch her or the way he hestitated before shaking anyone’s hand)

- KAZ BEING JEALOUS (Jes?)

- Inej remaining true to her faith and morals, struggling with killing but doing it anyway to protect the people she cares about, also by SoC Kaz and Inej already trust each other with their lives, it’s nice to see the buildup of how they got there

- Jesper being the one with the “fuck my way out of a con” plot line (and bi representation)

- the subtle hints at Jesper being a Grisha, specifically a Fabrikator or Durast, (like when he directs bullets in crazy ways to hit Ivan in the same spot, Ivan about to say “you’re a --” before Jes gets defensive and knocks him out, Jes fixing Kaz’s cane) I truly can’t wait for this reverse reveal and I don’t think he’s told anyone yet soooooo that’ll be interesting

- Nina and Matthias’s chemistry, god they’re so good together 

- all the Jesper and Inej moments, the platonic male-female friendship I NEED

- just every single one of Jesper’s lines, every time he breathes, I am down bad guys send help 

ok I will shut up now, don’t expect me to post about anything else for a solid week lmao 

#shadow and bone #alina starkov #the darkling #malyen oretsev #aleksander kirigan #six of crows #nina zenik #jesper fahey #kaz brekker #inej ghafa #heartrender husbands #shadow and bone spoilers #shadow and bone show #shadow and bone S1 #malina #kanej #helnik #milo #matthias helvar

[thrillridesz]

This is completely unnecessary and completely dumb but as an avid fan of six of crows, I’m going to assign a crow + shadow and bone character to my moots today for no particular reason other than the fact I feel like it. (if you haven’t already read Leigh Bardugo’s six of crows duology, what are you doing. I haven’t yet read S&B so I’ll base it completely off the Netflix show.)

!NO SPOILERS! (So rest assured)

+ also consider this a love letter to y’all.

[My moots as SoC crows + Shadow and Bone characters]

Kaz Brekker - @timextoxhajima

Resourceful, ingenious and cunning - these are all words that describe Ketterdam’s infamous ‘Dirtyhands’. Having single-handedly led the Crow Club to its esteemed, notorious status in the Barrel in a matter of a few short years, this man is shrewd and nothing can get past him. Determined in everything he does and well-prepared for any obstacles that stand in his way, Kaz Brekker is a crook to be well-respected, valued and feared. 

Just like Kaz, I think Dana is a very clever person and I’ve never really seen her break a sweat over anything even when under intense pressure. She’s strong and very dedicated to everything she does which is super admirable. I feel like both Kaz and Dana give me the vibes that if they’re around, everything will be fine because they are able to handle anything thrown in their way.

Inej Ghafa - @sunqnyu

Inej, for a wraith, is probably one of the characters with the strongest moral compass I’ve ever seen in a book about a heist. She is kind, sensitive and merciful. When she’s after something she really wants, she doesn’t hold back and charges ahead (and she's great at what she does) but will never hurt others on her way there. Inej is a crow that cares about the people around her, especially the ones she loves, sometimes putting their own needs above her own. 

To me, Bella and Inej have a lot in common when it comes to their kind personalities and ability to see the good in everyone. They don’t treat people differently and are never mean to others. They may be soft hearted at times but can also be some of the most headstrong, competent people. Sometimes, I read SoC again and think of the similarities between Bella and Inej. It's uncanny.

Jesper Fahey - @yangyanghater

The best way to describe Jesper, the sharpshooter would be that of a volatile, crackling firecracker. Restless, full of chaotic energy and teasing, this man has a silver tongue and can quite literally chat his way either into trouble or out of. He lives on adrenaline rushes and when you talk to Jesper, you never know what you’re going to get. Laughter would be a good bet.

Cal and Jesper should just be twins at this point. Seriously, when it came to Jesper, I was just immediately like ‘Ok, Cal. No doubt about it.’ They both radiate such chaotic energy, I HAD TO. The sarcasm that they both have are one of a kind and I think talking to Cal would be very much like talking to Jesper. You always feel excited or intrigued. 

Nina Zenik - @moonsunwoojoong

A Grisha heartrender, Nina does more than practice the small sciences and is able to quite literally charm others just by being herself! She is confident, witty and very strong at heart. Never one to care about what others have to say about her, she expresses herself freely and openly. Her flirtatious wiles endear to everyone and she is truly a people’s person. Loyal to a fault, Nina never leaves her own people in a rut.

Amber and Nina... God, they would make an amazing pair. I feel like they would both sort of ‘get’ each other? Like they would both understand each other because of how similar their views are. Amber gives me very confident, segcy vibes just like Nina does and like Nina, Amber’s loyalty and softness for her ‘own people’ (like friends, family) is super endearing. 

Matthias Helvar - @berrysungie

Matthias was my favourite character in the SoC duology when I was first reading it, and he still is. Courageous and protective of those he loves, this Drüskelle will stop at nothing to defend those he considers dear to his heart from any danger out there even if it meant putting himself in harm’s way. He is a fighter, noble and though frigid and misunderstood at times, he only truly loosens up around his loved ones and will never, ever betray his allegiances.

Daisy and Matthias are both FIGHTERS. They never give up without a fight and firmly stand by their beliefs but are also very open to new opinions and are in no way, close-minded. They both strike me as very noble people and not gonna lie, sometimes I’m intimidated by Daisy as I am when I read about Matthias sometimes. It’s like they’re both so cool and I’m a potato.

Alina Starkov - @nyuwings​

Alina is upright, inquisitive and brave. We’re talking about a girl who chooses to face almost imminent death for the sake of a close friend. She may be naive at first but she learns quickly and she learns well. When she puts her heart into something, she excels at it. At the end of the day, no matter what happens, her loyalties are firm and she knows her rights from her wrongs. Willing to learn from her mistakes, that’s what makes the Sun Summoner so great compared to the other Grishas who are largely blinded by their own egos.

Elle always gave me main character vibes, I swear. Especially when we’re talking about main characters like Alina Starkov. When I talk to her, I sometimes feel like she has this untouchable, special aura? Like I want to tell her everything and I trust her. Like Alina, she's got a good head on her shoulders and I’m not sure honestly... Could it be the ‘Chosen One’ vibes?

Wylan Van Eck - @lsangyeons

Another gravely misunderstood character. Wylan is first seen as timid, afraid and constantly underestimated. Yet, what hides beneath this facade is an intelligent, tenacious soul. He is polite, considerate and full of good mannerisms despite being a part of the Dregs which honestly should have taken all of that from him but somehow they didn’t. Very kind and friendly, one should not take this sweet persona as something to be picked on because this man can quite literally blow your minds.

Yu and Wylan are to me both very overlooked. Not enough people appreciate them and it sucks because they deserve SO MUCH. They are the people that everyone takes for granted. They do not choose to make themselves known or try to take the spotlight away from their friends, but rather choose to support them from the back. They are talented but often don’t realise that they are. Very, very admirable.

Malyen Oretsev - @hhjs

Malyen to me is a very hotheaded, bold and valiant character. He never backs down from a fight and stand firm for what he believes to be right and doesn't care if there’s a thousand men going against him. This is what makes him so appealing. He does what he want when he wants and has a very strong sense of what is right and wrong.

I feel like Amal and Mal have a lot in common such that they are both very daring and firm people. They don’t let their opinions get swayed by anyone - what is right is right. They are unafraid to stand up to injustice and voice their opinions. Both exude a lot of confidence and somehow they just seem like people you like or look up to.

Genya Safin - @experimentalwrites

Genya is very much like a mentor. Her personality is gentle, encouraging and sweet. As a Grisha tailor, most of her job is focused on helping people and helpful she is. She is caring towards everyone and never discriminates. Good-natured and wise, she is the perfect definition of what a great role model should act and be like. 

Like Genya, Nabi exudes mentor like vibes to me. Around her, I feel like I can talk about my problems and seek sound advice from her. She doesn’t judge and can be depended upon. Her friendship is one I treasure a lot and her caring nature is what makes her so extremely attractive and amazing.

Zoya Nazyalensky - @sly-merlin

Zoya is what comes to mind when I think of a strong, independent woman whose leadership qualities far surpass that of others. Although prickly towards those she considers her enemies, she is very kind and forgiving towards the people she cares for. Even in great pressure, she is able to think clearly and exercise logical thinking. Her mere presence comforts those around her.

Simmi was the first person I thought of when I was thinking of Zoya. Competent, strategic and giving to her friends. They both have boss lady/queen vibes and though both may seem intimidating, are actually very sweet people. They have a hard exterior but a very soft, endearing interior. Precious beans, seriously.

#tag #lovely moots #IF YOU HAVEN'T READ SOC PLS DO

[feelinglikecleopatra]

Fanfic ask game! 3, 5 and 11 for Good Investments please 🥰

ask game! for good investments

3) again… this is so hard. i had a lot of fun writing the dance, it was easy to be playful and poetic with that sequence and boy did i take full advantage but a line that was really important for me and the narrative i wanted to tell with good investments was, Night after night, she fought for those invisible girls, confronting their demons so she might avoid confronting her own. i came away from crooked kingdom in love with our murderous revenge babies, as did we all, but i had a lot of questions about what healing would *actually* look like for them. inej sailing the high seas in pursuit of slavers is an immaculate development for her and my god am i obsessed with captain ghafa but what about her, what about (not to get all psycho babble on you) her inner child that probably doesn't need more death, for whom seeing holds full of shackled girls would be unbelievably triggering? what about her joy and her passion and her sexuality in the aftermath of it all? the modern setting helped with that too. writing about the migration system, social work and how so many people in that environment just burn out after a couple of years because the system and the problem is bigger than them was a really exciting and relevant premise for me.

5) the hardest part technically was the dance sequence. although, like i said, i had fun with it, making sure it all made sense logistically involved a lot of sketching and watching clips of pole dancers lol

narratively i think the hardest part was actually just deciding which scenes/moments in her recovery to include, what to highlight. i wanted it to be about her sexuality but i didn't want it to be about kaz necessarily. obviously, kaz would play an important role but it was vital for me that inej develop a sense of her own power and sensuality independently of him (or anyone else for that matter, except maybe her fellow dancers). seeing as i am fairly obsessed with kanej it was difficult to rein myself in and not have her daydreaming about kaz the whole time, cause i would be. if i were to go back and write it again, i think i would include more moments between her and nina. when i wrote the fic i hadn't yet realised the potential of their friendship, so where kaz gets his jesper moments, inej should have her nina moments. but hey ho, next time!

11) what do i like best...? can i put two things??? imma put two things ok first up, inej going to kaz' place for a talk, specifically, her walking past him in the corridor and getting a whiff of him and her insides just melting because omfg i am so sensitive to smell and when you like someone and their smell just hits you oof. anyway, secondly, the proposal. i'm just really proud of that cause i think it's v in character despite being so far in the future and beyond the scope of canon. like they would get married and they would talk about the legal/economic benefits thereof and i don't think the proposal would be a huge deal, just one day, kaz (or inej tbh) would be like hey you know what? it's time. i'm tying this one down. (although i am also a *huge* mega fan of @doorsclosingslowly's they got married for a job and then just stayed married hc which is also very them^TM).

ty for the ask my love!

#ask game #good investments #whatanybodygets #whitherward #kanej #six of crows

[holdurown]

🐺RULES OF WOLVES REVIEW🐺

hey so i uh. finished the book last night and here are my thoughts

disclaimer(s): this will be long and also probably incoherent. if you have different opinions that’s great, and i will be glad to hear them, just please do not be mad at me. some more important things to know might be: a) i read this in a very short period of time so my brain is a bit overloaded and that might affect my perception of the plot. b) i don’t care abt the darkling, i basically never have

also spoilers obviously

alright, let’s start with stuff i didn’t like so we can get that over with:

THINGS I DIDN’T LIKE

i really hate the trope of big bad gets defeated and it’s really narratively and emotionally satisfying and then they just...get brought back. it cheapens the end of ruin and rising for me. that was the one time i felt anything for the darkling, when he just wants to be remembered right before his death. but then he gets brought back. and i’m like 😒 ok. so i didn’t really enjoy his chapters, i don’t enjoy him as a character, and i thought his chapters stalled the plot.

the plot pacing...maybe it’s just because i did a speed run through it, but there was maybe too much going on? like the characters were doing totally different things away from each other, so some parts felt rushed. it felt like some important scenes were cut for time. one example is when david dies. we leave off with genya saying she can’t find him, and then we go to zoya’s pov at his funeral. but zoya was somewhere totally else right before? anyway, some parts felt like they were just there to wrap up loose ends, and i was kind of skimming

i could’ve done with a little more on zoya’s feelings for nikolai. like her internal monologue. we got a little bit of it, but between her realization that it’s ok to love people and let them in and the scene with their kiss, i could’ve used a bit where she was like, “oh, i need to tell him now.” a scene where she’s kind of realized that she deserves him?

this is minor, but i really thought we would get a scene between jesper and leoni where they talked about his mom’s sacrifice, idk i thought it would’ve been a nice full circle moment

WHY DIDN’T WE GET THE NINEJ REUNION IN NINA’S POV?! IM GOING TO ******* *** yeah i really wanted that

at the end, i felt like we were missing some kind of emotional climax. i don’t know exactly why i feel this way. i think it’s because the battle with zoyadragon happens and then we go straight into nikolai making a bid for queen zoya. maybe the emotional climax was supposed to be the darkling? idrk

aaaaand that’s all i can think of for that

THINGS I LIKED (OR LOVED)

the emotional beats felt very similar to fire (by kristen cashore) in some places and that’s my favorite book. the idea of pushing people away because you’re scared of the grief of their death? go read fire!

that zoya ended up on the throne. i liked it a lot, it just feels right

hannina, because i’ve been gunning for them since king of scars came out and i couldn’t find fan art or fics or anything, they are so underrated. i could talk abt them forever. the idea of nina being able to heal from the pain of matthias’ death and move on with someone else? i loved it. i think sometimes fandoms have a hard time coming to grips with the idea that people can love more than one person in their lifetime

hanne trans rep! i think this storyline was developed well, even though i kind of wanted them to be able to run wild and free in the countryside. ruling a kingdom seems stifling, but that’s just me

nina bi rep, and you know what? we get such shitty bi rep in ya fantasy, i’m still recovering from whatever the fuck sjm did. thank god for nina. the best bi rep in any ya fantasy i’ve read so far💖💜💙

that brief interlude in ketterdam. was it necessary? maybe not, but it was one of my favorite parts. i just breathe a sigh of relief when i’m around the crows again

genya and zoya and alina and nina’s friendship. i already said it in a post, but well-written female friendships are surprisingly hard to find in ya. friendship is inherently romantic! zoya holding up genya after david. zoya’s feelings for nina in contrast with how nina thinks zoya feels about her is just (👩‍🍳💋)

SO WHAT NEXT?

i don’t think we’ve gotten any news abt a sequel, so this is probably the end of the grishaverse for now. what i want most of all is a collection of short stories from different povs all around the grishaverse. just one chapter little slices of their lives. here’s some possibilities i was dreaming up

inej taking down a slaver’s ship, being a pirate, in her element

hanne and nina on vacation from ruling, maybe riding horses, just some fluff

jesper and leoni meet, it would be emotionally charged, they would talk abt his mom and she might start teaching him more fabrikator things

nikolai and linnea opjer? just linnea opjer? i’m so curious about this character

kaz waiting for inej to sail into the harbor. he’s by the docks, he has some kind of present for her. them bickering? sitting on a roof together? idk i just want to live in kaz’s pov when he’s thinking about inej

what are the khergud soldiers up to?

nikolai’s off doing diplomacy things, being charming, in his element, but then he comes back for zoya’s surprise birthday party. this would just be so good

reunion of the crows?

i’ll probably think up more. they could essentially be like one-shot fics, but i want leigh to write themmmmm

to finish, here are some parts i highlighted

hmmm i wonder what this reminds me of... “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.” oh yeah that’s it

this whole rant was such a mess i’m truly sorry if you made it this far

#rule of wolves #row spoilers #zoyalai #hannina #book reviews

[au-bound]

Shadow & Bone Thoughts (Ep 7&8)

So I blew through this series in like a day to avoid spoilers, and wanted to rewatch it slower to catch all the little things I may have missed after getting so hear others' thoughts on it. And I thought I'd do one of these types of posts (is there an official term for them? Like live tweeting but not?), since I've never done one before! I'm taking it two episodes at a time so this isn't as overwhelmingly long. Read if you like, scroll really fast if you don't!

Ep 7

-Hello again Prince Caspian

-lowkey jealous of Inej's abs

-Kaz want to touch her and help her but he c a n t and it hurts every time

-"Oh, that's dark"😬

-I stan Inej and Jesper's friendship perhaps more than any romantic ship on this show

-Ok, so in the books the one who kills the stag (or in Alina's case, decides it's fate), possesses it's power. But in the show, it's about the bones physically connected between two people? I feel like they made that choice because it's more visual, rather than Alina's internal realization, but I found it kind of unnecessarily complicated

-Here goes Mal getting skewered... again

-"Jesper fixed your cane." Wonder how he did THAT, hmmm?

-"She's real." Kaz's voice cracked because he was emotional about Inej😭😭😭

-"Kaz, if not Saints, what do you believe in?" Kruge, baby. Kruge.

-So, you're telling me Kaz worships Inej. Yeah, 100%.

-The antlers molding into Alina's collarbone is terrifying and disgusting and invasive. Perfect symbolism for a manipulative, controlling relationship

-David!!! But also, David😡

-It's pretty much impossible for me to have any sympathy for the Darkling after seeing him grab and control Alina's power. Motive does not excuse means, friend

-"Too soon to appreciate the irony, right?... Yeah, too soon." 😂😂

-Calling Kaz "limping man". The Darkling "shadow man". They got some good comebacks on this show

-Jesper's noble Zemini outfit is the kind of flashy suit I pictured all the Barrel residents wearing

-Milo!!!! The real MVP🙌

-I think the exchange in the tent with Alina and the Darkling is so interesting because she tries to tell him that he had the chance to be honest and make her his equal and they could have worked in harmony. But in his head, putting the collar on her made her his equal in power, and the accusation otherwise immediately closed him off and put him on the defensive. Hence the "Fine, make me your villain." The Darkling is still finding ways to delude himself into seeing himself as the victim, and thereby justifying these horrible means in his eyes, as you can see by just how emotional he gets with that line. I applaud the writers and actors for keeping the humanity in a big conflicting scene between hero and villain, and in this essay, I will-

-Alina's outfit looks like a dress/kefta hybrid and I want more info on it. Costume designers, hmu

"NO MOURNERS." "NO FUNERALS."

Ep 8

-Helnik is the softest ship. In the morning, they're making WAFFLES

-Fedyor!!!!! But also, Fedyor😡

-All the characters are meeting and interacting and my heart is full

-Nice shout-out to the steps of where the Fold started as they skid by

-"I never said I was smart." At least Mal is self aware

-INEJ FTW!!!!

-KAZ FTW!!!

-JESPER FTW!!!!!

-Really though, what would this scene be without the Crows? Mal and the Darkling slapping each other in the dirt, that's what

-Ok I'm sure the fist fight between Mal and the Darkling is very satisfying for both of them, but it would never actually have happened, like come on. The Darkling would have done the Cut right away, and it would be all over

-Headcanon that the Grisha all just adopt Inej

-Aww, her smile when Alina gives her the knife❤️

-"But we need you... I need you." gaaaaaaah

-"True wealth is the friends we made along the way. I'm talking about Milo of course." Jesper, I would die for you.

-I do love that it ended the same as the book. The boy and girl on a ship, bound for a new chapter together.

#last one! #which is prob for the best b/c my family is tired of me hogging the tv and pausing every few seconds to write something down #but now it's like... now what? #shadow & bone #shadow and bone netflix #six of crows #shadow and bone spoilers #sab spoilers #shadow and bone

[imaheartbrekker]

THINGS I NOTICED WHILE REREADING SIX OF CROWS

- Ok why is Jesper’s crush on Kaz SO FREAKING OBVIOUS??

- The angst between Nina and Matthias HURTS

-  “He needed to know she believed in him” KAZ, YOU ADJHFHGFIYD

- THAT GIRL TALK BETWEEN NINA AND INEJJJJJJ

- More importantly, Wylan is the smolest (is that a word?) cinnamon roll ever AND I LOVE THAR HE’S GONNA TURN INTO A SINNAMON ROLL AYAYAY

- (Jesper and Inej talking about how Kaz was like a hive of bees)

“So what are we doing here?”

Jesper turned back to the sea, feeling his cheeks heat. “Hoping for honey, I guess. And praying not to get stung.”

Inej bumped her shoulder with his. “Then at least we’re both the same kind of stupid.”

...

THAT SCENE

SO BASICALLY THEY WERE LOWKEY CRUSHING ON KAZOO TOGETHER

- AND KAZ WAS WATCHING THEM TALK THE WHOLE TIME 

- “He didn’t want Inej. He just wanted their routine back.” yeah you definitely did not just think Inej’s name when she asked you about what you wanted mhmmmm

- Jesper and Nina’s friendship so so good lol

- But Jesper and Inej’s friendship is so pure 💗💗

- MY WAFFLE QUEEN IS SAD NOOOOOOOO

- KAZ ADDRESSING THE WRAITH AS THE LOVELY INEJ WHEN HE WAS INTRODUCING EVERYONE TO MATTHIAS

- Sad lil lovestruck puppy has called her as HIS Wraith

- Kaz de-eyeballing Oomen is still one of my most favorite scenes ever.

And that’s all for today, ladies and gentlemen. Hope you’ve been fed. 

#soc #six of crows #kaz brekker #inej ghafa #kanej #kaz x inej #ninej lol #jk jk i slightly ship it tho but not seriously lmao #nina zenik #helnik #matthias helvar #wylan van eck #or van sunshine #jesper fahey #💗 #wesper #kuwei #grishaverse #leigh bardugo

[sterek]

Have you read Shadow and Bone?? Would you mind giving a recommendation on it? I read the Wikipedia, but those are always very Generic. With you I know I have Teen Wolf and Umbrella Academy in common, so what's your fan-opinion on it? What's good? What's bad? Lovable characters? Hateable characters? Is there any rep? These things. If you don't mind, of course!

Ok here’s the thing! The Shadow and Bone trilogy is, in my opinion, not mindblowingly good. HOWEVER, Six of Crows (set in the same world as the Grishaverse, only a couple years later) is my favorite book series ever and it’s absolutely amazing. Shadow and Bone the tv series is a crossover between the Grisha trilogy and Six of Crows. So, if you want to read, my recommendation is to absolutely read Six of Crows and Crooked Kingdom (the sequel) and when you inevitably fall in love with the world and the characters you should give shadow and bone a try (also King of Scars which is another duology part of the grishaverse that came out recently). If you don’t want to read the books, at least do watch the show, I have such high hopes!!

Here’s why you should read six of crows and why we hope the show is going to be as amazing:

1) Incredible world-building and a plot that keeps you guessing and keeps you on your toes constantly

2) main cast is very diverse: kaz, disabled and mentally ill, Inej, woc who also suffers from ptsd and was kidnapped and sold as a child, Jesper, moc who suffers from a gambling addiction and is canonically queer (possibly bi/pan but the label isn’t mentioned), Wylan, another queer boy who has a learning disability, Nina, a fat girl who’s considered incredibly sexy by everyone and who is also queer coded (possibly bi/pan), Matthias, who despite being raised to be hateful (against the grisha) learns to be better and is arguably the most innocent in a lot of aspects (even tho he’s described as being very tall and muscly). Many of them are orphans or have only one parent (or a bad parent, looking at u Wylan).

And this is just the cast main cast of soc! There are so many other incredibly diverse characters and storylines, it’s amazing.

3) the relationships: Inej and Nina, the two main girls, absolutely love and support each other and are loud about it. In no moment do they fall into the stereotypical f/f friendship tropes. Jesper and Wylan are the m/m pairing of the series and boy are they WONDERFUL. That’s all I’m gonna say. Kaz and Inej are romantically coded throughout the series but both of them have a lot of issues and their relationship reflects that. The romance never goes too far and the writing is very respectful of the ptsd both of them have and Inej, despite showing how much she cares about Kaz, never loses her identity and basically says that no matter what she won’t let herself drown because of him, her own life is more important than the relationship. Nina and Matthias are tragic star-crossed lovers who help each other grow and overcome prejudices and Matthias loves everything about Nina, which is very lovely to read.

4) The plot is wild and a huge part of the books, but the characters’ characterization never suffers because of it. Despite the series having 6 mains, all of them are incredibly well-rounded and developed, to the point where the plot could suck and we’d still love the books just because of them.

There are so many things I love about this verse. I believe the show will be very much worth the watch, so stay tuned for it :)

#not sterek #i'm all over the place but I hope I made some sense lol #Anonymous #asks

[that-wraith-girl]

SOC: modern skateboard AU

I’m a sucker for sport related books and I wanted to do something for Jesper & Inej friendship but then I got new idea and it turned out in a hc I want to thank @pandabigleux for Kuwei with a kick scooter and Kaz as the boss of the skatepark 🌸 and @seule-sur-la-mer-immense for the support and the correction

and I’m sorry for the possible typos 

Jesper: 

is really good with a skateboard 

 can do a lot of tricks and people will bet with him that's how he broke his arm  because someone bet he couldn’t go in the bowl

 wears a different flannel every day AND HIS PROUD OF THIS

 always cheering for the beginner kids

the skatepark is his second home since he's 15, that's why he's famous there He always a bi flag pins on him 

 if you hear someone being really loud it's him being 10000% supportive, he's a proud mom ™  

 had an instagram where he posts those really aesthetic videos of him skating around Ketterdam. People always ask him how he finds those spots (that's inej and she loves to film him from roots or other dangerous places) 

 Kaz: 

 the boss of the skatepark 

was a good skater but then he had an accident and prefered to retire from  competition 

has a black aesthetic and loves it. He always has his gloves and cane, without them it wouldn’t be him

has a resting bitch face and scares the kids but inside him he’s a proud mom like Jesper

talking about Jes, they’re friends since they’re 16 and nobody knows it was them but for two weeks they tagged the skatepark with small drawings of crows 

does a lot of magic tricks while he watchs people training but what he likes the most is to pet dogs nobody knows but he has instagram only to follow good dog content

patchs Jesper when he’s hurt, like the good best friend he is

Wylan:

wylan doesn’t skate AT ALL

this child as like 0 balance but we all know Jesper is ready to help him  ( ͡° ͜ʖ ͡°)

look...I can picture him wearing overalls with a yellow sweater underneath (he’s wylan van sunshine after all)

goes in the skatepark to play the flute, at first he was self-conscious but then everyone knows him and asks him to play some dramatic tune for when they do a kickflip or something like that Jesper looooves to impress Wylan. Spoiler: it works

he probably takes pictures of cute flowers around the park, maybe he even does flower crowns with inej ? 

he loves the skatepark. At first he wanted to escape his home and his father, and it helps him to cope with everything. He can just be himself and nobody makes fun of him for not being able to read

Nobody knows how it happened but Kaz adopted Wylan and now he is Kaz’s assistant for his magic tricks

Inej:

she got bored of dance and decided to start a soft gang of roller person

nina joined and that’s how their friendship started !

inej loves to play ‘floor is lava’ even though she is in roller. Of course she always wins and that’s the story of how she won the nickname ‘the wraith’

Nina and her have matching outfits for when they train

OK so one day they go to the skatepark and here the rivalry starts ! Jesper bets they can’t be better than him and his friends. They have one week to create a  choreography and people will vote for them

Inej does cartwheels and splits ! 

jesper and her become best friends, he teached her how to skate and they love to go in the skatepark during the night. Somethimes Kaz joins them

Nina:

she uses the roller gang to promote body positivity ! She even created a charity event with inej to raise money for kids so they could have new equipment to join roller and skate groups

she has a part time job in a flower shop, it’s very close to he skatepark and she always go there during her lunch break

she wants to design clothes for all type of body and she starts by designing the team’s outfits 

once her and Kaz planned a heist in a waffles shop. Did they did it ? Who knows

she loves to bet with Jesper, that’s how they exchanged their life for one day. Inej loved it

nina has a pastel aesthetic, she takes a lot of pictures of her and her friends. She always has something nice to say in the captions

Matthias:

loves to workout and decided to run in the park WITH HIS DOG ! It’s a husky and when Kaz spots the dog he is in h e a v e n

and oh surprise Nina is always here at the same time not in a creepy way, I promise

at first he hasn’t notice but once he does, it become a tacit agreement between them that they will try to be the fastest. 

it’s only when his dog, Trassel, jumps on Nina one day and ruins her outfit, that Matthias talks to her and asks her out. She said yes of course

he never tries to skate or do something else because he can’t trust those things. Nina and Jesper tease him 

Remember that Kaz likes to follow insta dedicated to dogs ? Matthias has one and Kaz is a fan of his account 

Kuwei:

my son, uses a kick scooter and he’s very good

wears an helmet with dinosaurs on it

always have juice on him for other because “your body may have 60% of water but you need to stay hydrated!”

look he’s just the purest and I will fight you on that

maybe he even does vlog and collab with Jesper ? And once he tried to make Kaz participates but he just looked at them from afar (he spotted a dog, couldn’t be here for the video, yk)

asks Inej to teach him some basic tricks in roller 

kick scooter is his coping mechanism because he studies science at uni and the pressure is hard

#soc #soc au #soc modern au #modern au #skatepark au #inej gahfas #inej #nina #nina zenik #matthias #matthias helvar #kaz #kaz brekker #wylan #wylan van sunshine #kuwei #kuwei yul bo

[leezuhh]

For the character thingy: Jesper and Nina

ok so:Jesper FaheyHow I feel about this character: Jesper is one of my favorite Dregs and I love him. Protect him even though he can probably take care of himself. If he died I would riot.Romantic ships:-Wylan. Always just Wylan. They're adorable together and I love them.Non-romantic OTPs:-Jesper and Kaz-Jesper and Nina-Jesper and everyone elseOne thing I wish had/would happen:-I wish Leigh had developed Jesper and Kuwei's relationship more. After the kiss it was kind of just awkward and no one really discussed it, but I want them to talk to each other and become friends. The whole love triangle was annoying because it made people hate Kuwei and ruined his possible friendships with Wylan and Jesper.Nina ZenikHow I feel about this character: Badass!! I love her, she's amazing and another of my favorite Dregs! :) If she died I would stab Leigh and then myself.Romantic ships:-Matthias. He deserved better, I tell you.-Inej. They were so pure together. The chemistry between them is so plentiful and they'd be adorable together.Non-romantic OTPs:-Nina and Jesper-Nina and Inej (despite the romantic ship they also have a great canon friendship!)-Nina and everyone (Who wouldn't wanna be friends with Nina?)One thing I wish had/would happen: I wish Leigh could've explained more about Nina's ability, how it changed, and if there were others like her. Surely someone else had to had survived the withdrawal? There might already be a character that I don't know of, someone tell me if there is :) I also don't understand much about her new ability. Can she only raise corpses that haven't completely decayed? Can she control bones, or just the general recently deceased? Can she ever regain her old ability? Is there more to this ability?

[its-btrz-blog]

Six of Crows (by Leigh Bardugo) Book Review

Six of Crows is the first of two books in a new duology by Leigh Bardugo, published between 2015 and 2016 by Henry Holt and Company, the second book being Crooked Kingdom. It is set in the Grisha universe, the same as the Shadow and Bone trilogy by the same author.

What made me want to read it:

Both books have been well voted in the YA Fantasy Category of the Goodreads Choice Awards and have been praised to hell and back. Everyone seems to love it. In addition, after reading Shadow and Bone, and more or less enjoying it and being drawn to the universe, knowing there were two more books set there that everyone said were much better, I had to come read it.

What is it about (no spoilers):

In the city of Ketterdam, Kaz Brekker, known as Dirtyhands, is part of a street gang called the Dregs. His reputation gets him an impossibly dangerous job offer: to break into an impenetrable fortress in a hostile country and retrieve a high security hostage. To do so, he will to reunite a crew who can help him pull it off, enticed by a very high reward.

What I thought about it (no spoilers):

First of all, I have to say, I thought this was much better than Shadow and Bone. I really liked the world building on that one, but the whole chosen one saves the world plus a love triangle is a bit overdone already, in my opinion, and while it was entertaining I wouldn't say it became a favorite of mine.

Now this book, I think, managed to expand on that world building and take what it already had and create a good story upon it. I like that we have multiple nations, with individual languages and cultures (as I thought it had been a missed opportunity in the first series) and that we have characters from different backgrounds.

Now, on to the main characters. There are six of them, though only 5 get POV chapters, and I'll say right away that I thought their interactions felt real and were fun to read, and that each of them has their own motivations and their own development apart from the main plot. Which is a good thing.

OK, Kaz first. He's the main character, out of the six main cast. I'm going to say I didn't like him. I don't know exactly how to explain, but sometimes it seems a book is too much in love with their main character and so, tries to make the reader feel the same too, at the expense of it being very forced. He's 17, and he's already this super criminal, although he only started at about 15 or so (I think). That could be fine, he could be a really good manipulator and pick pocket and con artist. But it's the effort of making him the “demon” (as another main character calls him) and someone to be afraid of and make him too awesome that fails. We get enough scenes to see he's not really a (typical) hero or a good person . He's greedy, he has personal grudges, he targets innocents, people die and get hurt because of his actions. We see the plans he conceives, we see him being the gangster he's supposed to be so there really is no need to keep telling us (and exaggerating) what you are already showing, as the telling gets to be too much. Aside from that, which I think diminishes his character, there's my personal tastes, in that, I'm a bit over the bad boy with no feelings (they're just really hidden, but OK) thing. But if he were not put so much in a pedestal I think I would've liked him a bit better.

Moving on to the two girls in the crew: Inej and Nina. They are both strong characters on their own right and I have to say I liked them. Inej is known as the Wraith and is the best gatherer of intelligence of the gang, moving as a shadow and being good with knives. She's had her problems and now she's part of the Dregs and is loyal to Kaz and respected and liked by the crew. Despite her being a strong fighter, there is thankfully none of the “not like other girls” stuff nor she degrades things associated with female gender. Since this seems to be a trend with these types of characters, I was surprised with not seeing it here. Nina is a Grisha, who left Ravka after the Civil War in unpleasant circumstances. Being a Grisha, she is powerful and beautiful. She knows she's beautiful, she loves to eat, she's funny, she can flirt and she builds a friendship with Inej. Again, positive, since it's not usually how things happen in YA.

Mathias is an interesting character, morally speaking, having been a Grisha hunter, basically, and now struggling with his new position in life, that questions his core beliefs and the way he was brought up and educated. Love plays a part in it, but it's not in a love-fixes-all kind of thing and I actually like that despite everything he is, at his core, an honest person.

Wylan comes from a rich merchant's household and is, naturally, out of place among the band of misfits. He has however unexpected talents and a role as a type of hostage. Basically the naive kid among other kids who've been trained as soldiers and have had their circumstances turn them to rough street living with dangerous skills. Although we don't see that much of him, and he's not a POV character, I kind of liked him and am hoping to see more of him.

Finally there's Jesper. My favorite out of the six, and I guess, by now I know I will just like this type of character: deeply flawed with an addiction problem that he recognizes but can't easily get over, but who actually cares for the ones with whom he works (and it's clear they like him too) and sometimes feels under appreciated. He's part of the Dregs gang and good with guns. At first you don't really understand what someone with a noisy talent is doing in a stealthy operation but you soon see.

A note here: I like the grey morality of this series. Many characters are not good people, or do bad things while knowing that they're doing them. They don't always think of the “greater good” or of what is best for others or of who they're hurting and that's refreshing to see. Anything else would've been out of place. Of course, some of them are good people and do care about others, but even so, their actions are sometimes contrary to this.

As for the plot itself. I said the saving the world thing is getting old for me and I'm glad that we got to see this complex universe used for a different kind of story. Before we get to the operation itself we get a glimpse of the workings of Ketterdam's underworld and gang politics and I have to say that attracts me. As we move on and the pace picks up, you won't get many dull moments, since there's a good balance between action and in-between bits of  the characters' backstories, showing us more about who they are as individuals, what are their motivations and ultimately, what is at stake for them with the mission. It's thrilling to see the mission unfold, and how they deal with the unexpected obstacles that appear in their way, and the book transmits a sense of excitement in the reader. There is, however, a problem here, concerning this. Of course, as the mission goes on, many times something goes wrong and you're supposed to feel the tension and try to figure out how they're going to get out of it and be surprised when they come up with a clever solution. Only, you see, most of those times, it turns out things didn't really go wrong, it was totally planned, Kaz saw it coming and already told someone what's the plan (you didn't know because the POV character also didn't know or just decided not to think about about it) and that kind of drains the enjoyment of things. Like, fine, he's this super criminal genius and all, but deliberately hiding things from the reader, repeatedly, just for the surprise factor… meh, I feel cheated. I'd have rather known what the plan was and see the characters getting themselves out of the problem without there having been a hidden solution everyone but me, the reader, knew.

Then there's the romance. I feel like a senile old person repeating herself over and over, but romance just for the sake of it is… bland. There are many fantasy books out there who could still keep their story and appeal without the romance but at this point it justs seems a rule that every YA book needs romance. Every character needs to be in a romantic relationship by the end of a book/series. To me, personally, most of those romances aren't appealing and feel unnecessary and I know others who think the same. Friendships, rivalries and all kinds of relationships other than romance ARE appealing and interesting to read. But expanding on that and specifically, on this book. There are six main characters. Of them, 4 are already basically paired up since the beginning. Meaning, they are in love already and aren't together merely because there are still some obstacles (that will obviously be overcome next book) to the relationship. You don't really see them developing feelings for each other (in one case, there are some flashbacks but… well there are more important things to deal with then) you are just informed they are already there, and then get to know what are the impediments to their love. This isn't enough for me to get invested in these relationships. Incidentally, the two remaining characters will, of course, by the laws of YA, end up together, but although I saw it coming from the very beginning, I'll say that it's actually the relationship I care most for (or will, I don't know if they actually end up together yet, I just started the sequel, but as I said, laws of YA). Because, those characters only just got to know each other, and I can see the transition from strangers to forced acquaintance to eventual friends and whatever comes next. The fact that it was also not a speed-of-light romance (you know, I've known you for 2 weeks but you're the love of my life) also makes me like this more. Although reviews are of course subjective, this paragraph specifically deals more with my personal tastes on the matter, I guess. It doesn't mean I didn't enjoy the book, only that this is a point that exasperated me when I read.

Conclusion:

I found it a very good book (4 stars) and to anyone who liked or found Shadow and Bone interesting, I definitely recommend it. To anyone who didn't read it/doesn't feel like doing it, although I think it's a good foundation in terms of world building (more on the Grisha front and backstory on their situation), I also recommend it, because I find it so different. It deals with a separate situation, it's less cliché overall (or less obvious about it) and the characters feel more real and likable. A narrative that escapes some of the tropes of the previous series and that manages an interesting story that makes a better use of the universe created.

In short, go read it.

[My review for this book can also be found here.]

#six of crows #leigh bardugo #grishaverse #book reviews #breviews #reviews