Date A Book YA Book Club discussion

Hi Readers,

Time for another week of discussions! This week we're diving into part 4 of the book (Chapters 21-26 [inclusive]).

Remember this is an open discussion, but try not to post out of the parts being discussed. Have fun!

1. We see a lot of anti-magic views from the Fjerdans – what’s your take on magic from Six of Crows? (i.e. Nina, Fjerdan, Jurda Parem) If you’ve read the original Grisha Trilogy, did your view change?

2. Why do you think Inej stayed with the Dregs? She has these epic skills for hiding and keeping silent, but she didn’t use them to go home after she was no longer chained to The Peacock.

3. What do you think happened with Kaz and Pekka Rollins?

Send us your favourite quotes from this part for #DABbookclub

Is everyone ready for another week of discussions? We are!

As long time readers of Leigh Bardugo, we had mixed feelings about the use of magic. We're Team Grisha at DAB head quarters, so the early look at Fjerdan magic-hate pulled at emotional strings (mostly anger, but also sadness when Nina is commenting on the Ice Court's obvious Grisha creation) But we're also a little scared about the idea of Jurda Parem.

What are your thoughts on the magic use so far?

This book is picking up so much pace now! You almost think you're nearing the end of the adventure but there's still more twists . . .

1. I get the whole idea that the Grishas and the Fjerdans have deeply ingrained beef with each other for "reasons" but I still just see the Fjerdans as baddies! Do we even meet any other than Matthias who show like empathy? And Matthias is like a cute wooden board (I do like the Nina breaks down his woodenness a bit).

2. So I suppose the whole idea was that she would be chased down by Per Haskell for voiding her contract, but I also feel like The Wraith could have escaped. Maybe she has a lot of stuff to work through, before she could return home? And maybe she found similarly broken and stuck souls in the Dregs . . .
**can't half tell I'm a romantic**

3. Oooh good question. I want to think that Kaz just got in his revenge then and there. Maybe some people won't appreciate that bloodthirsty thought, but I think it's well deserved, and Kaz needed that closure. However, Kaz is crafty in every way, and I also think he needed to find a truely poetic way to make Pekka play. The question is, did Kaz do it already, or is Pekka still in the game?

Fav quotes:

"Pull your shirt up over your mouth," [Jesper] told Wylan.
"What?"
"Stop being dense. You're curter when you're smart."
Wylan's cheeks went pink. He scowled and pulled his collar up.
(I ship these two so much)

Also . . .
In the end, Kaz Brekker was just a boy, and [Inej] had let him lead her to this fate. She couldn't even blame him. She'd let herself be led because she hadn't known where she wanted to go. The heart is an arrow.

There's plenty of twists and a lot more action still to come!

We think Matthias is a big softie (with a few misguided views, obviously), but it's hard not to judge the rest of the Fjerdan nation. It does make you wonder about the mechanics of Grisha magic and how a Fjerdan would react to actually growing up with powers in that situation. Do they run? Hide - when you can't walk into the court without being tested by amplifiers? We'd be curious to see a Leigh book dive further into the Fjerdan world.

Team DAB are all in that same romantic boat as you, Kelly. We've got our favourite pairings and everything looks better with a bit of flirting on the side. We like to think a certain someone kept Inej hanging around, despite her fancy escaping talents. And boy did she show off a few of them this time - scaling a shaft with boiling walls! Mad skills.

Oh, now there’s an interesting thought. We hadn’t considered that the Fjerdans could be a bit jealous of the power handed out. They do have a bit of a mystical belief system – Djel being the bringer of life – and they worship heavily. But that power is out of their grasp. Maybe it is jealousy!

1. I am really enjoying the magic side of the story. Maybe that's because a lot of the magic we are really seeing is from Nina and it's all for the mission so she is doing it for a reason and not just because she wants to. Although I don't like the idea of the Jurda Parem being used on Grisha. It seems that it's too strong for them and what they turn into is really good for no one.

As for the Fjerdan I think they are basically just scared of the unknown and instead of getting to know the Grisha or understand their powers they are just tying to eradicate them so they feel like they have won.

2. I think she stayed with the Dregs out of loyalty and pride. She basically wants to pay back every cent that Kaz paid for her release and square everything off before she leaves. I also think it's because she feels a bit safe and like she has a family with the Dregs. Also of course I'm pretty sure she habours some serious feelings for Kaz.

3. I'm in two minds here. I either think that he beats the crap out of him and leaves him for dead or convinces him to join their team and guarantees his freedom only if Pekka gives up everything in return.

Jessica's Bookworld wrote: "I am really enjoying the magic side of the story. Maybe that's because a lot of the magic we are really seeing is from Nina and it's all for the mission so she is doing it for a reason and not just because she wants to."

We're always super curious about how new readers are reacting to magic use. We are a bit swayed because we've seen the darker side of Grisha magic in Leigh's first series. But you're right in saying that Nina isn't malicious in her magic use. Sure, she has used her power to hurt before, hard not to when you're part of a war, but she doesn't take pleasure in harming your average person.


We agree that it would be nice if Kaz did a little physical damage to Pekka. But we also sort of want to see it on the page. It's a bit like a "pics or it didn't happen" moment - we need to see it to believe it! Kaz deserves to have his revenge seen by the readers.