20 Thrilling Books Like Six of Crows You Should Read ASAP

Recently updated on July 12th, 2024 at 11:28 am

Looking for books like Six of Crows? I’m obsessing over these 15 books (and you will too!)

This post contains affiliate links. That said, I won’t ever recommend a book I haven’t read and loved myself

No mourners, no funerals. Six of Crows is an epic fantasy heist book that combines a daring heist, shocking twists and unforgettable friendships.

Leigh Bardugo is a #1 best selling fantasy author and the Grishaverse is now a Netflix original series. I read Six of Crows recently. And I can see why so many people love this book.

But it gave me such a reading slump. And got me searching for books like Six of Crows to read. So, I’ve compiled the absolute best books I’ve read similar to Six of Crows.

Here are 15 books like Six of Crows.

1. Spellhacker by M.K. England

A fantasy heist with witty banter and a memorable friendship group. This is set in a modern, city setting.

Spellhacker is one of the most similar books to Six of Crows that I’ve read. It has a diverse cast of characters, a high stakes heist, and a criminal mastermind main character.

Set in a world where magic ( known as maz) was once freely available. But an earthquake unleashed a deadly plague. And now maz is a tightly controlled and expensive commodity.

We follow Diz who runs an illegal maz siphoning business with her three best friends. They get offered one last massive heist that could change everything.

2. Mistborn: The Final Empire by Brandon Sanderson

Fan of Six of Crows? Then you need to read Mistborn! This features an epic heist, action-packed adventure and epic character.

Criminal mastermind, Kelsier recruited the underworld’s elite, each of whom shares one of his many powers, and all of whom relish a high-stakes challenge. Then Kelsier reveals his ultimate dream, not just the greatest heist in history, but the downfall of the divine despot.

But even with the best criminal crew ever assembled, Kel’s plan looks more like the ultimate long shot. Until luck brings a ragged girl named Vin into his life. Like him, she’s a half-Skaa orphan, but she’s lived a much harsher life.

3. Throne of Glass by Sarah J Maas

Are you after books with morally grey main characters? Throne of Glass features a badass assassin released from prison.

We follow Celaena. She is an assassin who has been imprisoned. She is summoned to take part in a contest to become the King’s assassin.

This is a long fantasy book series to get stuck into with so many YA tropes to love such as enemies-to-lovers romance, morally grey characters and love triangles.

This is perfect for fans of Six of Crows. It features a morally grey main character and a high-stakes plot. There is also plenty of witty banter and plot twists.

4. Lore by Alexandra Bracken

Did you enjoy the revenge plot in Six of Crows and Crooked Kingdom? Then you’ll love Lore.

Lore has an excellent revenge storyline. And if you enjoyed the revenge elements in Six of Crows then this is a great book to read.

Every seven years Greek Gods are hunted by descendants of ancient bloodlines. If the hunters succeed they seize their immortality. It follows Lore Perseus who has turned her back on this world.  But as the next hunt dawns, two participants seek out her help.

Highly recommend if you want books like Six of Crows.

5. Powerless by Lauren Roberts

Are you a fan of The Throne of Glass, THe Red Queen and Six of Crows? Then you will love Powerless. A ya fantasy with a sassy street thief as the protagonist.

We follow Paedyn. She lives in the Kingdom of Ilya. Only the exceptional, powered Elites belong in the Kingdom. These powers were gifted to them by the Plague. Those born Ordinary are banished to preserve an Elite society.

When Paeydn unsuspectingly saves one of Ilyas princes, she finds herself thrown into the Purging Trials. The brutal competition exists to showcase the Elites’ powers—the very thing Paedyn lacks.

6. These Violent Delights by Chloe Gong

Searching for books with gangs and criminals in a city setting? Then you need to read These Violent Delights. A Romeo and Juliet Retelling set in 1920s Shanghai.

Set in Shanghai in 1926, a blood feud between two gangs leaves the city helpless.  And in the grip of chaos.

We follow Juliette Cai, an 18 year old at the heart of all the chaos. She’s a former flapper. And she’s returned to assume her role as heir of the Scarlet Gang —a network of criminals far above the law.

This is ideal for fans of Six of Crows. Rival gangs, romance and fast-paced adventure.

7. Jade City by Fonda Lee

Seraching for books like Six of Crows but for adults? Look no further than the Green Bone Saga. This is an urban gangster fantasy. Think magic and crime syndicates.

The Kaul Family is a crime syndicate in Kekon. The only place that produces magical jade.

The Green Bone clans of warriors once protected the island. What happens when tension between the Kauls and their greatest rivals erupts into open violence in the streets.

Perfect for fans of Six of Crows

8. The Raven Boys by Maggie Stiefvater

This doesn’t include criminals, thieves or a heist. Raven Boys is perfect if you specifically enjoyed the found family element in Six of Crows and the banter between the characters.

Each year in the churchyard, Blue watches her psychic mother see those who are going to die that year. Blue never actually sees them herself. Until this year. When she speaks directly to a boy.

He is called Gansey and is a student at Aglionby school. The students there are known locally as Raven Boys.

The characters and the relationships are what make this one of the best fantasy books. If you loved the friendship group and witty banter in Six of Crows – then I highly, highly recommend Raven boys.

9. A Court of Thorns and Roses by Sarah J. Maas

Did you enjoy the banter, found family trope and romance in Six of Crows? Then you’ll love A Court of Thorns and Roses.

. If you love the friendship group in Six of Crows then you should read this series. The found family trope is executed particularly well in this series.

A Court of Thorns and Roses is a Beauty and the Beast retelling. It follows Feyre. She is really poor and lives with her father and two sisters. She has to hunt to care for the family.

One day she sees a deer and can’t resist killing it to sell. But it was actually a faerie she murdered. And the owner comes to kidnap her to live at the castle as punishment.

10. The Cruel Prince by Holly Black

Are you looking for books with morally grey characters and romance? Then you might enjoy The Cruel Prince. A twisty ya fantasy series.

If you’re looking for a main character like Kaz you should pick this one up. It features an excellent enemies-to-lovers romance with a dark, brooding Prince.

It follows Jude who is a human. As a child, she gets kidnapped with her two sisters and taken to live with the fae in the woods.  She grows up wanting to be like the wicked fae she lives with.

There are a few elements that make this series so incredible. Jude is an incredibly strong female lead and an absolute badass. The enemies to lovers romance is excellent!

11. The Graceling by Kristen Cashore

This stunning fantasy is perfect for fans of Six of Crows. A high fantasy with morally grey characters, political intrigue and secrets.

In a world where some people are born with a Grace—a unique, sometimes uncanny, skill—Katsa is cursed with a Grace for killing. This makes her a perfect tool for her uncle, King Randa. Katsa chafes at being used as an instrument of punishment. Then she meets Prince Po, and everything changes.

Katsa is an incredible female lead and perfect for fans of Inej or Nina. But all the characters are well developed. And the romance is adorable. I do have some concerns about the message this sends with the main characters’ dislike for all things “feminine”.

12. Serpent and Dove by Shelby Mahurin

Are you looking for a book with morally grey characters and a captivating romance? This book has witches, thieves and an enemies to lovers romance.

Serpent and Dove is an excellent pick for anyone looking for books similar to Six of Crows. It features a slow burn enemies to lovers romance between a witch and a witch hunter. 

We follow Louise, a witch.  She lives in Cesarine where witches are hunted and burned. Reid is a witch hunter who has always lived by the same principle – thou shalt not suffer a witch to live.

But Lou pulls a stunt and it forces them into an impossible scenario – holy matrimony.

13. The Prison Healer by Lynette Noni

An underrated fantasy book set in a prison. This deserves so much more hype. And it’s perfect if you’re after books with morally grey characters, enemies to lovers romance and plot twists.

The Prison Healer is set in a ruthless death prison called Zalindov. We follow Kiva. As Prison healer, she is charged with keeping the seriously ill Rebel Queen alive long enough to go through the Trial by Ordeal.

Trial by Ordeal is a series of challenges against the torments of air, fire  water and earth. It’s assigned to only the most dangerous criminals.  

14. Daughter of Smoke and Bone by Laini Taylor

Daughter of Smoke and Bone is ideal if you’re after books with morally grey protagonists

Karou has 2 lives. And she’s always managed to balance them both. On one hand, she’s a seventeen-year-old art student living in Prague. On the other hand, she runs errands for a monster. 

But then black hand prints start appearing on doorways. Scorched there by winged creatures. And Karou must choose between the safety of her human life or war. 

If you’re looking for books like Six of Crows then this is a great choice.

15. Little Thieves by Margaret Owen

If you search for books like Six of Crows on TikTok, Little Thieves is highly recommended. And it’s no surprise. It has a heist, found family and it’s full of plot twists.

Little Thieves is a Goose Girl retelling. We follow Vanja Schmidt. She knows no gift is freely given. Not even a mother’s love–and she’s on the hook for one hell of a debt.

Vanja is the adopted goddaughter of Death and Fortune. And she was Princess Gisele’s dutiful servant up until a year ago. That was when Vanja’s otherworldly mothers demanded a terrible price for their care.

And Vanja decided to steal her future back… by stealing Gisele’s life for herself.

The pace in this book is a little slow. However, once you get into it, this is an increadible read. And it’s perfect if you’re after books like Six of Crows.

16. Gilded Wolves by Roshani Chokshi

One part Six of Crows, One part Dan Brown

Adventure, an unlikely group of friends, mystery and magic. All set in beautiful Paris. Gilded Wolves also features a diverse cast hunting a magical artifact.

It’s 1889. The city is on the cusp of industry and power, and the Exposition Universelle has breathed new life into the streets and dredged up ancient secrets. Here, no one keeps tabs on dark truths better than treasure-hunter and wealthy hotelier Séverin Montagnet-Alarie. When the elite, ever-powerful Order of Babel coerces him to help them on a mission, Séverin is offered a treasure that he never imagined: his true inheritance.

17. Foundryside by Robert Jackson Bennett

searching for a book with thieves, morally grey characters and a heist? Then you’ll love Foundryside. It pairs a heist with incredible characters and beautiful worldbuilding.

Sancia Grado is a thief. And her latest target, a heavily guarded warehouse on Tevanne’s docks, is nothing her unique abilities can’t handle.

But unbeknownst to her, Sancia’s been sent to steal an artifact of unimaginable power. The Merchant Houses who control magic have already used it to transform Tevanne into a vast, remorseless capitalist machine. But if they can unlock the artifact’s secrets, they will rewrite the world itself to suit their aims.

Now someone in those Houses wants Sancia dead, and the artifact for themselves. 

 18. One Dark Window by Rachel Gillig

An enemies to lovers romance, magic and mysterious highwayman. One Dark Window is a high fantasy with gothic worldbuilding.

In Blunder all magic comes at a price. We follow Elspeth. She touches a magical providence card and is possessed by the Nightmare.

When Elspeth meets a mysterious highwayman on the forest road, her life takes a drastic turn. Thrust into a world of shadow and deception, she joins a dangerous quest to cure Blunder from the dark magic infecting it. 

A compelling read ideal if you’re after books like Six of Crows.

19. The Lies of Locke Lamora by Scott Lynch

If you’re searching for books like Six of Crows then you need to read The Lies of Locke Lamora. We follow a group of misfit thieves pulling off elaborate heists. The banter and dynamic in the group is very similar to Six of Crows.

Young Locke Lamora is a leader of the band of light-fingered brothers known as the Gentleman Bastard. Locke is soon infamous, fooling even the underworld’s most feared ruler.

But in the shadows lurks someone still more ambitious and deadly. Faced with a bloody coup that threatens to destroy everyone and everything that holds meaning in his mercenary life, Locke vows to beat the enemy at his own brutal game—or die trying.

20. A Darker Shade of Magic by V.E.Schwab

A diverse cast of characters, a magical fantasy world and magic. This is a fast-paced adventure ideal for Six of Crows fans.

We follow Kell, one of the last Antari-magicians with the ability to travel between parallel Londons.

Kell was raised in Arnes—Red London—and officially serves the Maresh Empire as an ambassador. But unofficially Kell is a smuggler.

But it’s a hobby with dangerous consequences. After an exchange goes awry, Kell escapes to Grey London and runs into Delilah Bard, a cut-purse with lofty aspirations. She first robs him, then saves him from a deadly enemy, and finally forces Kell to spirit her to another world for a proper adventure.

Those were my picks for the best books like Six of Crows

Whether you’re looking for a heist book, morally grey characters or an unforgettable friendship group – I hope you found a book to read.

What books have you read like six of crows? Let me know in the comments section below.

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