by Pierce Brown

"I live for the dream that my children will be born free," she says. "That they will be what they like. That they will own the land their father gave them." "I live for you," I say sadly. Eo kisses my cheek. "Then you must live for more." Darrow is a Red, a member of the lowest caste in the color-coded society of the future. Like his fellow Reds, he works all day, believing that he and his people are making the surface of Mars livable for future generations. Yet he spends his life willingly, knowing that his blood and sweat will one day result in a better world for his children. But Darrow and his kind have been betrayed. Soon he discovers that humanity already reached the surface generations ago. Vast cities and sprawling parks spread across the planet. Darrow—and Reds like him—are nothing more than slaves to a decadent ruling class. Inspired by a longing for justice, and driven by the memory of lost love, Darrow sacrifices everything to infiltrate the legendary Institute, a proving ground for the dominant Gold caste, where the next generation of humanity's overlords struggle for power. He will be forced to compete for his life and the very future of civilization against the best and most brutal of Society's ruling class. There, he will stop at nothing to bring down his enemies... even if it means he has to become one of them to do so.

by Leigh Bardugo

Preceeded by [Six of Crows](https://openlibrary.org/works/OL17332479W/Six_of_Crows) BOOK TWO of the [Six of Crows Duology](https://openlibrary.org/works/OL19758128W/Six_of_Crows_Crooked_Kingdom) Crooked Kingdom is a fantasy novel by American author Leigh Bardugo, published by Henry Holt and Co. in 2016. Set in a world loosely inspired by 19th-century Europe, it takes place days after the events of the duology's first book, [Six of Crows](https://openlibrary.org/works/OL17332479W/Six_of_Crows). The plot is told from the third-person viewpoints of six characters.

by C. G. Drews

*Once upon a time, Andrew had cut out his heart and given it to this boy, and he was very sure Thomas had no idea that Andrew would do anything for him.