Crooked Kingdom

 by Leigh Bardugo

This book, Crooked Kingdom, is everything that YA novels could be. It genuinely took me through just about every single emotion a person could feel. Happiness, excitement, grief, anxiety, and just about every other emotion in between. Bardugo’s writing just held me captive for so much of this book. There were many times I did not want to put this thing down. And I don’t know if it’s just me having read so many of her books this year that I just know, but I was kind of starting to see where she’d be taking the plot, but then she’d surprise me with something I hadn’t been anticipating.

Every character in this ensemble cast got a proper arc. Kaz, Inej, Jesper, Wylan, Nina, and Matthias. They all grew so much over the course of this book and the last. At some point it really felt like these were people I knew, and saying goodbye to them was so bittersweet. I rarely grow to have that kind of attachment to characters, and I think it’s a testament to how well they’re all written. They each have their own goals, personalities, and pasts. It doesn’t feel like anyone is there just to fill an empty space. And when something happens to any of them, I’m on the edge of my seat. The stakes get so high in this book.

This is a duology I think everyone should read at least once. It’s just so well crafted. Between the plot, the characters, and just the order in which each chapter is presented in terms of which character we’re following, makes for such a good experience.

Spoilers for this book start below.

 ☀☀☀

Why do authors let their characters die?

This is a question I ask whenever a beloved character is allowed to pass. In this case, Bardugo kind of gives it to us in chapter 42:

“We were all supposed to make it,” said Wylan softly.

Maybe that was naive, the protest of a rich merchant’s son who’d only had a taste of Barrel life. But Jesper realized he’d been thinking the same thing. After all their mad escapes and close calls, he’d started to believe the six of them were somehow charmed, that his guns, Kaz’s brains, Nina’s wit, Inej’s talent, Wylan’s ingenuity, and Matthias’ strength had made them somehow untouchable. They might suffer. They might take their knocks, but Wylan was right, in the end they were all supposed to stay standing. 

This is the Personal Fable. It’s the belief that one is so special and unique that they are invulnerable or immune to consequences. It’s something a lot of young people experience, and the Crows are certainly in that teenage demographic, which makes this message so poignant.

Matthias’ death is a reminder of the Crows'—and our own—mortality.

It’s a reminder that we are not immune to the consequences of our actions. Even the things people might think they’ll recover from easily, like a broken bone, a sprained ankle, a knock on the head, can have lasting consequences down the line. Your joints might ache when the weather gets cold. Your ankle just doesn’t feel as stable as it once did.

But life moves on. The world keeps turning. People will keep waking up in the morning, and they’ll go to sleep at night. You can’t let yourself be held down by events from the past. You have to keep moving too.

Thanks for making me think about death today Bardugo. I appreciate it.

Good luck out there!
🐾 maomi