Naturally then, when I saw Leigh was coming to the UK on a tour for her latest novel Hell Bent this year, I did not make the same mistake I made in 2016 and immediately jumped on the opportunity to get a ticket. The next time Leigh Bardugo toured the UK in 2019, I wasn’t able to go because I was working at the John Lewis cafe in Cambridge at the time, and my shifts didn’t end until 6.00 so I physically couldn’t get down to London (the closest tour stop to me) to make it in time for the start of the event. The following year I absolutely devoured Six of Crows in about a week (which is very fast for me for a book of that length) and immediately regretted my terrible life decision not to take up the opportunity to meet her when I’d had it. Anyway, at that point, I’d bought Six of Crows but I hadn’t read it yet and I’d never read anything by Rainbow Rowell, so being the absolute idiot I am I said no as I thought it would be awkward going to an event where I hadn’t read either of the authors’ books. Now for a little bit of context here, because it’s important for later in this recap: my friend Nicola invited me to go with her to, I think it was a combined Leigh Bardugo/Rainbow Rowell event in Edinburgh when we were at Uni back in 2016 (and yes, it does scare me that I’ve been out of Uni now for almost as long as I was there! But two of those years were lockdown years, so I feel like those shouldn’t count, right? RIGHT?). It is of course, the fabulous Leigh Bardugo.

Hi everyone! I’m super excited about today’s recap because I’m talking about an event for an author who I had been dying to meet for a good….five or six years? I think I first read Six of Crows in 2017, so five years sounds about right.

Me being my usual awkward self with Leigh Bardugo!

Pirate queens leigh lewis