Reviews with content warning for Genocide - Six of Crows

This was a re-read. I read the book when it first came out and I had forgotten it so completely by the time the sequel came out that I felt I had to re-read it…but I didn’t until my book club chose to read it because it was so incredibly forgettable and all I could remember about it was that it was exhausting.
So after a second read, here’s my review: the story is mostly fun - assemble a team and pull off a heist! The pace is fast, the writing style is very fun and engaging. The downsides: the characters are completely unbelievable and not at all engaging. The cleverest, most dangerous person in this crime-riddled city is…17. Okay. 🙄 Everyone has to have a ridiculous, toxic romantic entanglement with another member of the crew. 🙄🙄 deus ex machina around every corner, tropes heavily reliant on stereotypes, gratuitous trauma as a substitute for actual character development …bah. No wonder I remembered it being exhausting. The writing and the action are good enough to carry it through, but at 8 years old it already feels dated.

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arobear's review

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adventurous medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Plot
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.0

I had a good time while reading this book, but I thought I would get much more attached to the characters given the hype I'd heard from others. It is a good character study--and who doesn't like a good heist plot?--but the plot itself felt a bit predictable for me.

I also ended up not liking the main ships that much, but I think that may be because the characters felt distant through the multiple viewpoints. It was all a bit disjointed and I failed to see the chemistry between some of them. That may just be my preference for one narrator though.

Overall, a good read, and I'll be reading the next in the series.

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On reread after Crooked Kingdom:

After learning more about the character backstories, I felt much more connected and invested in their stories throughout the book. Wylan and Jesper in particular - I wish there had been Wylan POV in SoC. Multiple POVs really do throw me off, so the reread (and particularly the audiobook) made that easier. Still not 100% on board for Nina/Mattias, but fell hard into shipping Wylan/Jesper and Kaz/Inej. 100000% would die for any of these kids!

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rrio's review

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adventurous dark emotional funny tense fast-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.5

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katies_bookshelf's review against another edition

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adventurous dark emotional funny medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? It's complicated
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

5.0

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a_win_in_clear_rain's review against another edition

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adventurous dark emotional mysterious tense medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.25

I did end up liking it, especially the second half, but it took a very long time for me to get into the story...
Glad I kept pushing through though, because it was worth it in the end!
Might have to read the sequel even though I wasn't planning on it.

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