A review by _artemis
Crooked Kingdom, by Leigh Bardugo

adventurous dark emotional funny 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

4.75

I cannot overstate how much I adore this duology. I was really unsatisfied with the Shadow and Bone trilogy and I feel like the writing in this series is just... lightyears better. The action doesn't stop, the twists keep coming, and the weaving of all the countermoves are brilliants. And fun. Like these series are dark, but they're so incredibly fun. Something I think S&B lacked as it went on. 

That being said, this book really dug into these characters' traumas in a way that I found deeply moving and just painted the whole pictures of very broken people. Not that I had any trouble rooting for this gang of teen criminals before, but understanding them so completely really took them to the next level. Also showing broken people still being capable of saving the world? Love that. 

My biggest complaint is that the book feels like it ends so suddenly. We wrap things up and then bam, we're done. Perhaps at this point the author hasn't really mastered the art of the ending (another issue i had with S&B). This series really delivered and I get all the hype. I don't know how I feel about

Spoiler

Matthais dying tbh

. It was another part of this messy wrap up at the end that I struggled with. Also, chapter 40 was cruel!! lol. 

Anyway, I love these weirdos so much. I miss being in this world already.