If you’re looking for a story of angsty teens with the world’s biggest chips on their shoulders, look no further! I personally enjoyed the dark, gritty, and bleak aspect of this book…but maybe that’s just my fall reading taste. It’s a gangster heist story dealing with a lot of heavy themes, but I think everyone will find something to love in this story. The plot advances well, and the characters are really well explored, so I’m excited to see what happens in the next book…because that ending of Into The Crooked Place is pretty devastating. While the story is unequivocally a fantasy novel, I do want to say that if you’re triggered by violent/abusive situations, you might tread with caution.
Our story begins on the streets of Creije with Tavia, a young woman who peddles dark magic wares, with a dream of escaping and leaving that life behind. There’s also Wesley, who dreams of bringing the kingdom to its knees, leaving behind the young boy who grew up hungry and alone on the streets of Creije. Karam is a warrior who serves as a bodyguard during the day, and by night she spends her time in the fighting rings, making a deadly name for herself. Finally, there’s Saxony, a resistance fighter who’s hiding from those who ruined her family, and will do everything she can to get revenge. When Tavia mistakenly gives a vial of dark magic to a loved one, she sparks a conflict larger than our four players. Now they must work together, but with enemies at all sides, they can’t trust anyone, least of all each other.
Make no mistake friends, this isn’t a happy story. At first I was frustrated, because I often read stories of characters who slowly lose their innocence, which gives characters an added depth and makes them more relatable. Not having that really rubbed me raw, making me feel as bleak as they were…as desperate for relief. I won’t lie, I almost put it down because I felt like we were getting nowhere fast. But suddenly, these characters begin to show you snippets of themselves, before horrors came, before those terrible nightmares made them into jaded individuals. Some of the characters show those aspects faster, but the ones that make you wait are worth it. I’ve never had a book sink its claws into me this way before.
The plot grows quickly and with four perspectives, it can get tangled quickly, but Christo keeps these voices separate and easy to follow. It moves along at a fairly moderate pace, not so fast that you’re struggling to keep up, but not so slow that you’re wanting to put it down. Moreover, I was fascinated by the magic system. It’s a commodity that’s being bartered around, and more importantly, there’s an addictive quality to it. A lot of stories look at magic behind these rosy glasses that seem like it’s the end all be all, but not here. Magic is dangerous, too much is addictive, and the dangers are very real. I wanted to keep exploring more of the magic. I definitely want to see more in the next book.
Character-wise, Tavia is my favourite. The self-awareness about her is incredible, something that seemed to have been achieved thanks to her circumstances. Her stubborn and reckless behaviour is fun to read, and nail-bitingly thrilling. Her friendship with Saxony is wonderful, while also showing the frayed relationships between her Wesley and Karam. Honestly, the tension that fills each and every character’s relationships are so great. There’s also something else I can’t talk about because of spoilers, but man, am I excited to see that voice again in the next book.
There is definitely romance in this book, the slow kind that makes you want to push them together and yell “KISS ALREADY”. We’ve also got rekindled romance, the kind that’s full of love-lorn glances and pushing each other’s boundaries to see who’ll fall in first. I enjoyed reading both romances, but the family relationships are truly where it’s at! Those dynamics are truly heart-breaking, and just adds another level to the angst that these characters experience. I don’t feel that there’s one story that’s the most heartbreaking, but there is definitely one that we don’t get to explore in this book that I’m dying to find out about.
I think the only issue that I had with this book is that it felt really off in the beginning, but that’s a personal opinion. However, that did affect the pacing for me for about a third of the book, but then it picked up into the moderate pace that I really enjoyed. I do wish that there had been a little more descriptive imagery, because the story is stunning, and I wanted a clearer picture of what was happening.
Overall, I would rate this story an 8/10. It’s a wonderful read with awesome characters, and I’m excited for what is to come in the next book. You should definitely give it a read if you love heist stories! I’m excited to have it on my shelf next to my copy of Christo’s To Kill A Kingdom!
Into The Crooked Place is available from Amazon, Book Depository, and other good book retailers as of October 8th 2019.
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Synopsis | Goodreads
Into the Crooked Place begins a gritty two-book YA fantasy series from Alexandra Christo, the author of To Kill a Kingdom.
The streets of Creije are for the deadly and the dreamers, and four crooks in particular know just how much magic they need up their sleeve to survive.
Tavia, a busker ready to pack up her dark-magic wares and turn her back on Creije for good. She’ll do anything to put her crimes behind her.
Wesley, the closest thing Creije has to a gangster. After growing up on streets hungry enough to swallow the weak whole, he won’t stop until he has brought the entire realm to kneel before him.
Karam, a warrior who spends her days watching over the city’s worst criminals and her nights in the fighting rings, making a deadly name for herself.
And Saxony, a resistance fighter hiding from the very people who destroyed her family, and willing to do whatever it takes to get her revenge.
Everything in their lives is going to plan, until Tavia makes a crucial mistake: she delivers a vial of dark magic—a weapon she didn’t know she had—to someone she cares about, sparking the greatest conflict in decades. Now these four magical outsiders must come together to save their home and the world, before it’s too late. But with enemies at all sides, they can trust nobody. Least of all each other.
