I Think One Of My Favorite Things About How Kaz Is Written Is That His Limp Was Caused By Something So

How Six of Crows taught me that it was okay to not always feel fine

Since today is World Mental Health Day, I wanted to address a side of Six of Crows that has always been quite an important aspect to me.  

Mental illness and awareness is a huge topic in today’s society, and right of the top of my head, I can think of some brilliant YA novels that talk about the subjects; The Perks of Being a Wallflower, It’s Kind of a Funny Story, Turtles all the Way Down, and so on. The list is endless. But there seems to be a distinct lack of YA fantasy books that deal with mental health topics. I did a google search, and sure, you could argue that Harry Potter suffers from PTSD (controversial topic which I’m not going to express my opinion right here), or that Frodo Baggins suffers from depression (not a YA book, but you get the point), but the actual amount of YA fantasy novels where we can actually all agree that the protagonist or a side character suffer from a mental illness is incredibly small. Yes, it does exist, and a quick shoutout to all the fantasy authors who do write about mental health issues. I’m not gonna name any out of fear for forgetting any, but feel free to reblog this with any fantasy YA mental health awareness books you’d recommend (my personal favourite apart from SoC would probably be the Raven Cycle).

But honestly, Leigh Bardugo shows us that it is very much possible. A couple of her protagonists suffer from actual mental illnesses, others are insecure, or non-conforming in some way. Their issues are smoothly integrated into the story and help advance the plot by creating problems and secrets. It makes the characters incredibly interesting and round. It creates the least-cliché romantic side-plots I’ve ever read in a YA novel. And you know what? I think we, as readers, can learn something from every single one of the Crows.

Kaz Brekker teaches us that mental illnesses shouldn’t stop us from achieving our dreams. He teaches that you can not be able to touch anyone but still be powerful. That a horrible childhood doesn’t have to drag us down. Kaz teaches us how to be determined.

Inej Ghafa teaches us that faith can get us anywhere. She teaches us how to stand up to the people we’re afraid of, and that things that have happened to us in the past don’t have to define us. Inej teaches us how to be strong.

Jesper Fahey teaches us that it’s sometimes okay to go off the rails. That people make mistakes (and sometimes make a lot of them). Jesper teaches us how to be human.

Wylan van Eck teaches us that we are not our parents. He teaches us that we have the right to be our own people and don’t have to follow in anybody’s footsteps if we don’t want to. He teaches us to not listen to mockeries and insults. Wylan teaches us how to be independent.

Like Jesper, Nina teaches us that sometimes, we make terrible mistakes. she teaches us how to make them right. But she also teaches us to not be ashamed of who we are, even if we are different or special, and that our body weight does not define us. Nina teaches us to be proud.

And Matthias. Matthias Helvar teaches us that the way we we were raised doesn’t define us. You don’t have to follow the morals and the values and the hatred that may have been burned into your head. He shows us that people have the ability to change. They have the ability to forgive and be forgiven. He shows us that sometimes it’s okay to not know whether you’re doing the right thing. That sometimes, humans lose their way and have to find it again. Matthias teaches us how to develop.

Determination, strength, humanity, independence, pride, development. You know what? Those are some values I can get behind. And these six anti-heroic criminals teach us so much more. Of course, they teach us that it’s okay to not be heterosexual. They teach us that love isn’t always easy. That sometimes our pasts catch up with us. That we can’t always do what we want. But they also teach us that there are always people out there for us. A family. Friends. People who love us.

And I guess I just wanted to say thank you. Thank you to Leigh Bardugo, for creating such wonderfully human characters that I cried for and smiled for even though the real world was trying to drag me down. Thank you for creating characters who helped me understand that it’s okay not to feel fine.

And I also wanted to say, to everybody who is reading this horribly long monologue of mine (thanks for that, by the way), that you’re an amazing individual and you too can be a total badass like our favourite criminals if you put your mind to it. Stay safe, folks. And stay strong.

Happy World Mental Health Day.

Minor six of crows spoiler

“Go little rockstar” but it’s aditi watching Jesper overcome his addiction and find peace within himself

“I hear a symphony” by Cody Fry is literally Wesper

GUYS THIS IS NOT A DRILLL

YALL KNOW WAT THE CLOCK MEANSSSS

Kaz in Six of Crows: 

Kaz in Crooked Kingdom: 

This scene, honestly. I just love it. especially the part where Kaz says "that's the laugh".🧡😭🧡.

Also... That little "is my tie straight" vulnerability from Kaz is one of the most precious things I have read.

And also that "He had his arm around her".

The fact that they both had such deep wounds and their PTSD. And also maybe because they never really had any kissing scenes, my brain has just made all of of their encounters super intimate. And. I.cant.stop.crying.

I just love this scene so much.

dramione fic rec list

COMPLETED SERIES

this is my first deep dive into dramione and i wanted to share these amazing series i’ve read in the last few months. no particular rank or order to this list. enjoy!!!

Manacled - @senlinyu / @senlinyuwrites  if you’ve delved into Dramione at all, you’ve most likely heard of this incredible dark epic. it takes place in a Voldermort Wins!AU and takes inspiration from the Handmaiden’s Tale about population control in this new frightful era of the Wizarding World. be prepared for all 77 chapters to consume you in this tale of love, loss and hope in between. 

+ emphasis on dark epic. the writer themselves have acknowledged that with such dark and heavy themes, there are large aspects of the story that may be triggering for some people and therefore manacled might not be the fic for you - and that’s totally okay! (what’s important is that you take care of yourself) as always, read the tags and know your limits. + senlinyu is a phenomenal writer, often collaborates with @elithien, pairing their artistry together. @avendell is also another great digital artist who has worked closely with senlinyu, even creating multiple companion art pieces for Manacled (but try not to let the art spoil some parts of the fic for you!!!) + senlinyu has soo many Dramione works, just follow them & dive into it!

Bone Mortar - @mightbewriting enemies to lovers is a given in everything i’m about to talk about in this post, but this short and sweet series takes us to a modern!au setting of academia. what’s not to love about these two professors who are about to go head to head over a little administrative conflict at the start of the new school year?

Keep reading

Cruel prince reader here: NOPE can't do it! Valerian forced her to the ground and made her eat fearie apple which makes her lose control of her body and mind. Sound very similar to date rape drug. Like I know it's called CRUEL prince but I figured the way everyone was stanning Jude and Cardan that he wasn't gonna be too bad. Sure he wasn't the 1 who did that but some shit just crosses the line and he has to be help responsible for the actions of friends trying to impress him. Tumblr is fucked up

Okay. 

I’m going to start with the Faerie apple scene, and then I’ll discuss Cardan and Jude.

Faerie is a dangerous world, right? So dangerous for mortals, in fact, that they cannot eat the food without salt, they can’t eat certain apples, they must go around with rowan berries to avoid charms, etc. etc. The world Holly Black creates is scary, and cruel, and one you would not want to live in. 

However, this is Jude’s home. She’s been forced to grow up here. She’s been forced to live and survive despite the cruelty around her, and she’s survived. In fact, she’s incredibly brave for not only learning how to live in this world, but also standing up to those who aim to hurt her. 

And Jude, for so long, has been keeping herself safe. This moment of eating the Faerie apple, then, while horrible, reminds Jude, and by extension, us (the readers), that Faerie isn’t a safe place. Any safety that Jude had felt up to this moment is gone. She’s vulnerable and can’t stand up for herself and it is cruel. Horrible. Terrifying. It’s a reminder that this world is not meant for mortals, that dangers lurk in every crevice, and even out in the open. It’s a reminder to us, too, that Jude isn’t invincible. She’s human, just like us. 

Now, onto Cardan. 

I’m not just going to say ‘Faeries are cruel,’ because sure, they can be, but Cardan does need to be held responsible for his actions. He and his behavior shouldn’t be written off. 

He’s a bully. He causes pain. And yes, when Jude and Taryn were thrown into the river, he does try to end it sooner. If I’m not mistaken, too, he does try to get his friends to stop their actions in the Faerie fruit scene. But yes, he is cruel, and treats mortals terribly, and treats lots of people terribly, actually, but he was also abused. Is abused. That’s not an excuse for his behavior. Don’t get me wrong: he treats others with immense cruelty at times, and that shouldn’t be ignored or excused. But, it is all he knows. There’s more about why Cardan’s the way he is in the sequel, The Wicked King, but the little moments we catch of how he’s treated by Balekin helps to explain his cruelty. 

That all being said, I think the characters of Jude and Cardan are very dynamic, and as the book (and sequel) show, they aren’t just the badass and cruel characters that we originally met. They are both vulnerable and have been through traumatizing and horrible experiences and that does, inevitably, shape who they become. Ultimately, though, it’s not who they have to be. And I think that both Jude and Cardan are learning that. Particularly Cardan. 

So yes. There are incredibly cruel moments in the book. I think that was going to be unavoidable, particularly when Holly Black’s created such a dangerous world. But those moments don’t necessarily undermine the rest of the book, or the series. 

ALSO, there’s a difference between stanning Joost - who was an innocent boy who literally didn’t mean to harm anyone and was just caught in the crossfire of an experiment gone wrong - and stanning an entitled white woman who wanted to harm a girl of colour because she thought she would find glory in her death. 

Basically: Dunyasha stans don’t try to excuse away your bad behaviour and learn reading comprehension 🙄